Once Upon a Twist by Michelle Smart, Aimee Duffy Page B

away and turned back to the house.
    His strong, constricting arms banded around her waist and he picked her up again. She kicked and screamed, unwilling to go easy, her mind a haze of grief. The bastard didn’t even flinch, didn’t loosen his hold. And then they were moving. She tried another kick, aiming for his knees.
    “Red, quit it.”
    Her limbs froze, but her chest ripped out sobs with every breath. “Stop… calling… me… that.” Her hair was more blonde than red, especially now she’d had it highlighted, and the nickname took her back to a time she wanted to forget.
    The ground met her feet and suddenly he was in front of her, wiping her eyes, her cheeks. The severe expression on his face had been replaced with wide eyes and a frown. 
    “She’s…” He cleared his throat. “We can’t save her. It’s too late.”
    Rage boiled through her veins, wiping away rational thought. After all, what was the point? She had nothing left. No family. Not even him. “No.”
    His teeth snapped together and he grabbed her hand. She tried to pull it away but he was too strong; his grip almost crushed her bones. He turned and tugged her hard. It was either fall or follow, though she was sure if she fell he’d drag her along anyway. Any man who could lug around trees didn’t worry about the weight of a hundred and thirty pound woman. The bastard broke into a sprint, leading them into the thick of the forest in the opposite direction of his home. She tried to push the grief down, concentrate on following him through the darkness.
    “Where are we going?” she asked, pushing her legs faster to keep up with him.
    She couldn’t see a foot in front of her. Darker shadows than the night around them gave no indication of where they were. The moon hid beneath clouds above, somewhere through the trees. If he crashed into something she was going down with him.
    “We need to mask your scent.”
    If stranger words had come out of his mouth, she hadn’t heard them. But then it clicked. “The thing can smell me.”
    And it did get a good whiff at the house. She swallowed against the tears in her throat. It wasn’t the time to grieve. Now she could think rationally and, although she grudged it, she was grateful he’d come when he did or she’d either be an infected monster by now or the thing would have eaten her. 
    He didn’t answer, just ran faster. She kept up, but her calf muscles burned and her lungs heaved with the effort. Over her ragged panting, she heard the sound of the river, but she knew they were too high up. He must be taking her to…
    Ruby slowed, tried to yank her hand free. “You’ve lost your mind!”
    His grip didn’t ease up as he dragged her closer to the ledge. “There’s no other way.”
    “It’s at least a ten foot drop. You know I can’t swim!”
    He stopped at the ledge and launched the gun into the darkness. She thought for a second he’d thrown it into the river, but it landed in the distance with a thud. The moonlight broke through the clouds, illuminating the scary jump and rushing water below. Her heart sped.
    “You’ll be fine. I won’t let you drown.” His lips quirked, like he found her terror entertaining.
    All the pent up anger, grief, and fear fought for supremacy inside. She couldn’t control what came out of her mouth. “And I’m supposed to trust you? Are you kidding me?”
    His arms banded around her, holding her arms down by her sides in a steely grip. “You could always trust me, Red. I told you everything I was allowed to.”
    Before she could argue, or before she could wonder what he meant by allowed , he picked her up and jumped off the ledge.

Chapter Two
     
     
    Red’s scream pierced Jeremy’s eardrums as gravity pulled them down. Wind rushed up around them, making her hair and cloak fly up. Before he could suck in a proper breath, they were completely submerged in water. The icy river swallowed them whole and he almost gasped in a lungful as they plunged