Authors: Hilary Storm
“Nicole, why are you doing this to me?” I look over and see that she is driving with her right arm and the other is aiming the gun at me.
“You are in my way. Talon will never forgive me for our baby, so I may as well take you away also. If I can’t have him, neither can you. If you are not in the picture, I can at least talk to him. He won’t listen to a word I have to say when you are near.”
I don’t know what to say. I know whatever I say will piss her off. I need to keep talking so Talon can hear.
“I am sorry to hear about your baby. Are you taking me to your house?”
“No.”
“I will talk to Talon about forgiving you. I can tell him how perfect you are together and everything. Just go back to Smitty’s and I will do it right now.”
“Do you think I am stupid? I know what you are doing. Shut the fuck up!” I notice that we are going towards the river. To the bridge that Talon told me about.
“Do you want to stop at the river?” Please let Talon hear me!
“Quit worrying that Pretty Princess fucking head of yours. I have a plan. I told you that if I can’t have him, neither can you. I will spend eternity keeping you from him.” What does she mean eternity?
As we approach the bridge, she speeds up. She is going so fast and I realize in that moment that she is taking us into the river. I am going to drown in this car.
“Slow down! Nicole, SLOW DOWN!” She floors it. I decide to start talking to Talon on the phone. I don’t get it raised to my ear before I start screaming.
“TALON, I LOVE YOU! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! TELL IVY AND MY FAMILY THAT I LOVE THEM TOO! PLEASE COME FIND MY BODY IN THE RIVER! I LOVE YOU! OH GOD!”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Talon
“I can’t find Eaven! She went outside to get her camera battery and never came back in.” Ivy barges onto the stage right before we start the first song. She is hysterical and talking ninety miles an hour. “I should have gone with her. I found your keys on the ground and there are tire tracks near your truck. SOMEONE TOOK HER. GET YOUR ASS UP AND HELP ME FIND HER!” I am frozen in shock. I reach for my phone and see a missed call from Eaven. I instantly dial her number. It goes straight to voice mail. Where in the hell do we start to look for her?
I run out the back door and see the tire tracks that Ivy was talking about immediately. It is obvious that someone floored it when they left this parking lot. Who would have taken her?
“Who would do this? What the FUCK?” I scream in frustration. My brothers and Luke walk up and Taron starts barking orders.
“Holden you start sending everyone you can find to look for a strange vehicle or anything unusual. Coordinate it so that people spread out with their vehicles. Make sure they have my phone number in case they see something, and get theirs to set up a group text for information. Luke, you call the police and see if Smitty has surveillance back here. Ivy and I will take Talon to search for her. Now MOVE YOUR ASSES EVERYONE!” My twin may be a pain in the ass, but here he is again helping me through the depths of hell.
“Drive faster. Find her. I can’t live without her. She is the only family I have. I will kill this asshole if he hurts her.” Ivy says between sobs. I can’t hardly breathe and definitely don’t have it in me to reassure her that everything will be ok. I pull out my phone to call her again just in time for a voice message notification to pop up. I put it on speaker and listen as my worst nightmare unfolds.
“Shut the fuck up! If you move one more step, I’m going to blow your pretty little ass off.”
“What’s wrong Nicole? What can I help you with?”
“What’s wrong? WHAT’S WRONG? You stole my boyfriend and you have the audacity to ask me WHAT’S WRONG?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know you two were together. You can have him if you want him.”
“You are a bitch. He told me he loves you and you are just going to throw him away at the first sign of trouble.”
“I do care about him, but I know you love him. If you want me to step aside for you, I will.”
“I don’t need you to step aside for me, Princess. We have a history that you can never compete with. He is mine. You will not have him. Now move your ass to my car.”
“Get in the driver’s seat and don’t you fucking try to pull any shit or I will shoot first and think about it later.”
“Stupid Bitch. You can’t even follow directions. I wanted you to drive. I told you not to play any games with me, Princess. Now move your ass over and buckle up.”
“Nicole, why are you doing this to me?”
“You are in my way. Talon will never forgive me for our baby, so I may as well take you away also. If I can’t have him, neither can you. If you are not in the picture, I can at least talk to him. He won’t listen to a word I have to say when you are near.”
“I am sorry to hear about your baby. Are you taking me to your house?”
“No.”
“I will talk to Talon about forgiving you. I can tell him how perfect you are together and everything. Just go back to Smitty’s and I will do it right now.”
“Do you think I am stupid? I know what you are doing. Shut the fuck up!”
“Do you want to stop at the river?”
“Quit worrying that Pretty Princess fucking head of yours. I have a plan. I told you that if I can’t have him, neither can you. I will spend eternity keeping you from him.”
“Slow down! Nicole, SLOW DOWN!” “TALON, I LOVE YOU! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH! TELL IVY AND MY FAMILY THAT I LOVE THEM TOO! PLEASE COME FIND MY BODY IN THE RIVER! I LOVE YOU! OH GOD!”
I am beating on the front dash and cussing in frustration. I can’t stand the sound of her panicked screams and I feel helpless in this fucking truck. Ivy is screaming at Taron to drive faster to the River. Taron had already floored it in that direction once he heard Eaven say the word. He is talking on the phone to Holden to get him to tell everyone including the police and an ambulance to go there.
Chapter Fifteen
Eaven
It seems like it takes forever for us to hit the water. My mind starts replaying moments in my life that mean so much to me. I recall times from my childhood when my parents and I spent so much time together. I see the day Avery was born and how happy I was to become a big sister. I see many times with Ivy through all of the years. I see Talon and how happy he has made me in the short amount of time that we have been together.
I reach
for my seatbelt when we go air born with the intention of removing it after we hit the water. The impact jars me so bad that it takes a few moments for me to understand what is happening. The car begins filling with water. I glance over at Nicole and see that she is unconscious. I unbuckle and try to open the door. The pressure is so intense that I can’t get the door to budge and the windows won’t work either.
I notice the gun in Nicole’
s hand so I take it from her and throw it behind the seat. I reach over and unlock her seatbelt. The water level is rising quickly and I know that I need to work fast to get out if I want to live through this. I lean over in the seat and start to kick the side window. I kick and kick until finally I bust through it. The instant I get my foot through the glass, the car fills with water. I manage to take a big deep breath before my head goes under.
The car is being pulled under water until we hit the bottom of the river bed. I
work my way out of the window and reach in for Nicole. As I get her out of the car she grabs onto my leg. We begin to fight each other and all I want to do is get her off of me, but she won’t let go. She keeps pulling me further under, so I kick her until she finally releases her hold on me. I attempt to swim toward the surface of the water. Before I make it to the top, the current catches me and starts to pull me down river. My head finally surfaces for air. I gasp in another full breath not knowing where the current is taking me.
My body
slams into a large tree limb and I manage to wrap my arms around it. I am physically exhausted. I can hardly keep my eyes open, but the current is pulling me faster and faster. My body is slamming into rocks and tree limbs and I find it harder to hold on to the limb. I have sharp pains shooting up my left leg anytime something touches it. I have no idea where Nicole is, but I don’t have the energy to care if she is near me.
Finally the limb gets stuck between two large rocks. The water is rushing around me and I am constantly struggling with
the pain of crap slamming into me. I work my way to the rock nearest to land and manage to climb on. The moss makes it difficult to keep a good grip, so I fight with my legs and arms to stay attached. This rock is narrower on top, so I wrap my arms around it and hold on for dear life.
I am freezing cold and my body starts to shiver. I am not sure how far down river I am and I begin to pray that Talon heard me on the phone. I pra
y for someone to find me soon, anyone except Nicole.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Talon
Taron drives the truck right up to the edge of the water under the bridge. There is a service road
that we know about since we have been here many times. I jump out of the truck and notice everything seems eerily quiet. I can hear the sound of the water flowing, but nothing else. I can’t see anything out of the ordinary and it is frustrating the fuck out of me.
“WHERE IS SHE? FIND HER!” Ivy begins to scream even louder than she did in the truck. “EAVEN! EAVEN WHERE ARE YOU?” She starts running down the bank screaming the entire way. Taron immediately follows her. I run to the top of the bridge to see if I can tell
that a car went in the water.
I start to lose it when I see the evidence that proves that they are in the water. The police and ambulance show up along with an ass load of our friends to help search for Eaven. I can’t stand watching everyone rush around with no results. The police have roped off the area near the bridge.
I look at the water and see how rapid the current is. If she escaped the car, she will be down river. I can’t even think about her not escaping the car right now, so I start to run. Luke follows me. I see a limb in the water and notice it moving faster than I am. So I grab a loose branch large enough to hold me and get in the water. “I am going in. Follow along to make sure I don’t miss her.” I tell Luke. I hold on to the branch and let it guide me down river.
Shit. Everything is crashing into me. I am scratched all to hell in no time. I begin to yell her name and hope she hears me. I pass by Taron and Ivy on the bank yelling for her as well.
I have to find her. This is my girl. The girl I love with everything
I have. She has quickly become my world and I can’t imagine living without her. She has to live through this. I have to find her.
“EAVEN! CAN YOU HEAR ME? PLEASE YELL IF YOU HEAR ME!” Fuck, I can’
t hear because the water is too loud. I notice two large rocks ahead and decide to try to get out so I can hear her better. I make my way to the bank just before I notice the moon glowing on one of the rocks. I think my eyes are tricking me, because it looks like someone is straddling the rock.
The rock is just far enough out that I will not be able to reach her. I run along the water until I am close enough to see that it is Eaven. She is completely wrapped around the rock.
“EAVEN!” I notice her hand move. Her hair is wrapped around her face, so I can’t see it. She is shaking.
I go back up river and don’t hesitate to get in again. I yell for Taron as I go in, hoping he hears me. I get far enough into the water to come in on the opposite side of the rock because I don’t want to pass her. As I near her I notice a large limb wedge
d in between the two rocks. I use it to stop and work my way to her. She is as cold as ice.
“Oh my God, baby! I am here! I have you now! Are you hurt anywhere?” I say hoping she will respond to me.
“Hurt!” She whimpers.
I have to get us out of this water. Taron and Ivy finally arrive and see us. Taron dials his phone and start
s to tell someone where we are. I can tell she is hurting and I see her hands start to slip on the moss covered rock.
“TARON FIND SOMETHING. WE CAN’T WAIT. SHE IS SLIPPING.” He starts to look around for something to help us.
Her arm slips loose and she starts to slide around the rock. I grab her shirt and yank her back to me.
“Hold on to me, baby. I have you.” I know we don’t have much time before she can’t hold herself in place anymore.
I work her hands and legs around the front of my body. I kiss her entire face the second she is close enough to my lips. I release my hands from the limb and turn so that if we hit something I will get the impact. The current instantly pulls on us and we are flowing down stream.
I am constantly working us closer to the bank. I can hear Ivy and Taron with us the whole way. I finally get close enough to the bank and struggle out of the water. She is weak and doesn’t have the energy to help, so I know she is in bad shape. I crawl with one arm holding
her until Taron can get to us and help us up. She is crying out in pain as we pull her body completely out of the water.
We lay her down and start looking for obvious injuries. She has a s
hit load of scrapes. Her leg looks broken and I don’t know how in the hell she was able hold on to the rock with it looking like that.