He stood tall and faced me. “We’re going to get the fuck out of here, car or no car, phone or no phone.”
Reluctantly, I followed him back inside the house. “I remember seeing a backpack in the room I was in. I’m going to grab it and see if I can find some shoes. While I’m doing that, can you grab us a few bottles of water and see if there are any snacks we can take? I’m not sure how far we will have to walk to get out of here. Oh, and grab anything else you think might be useful.”
He disappeared around the corner while I got to work rummaging through the kitchen. When he returned, he had the backpack, but no shoes. I had a pile of supplies on the kitchen counter, including water, snacks, paper towels, matches, knives, and a wad of cash. He looked at my collection and smiled. “Nice job. Where did you find the cash?”
“It was crammed in one of the drawers. Cash always comes in handy,” I replied.
“Oh, almost forgot.” He reached into the backpack and produced a roll of duct tape. “I couldn’t find any shoes. Tear off a couple of strips and put them on the bottom of your feet.”
I gratefully took the roll of tape and started placing pieces on my feet. Hopefully, the duct tape would provide enough protection for our feet to get us back to civilization. With our loaded backpack and taped feet, Shaker and I ventured outside once again.
“This looks like the beginning of a path,” Shaker said, pointing to a slightly worn area on the ground. “Shall we start here?”
I shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”
Shaker led the way, and I dutifully followed him. We walked in a comfortable silence for at least an hour. I think we were both trying to process the events of the last few days. That thought had me breaking the silence. “How long did she have us?”
“I was there almost five days. I’m guessing you were there around three. She disappeared for over six hours on my second day, which is probably when she nabbed you,” he answered.
“Do you know what time it was when she came back?” I asked.
“I don’t know the exact time, but it was starting to get dark.” He glanced at me over his shoulder. “Why does it matter?”
“Because she took me from my office on Friday. She would’ve had to wait until everyone else left to get me out of there. That puts her leaving with me no earlier than 6:30 pm. If she was here by the time it was starting to get dark, we’re not that far away from Sugar Falls,” I excitedly told him.
He nodded. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”
We continued walking, for hours. Every so often, Shaker would stop and listen for the sound of cars in the distance. My feet enjoyed each small reprieve, but the feelings of hopelessness grew with each stop. How could we have walked so far and still be in the forest? My feet were killing me, and all I wanted to do was sit down and cry. Everything was starting to catch up with me, and an emotional breakdown was looming on the horizon.
When he stopped again to listen, I couldn’t hold it in any longer. I dropped my ass to the ground and let the tears flow. “We’re never going to find our way out of here! She’s dead, and she’s still torturing us!” I balled my hands into fists and screamed to the sky, a deep, guttural sound filled to the brim with emotion.
Shaker dropped down beside me and placed his hand on my shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. He sat quietly with me, giving me time to compose myself. I was just about to tell him I was ready to keep going when I heard it. Shaker obviously heard it, too.
“A car!” we shouted at the same time and took off running, hopefully toward the sound.
He was much faster than me, and for a few terrifying moments, I was afraid I would lose him and be stuck in the woods by myself. The sound of tires screeching had me moving faster. “Shaker!” I called out, but he didn’t answer.
A burst of adrenaline appeared out of nowhere and pushed me forward even faster. Voices. I could hear voices. “Shaker!” I screamed, panting and running and hoping I didn’t die before I could make it back to Chase.
“Harper! Over here!” Shaker yelled.
I slowed my pace once I heard his voice. He was okay, and he wouldn’t leave me. Breaking through the trees, I saw the car pulled over on the side of the road first. Shaker was standing beside the car smiling like a loon. Then, I saw the last person I expected to see.
“Harper!”
“Hey, Shannon,” I said between gasps for breath, completely shocked to see my brother’s ex-wife talking to Shaker.
Shaker opened the car door and motioned for me to get in. “Shannon is going to drive us back to Croftridge. Get a load of this shit. The Manglers’ clubhouse is about five miles from here.”
I looked at him like he had grown two heads. “How in the fuck can you run that fast? And why aren’t you gasping for air? I feel like I could keel over any second.”
He chuckled. “I run five to seven miles almost every day. You didn’t know?”
If I could have, I would have smacked the smug look right off his face. Instead, I opted to collapse into the back seat of the car and concentrate on the difficult task of breathing.
“Here. Take a couple sips of water. Slowly,” Shaker said, thrusting a bottle of water at me.
Shannon climbed into the driver’s seat and started the car. She glanced at me in the rearview mirror and then I saw her eyes dart to Shaker. She put the car in gear and glanced at both of us again. I laughed. “What did you tell her, Shaker?”