things out.” He let go of my hand and stepped closer to the highway, shot me a weary look. “I need you to trust me right now.” His chestnut eyes searched mine, pleading. Seeing him in the morning light, I began to worry. His face was gaunt and haggard, looked like he needed ten years of sleep.
“What do you mean?”
“Just please stay calm and trust me. I need to get us away from here.”
“I thought you just said we’re safe now.”
“We are. We’re safe from … them. But we still need distance.”
He stepped out into the road and flagged down a pickup truck, waved his hands to get the driver’s attention.
“Get out of the way man, what do ya think you’re doin’?” The husky voice came from the cab as the driver rolled his window down. He swerved around Gavin and plowed into the shoulder of the road, stopped. Glaring at us, he parked and got out, eyed me. “What’d ya do to this poor girl here, son?” He stalked toward Gavin, keeping his eyes on his truck.
“Nothing, sir. But we’re in trouble and we really need a ride. Please.”
“Did ya hurt this girl, son? Look at her, she’s all banged up! I’ll call the police if I have to, miss.” He nodded toward me and looked Gavin up and down. “Well now, you’re not looking too hot yourself, son.”
“Look, sir. We’re really sick and we need a ride. Can you please give us a lift to the hospital down the road?”
“Please, sir. He didn’t hurt me. I swear,” I chimed in, walked closer to stand with them while Gavin waited for the man’s answer, urgency in his eyes and looking worse by the minute.
I stepped in front of Gavin now, pleading with the man. “Someone stole our car and we got stuck out here in the rain, with no phone to call the cops. Please drop us off down the road. We mean you no harm.”
“Fine, miss. If you say so. Best you sit in the middle though.” He turned and gestured toward the truck. “I’ll be keepin’ my eyes on your friend, here.”
“Thank you so much.”
Gavin opened the passenger door and I climbed in, relieved to be sitting down again.
“Why are you sick, son? What’s happened to ya? You look like you got in a bad fight or somethin’.” The man made his way to the driver’s door. Gavin followed.
“It’s just been a rough night, that’s all,” Gavin said.
“Right.” The man pulled the door open and leaned forward to get in the cab, but Gavin stopped him, then snatched the keys from his hand.
“Hey. Give them back you no good—”
“Gavin,” I said, “what are you doing?”
“Stay put, Camille.” Then, to the man, “Sorry sir. Run. Get far away from here.”
“What do ya mean, run? Don’t you dare take my truck, son!” The man attempted to wrestle with Gavin as he shouted.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Gavin snapped as the man grabbed his shoulders, showed his fangs. He jumped in front of the man and hopped into the cab, locked the doors instantly. The man stumbled backward, fear in his eyes, while Gavin started the engine and sped off.
“I can’t believe you!”
“I saved his life, Camille.”
“You what? You just scared the hell out of him and stole his car.”
“He’s safe this way.”
“Safe? No, I’m sorry. I don’t think leaving some poor man on the side of the road after you stole his car is keeping him safe.”
“I couldn’t ride in the truck with him. It would’ve ended badly.”
“He could’ve just dropped us off and we’d be on our way. Without being wanted for grand theft auto.”
“I would’ve killed him, Camille.” He hit the steering wheel. “I spared him, do you get that? I’m starving and weak. We wouldn’t have made it more than two minutes down the road.” He glanced in the rearview, squinted from the sunlight. “You haven’t seen me like this, you haven’t seen me this bad. I haven’t seen me this bad since … in a very long time. I’m sorry, but I need to feed and that guy would be dead right now if I let him drive us.”
I fought to understand, finally did. “That’s why you look so sick.”
“I only had enough strength to get us out of there because I used as much of your energy as I could, as quickly as possible.”
“Well, you pried all that undying-devotion talk out of me up in the tower and plowed through a stone wall.” I placed