Flee (The Aurora Lockette Series, Book 1) (9 page)

“I love you. You know that.” He squeezed my
hand. “I want to be with you. I can’t imagine my life without you.
I want us to grow old together. I don’t know how you feel about
marriage, but that’s where I’m headed with this. I’m serious about
you.

I’ve been turning our situation over and over
in my mind. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to be with you.
I’ll make any sacrifice. I’ll do whatever you ask of me. I can’t
stand the thought of us living in two different cities. I don’t
want to be apart from you. I’m going to ask you something, and you
can say no. I’m selfish to even ask. Please don’t be angry with me,
because I have Plan B, and a Plan C in case you don’t like this
one.”

He stroked my face with his thumb. “Just be
with me. You do anything you want. I want you to come with me on
press tours, come with me when I shoot on location. I know it’s
selfish to ask you to leave your life and live mine. After I’m done
with all the contracts I’ve already signed, I can live wherever you
want. You can go to school, buy a house, do whatever you want. It
would be 100% what you want to do.”

I tried to wrap my mind around what he was
offering me. “I can’t just let you take care of me. That’s not
right.”

“Do you have any idea how much money I have?
I respect your independence. All I’m asking is for you to be with
me. All of me. Even the part of me with a lot of money.” He crossed
his arms. “I have forty million dollars sitting in the bank, with
plenty more coming.”

“Jesus Christ. Your tax bill must be
insane.”

He gave me a small smile. “Seriously. What do
you think of my plan?”

“It sounds like heaven, but I have some very
serious reservations about letting you take care of me financially.
I know you have a lot of money, but I don’t want to be ‘that’ girl.
You know?” I stood. “I need a moment.”

We returned to the trail, walking in silence
for several minutes. I could feel him watching me, no doubt trying
to figure out all the emotions flickering across my face. The roar
of the river was getting louder, and the faint sounds of a boom-box
and crowds of people were flitting through the trees.

As soon as he asked, I knew I was going to
say yes and start my new life. I also knew I would have to tell him
about it. I made a decision. Tonight I would show him what I could
do. It was only fair.

“My mom is going to strangle me when I drop
out of law school,” I said.

He froze. “Is that a yes?”

“Yes,” I said. “But I need to tell you
something about me.”

“What? You can tell me anything.”

“Not now, later,” I said.

We entwined our fingers and continued up the
trail. “By the way, what was Plan B?” I asked.

“Oh. I was going to breach all my contracts
and come live with you in San Antonio until you were done with law
school. I figured I could settle most of the lawsuits.”

“Plan A is definitely better for both of us,”
I said. “What was Plan C?”

“Plan C was plane tickets for every single
weekend to wherever I was. I’d rather have long distance than
nothing at all.”

We stepped into the clearing where the law
school party was definitely on. Barbeque pits and picnic tables
with checkered tablecloths were set up along the edge of a crest
overlooking the river. The banks were lined with small wooden
cabins on stilts. In the large clearing behind the cabins, several
families were setting up tents.

“Nice,” Gavyn said.

Bree was standing near the edge of the ridge.
She was holding a beer in one hand and waving us over with the
other.

“Hey!” she said when we were in shouting
distance. “Come check this out.”

We weaved our way through the small but
growing crowd until we reached the edge. “Isn’t it pretty?” She
gestured over the small cliff.

We were about thirty feet or so above the
river, a lazy current of blue and brown. Big, red jagged rocks
lined the edge of the cliff. Some people were wading in the
shallows below. Others floated by on inner tubes, beers in
hand.

“How do you get down there?” Gavyn asked.
“This looks like a death pit.”

Bree pointed to her right. “Wooden stairs
over there, and over here,”—she gestured to her left—“the cliff
rock thing gives way to a dirt incline. It’s a lot easier to get
down over there.”

“Cool.” I stepped back from the edge, and
pulled Bree and Gavyn several yards back with me. Bree was making
me nervous. Combining alcohol and heights was never a good
idea.

In the few short minutes we had spent on the
cliff, more cars were parked in the packed dirt, several more tents
had appeared, and the crowd had swelled to at least one hundred
people.

I felt a tap against my hip. I looked down
into the large brown eyes of a little girl. I guessed she was three
or four. She was wearing jean shorts and a red shiny light jacket
with a hood. She was holding out a wildflower in her chubby little
hand. I took the flower and smiled, crouching down next to her.
“Thank you very much.”

She gave me a big toothy smile.

“Sorry!” her mom called from a lawn chair
nearby. I recognized her from my torts class: Haley. “She’s very
friendly.” She raised her voice. “Vanessa, come back over here.
Leave those nice people alone.”

The little girl moved closer to the cliff.
Her vigilant mom got on her feet and walked toward her. “Vanessa,
too close. Stay with Mommy.”

It must have happened in a matter of seconds,
but it unraveled before me in slow motion. The muddy ground beneath
the girl’s feet crumbled. The girl slid rapidly to the precipice.
Her mom let out the most inhuman, bloodcurdling scream I had ever
heard.

Without a thought in my mind, I sprinted to
the edge and dove, sliding toward her. I desperately reached for
her red jacket as she slid faster on the slippery ground. We both
tumbled over the edge.

I caught her by the hood of her red jacket
before we hit the churning water. I pulled her up to my hip and
cradled her tightly against my body. She was crying, her eyes
squeezed shut.

And just like that, my life was pretty much
over.

“It’s okay. You’re safe.” I patted her back
as I held her aloft. I was amazed and horrified at what had just
happened. I had never tested the boundaries of it before so I had
no idea I could move so fast in the air or hold anyone up. I
couldn’t even feel her weight as we floated.

I looked up. We were below a sharp, narrow
outcropping, blocking us from view from the clearing we had fallen
from. The waders and swimmers in the water were staring up at me in
silence. Beers were forgotten, inner tubes abandoned and floating
down the river.

Vanessa’s brown eyes popped open. Her little
head jerked around as she took in the scenery. Her expressive
eyebrows furrowed in concentration when she realized we were not on
solid ground.

Like all young children do, she immediately
accepted the reality presented to her. “You’re an angel,” she
said.

I smiled back at her, but my own tears
betrayed me.

Her mom’s frantic cries interrupted my
reverie. She was screaming at the top of her lungs. I couldn’t make
out any words, but I could hear the anguish in her voice. I heard
the low tenor of a hysterical male voice. I couldn’t tell if it was
Gavyn or the girl’s father.

I floated up around the outcropping slowly,
not wanting to push the boundaries of it while I had precious cargo
in my arms.

The mother was lying on the ground, screaming
inexplicably. Gavyn and Bree must have sprinted to the stairs
leading down to the river, but now they were paused at the top
steps, staring at me.

The mother’s sobbing cut off in her throat as
soon as she saw me. Gavyn met my eyes as I flew over the cliff. He
stood and staggered a few steps back, clapping both of his hands
over his mouth. Bree grabbed his arm to keep him from falling
backwards down the stairs.

Hundreds of other pairs of eyes were watching
me. Somebody screamed, but then fell quiet. My fellow classmates
were frozen in place, still and silent as statues.

I landed a safe distance away from the edge
of the cliff. I tore my eyes away from Gavyn as I bent down to
place the girl on the ground.

I turned my attention to Gavyn. He was
shaking his head, like he had a fly buzzing around him. My heart
collapsed. It was over. He saw what I was and he was afraid.

Haley embraced me. “Thank you. You’re an
angel. Thank you for saving my little girl.” She continued to
babble, but I couldn’t make out the rest.

I pulled away gently. I needed to go. Now. My
mom had told me what I needed to do if I ever got exposed.

Run.

I took one last look at Gavyn, drinking in
every detail of his face. “I’m sorry,” I whispered.

I turned on my heel and ran down the trail. I
thought about flying now I knew I could do it fast, but the last
thing I needed was to run into a group of hikers and have more
witnesses. Thanks to the long hours in the gym, I was physically
prepared to escape.

My logical self took over and started
churning out my options. I could make it back to the cabin in six
or seven minutes if I pushed myself really hard. All I needed was
my wallet. Anything else I had time to grab was extra. Then I would
take Gavyn’s rental car to the airport. I would get a flight to
anywhere I possibly could. My eventual destination was Kansas. My
mom would know what to do. She was unlisted and had different last
name than me. Surely no one would find me. I would just lay low for
a while and then…

Gavyn’s voice pierced through my planning.
“Stop!” He was running after me. I pushed back the intense longing
to stop and speak to him, just touch him one last time.

“Aurora, please!” he yelled again. I risked
another peek behind me. His long legs were churning, gaining
momentum. He was going to catch up to me.

He grabbed the edge of my shirt, which threw
me off balance. We collided and fell, sliding down the trail before
running into a tree. I was on my feet in an instant, ready to bolt
again. He grabbed my sleeve. “Wait. We need to talk.”

I yanked it away, fighting the urge to run
into his arms.

“What happened? Is that what you’ve been
hiding from me? What was that?” The words bubbled out of his mouth.
“I thought you were gone. Oh, my God, I thought you were dead, and
then you just, just, floated back!” His voice was teetering on the
edge of hysteria. He collapsed forward, and put his hands on his
knees to steady himself.

He straightened and took another step toward
me. “Wait, please.”

I looked into his perfect eyes one last time.
“It’s dangerous for me to be here now. I have to go. Please don’t
tell anyone what you saw. I’m sorry.” I took a deep breath, not
willing to do what I needed to do. “I love you.”

He reached for me. I turned around and tried
to push his face out of my mind.

Then, I flew away.

I flew just below the tree line, not wanting
to make any more public appearances today. I moved much faster up
here than on the bumpy trail below. I kept my ears alert, ready to
land the second I heard a human voice.

Pain ripped through my chest. Losing Gavyn
was much worse than I could have imagined. Especially losing him
like this.

Tears clouded my vision, but I wiped them
away. I could cry later. I needed all my attention focused on my
objective. I needed to get out of here and go into hiding,
fast.

I made it back to the cabin in three minutes.
I grabbed my wallet, keys, and cell phone and threw them in to the
partially unpacked bag I had left on the rumpled bedcovers.

Guilt added on to my general misery as
Gavyn’s rental car roared to life. It was bad enough what I had put
him through today without having to deal with a missing car.

I sped down the winding road to the main
roads. I finally made it to the interstate. I pushed the car up to
eighty-five. I really let the tears come then.

I made it to the airport in twenty minutes. I
rushed to the counter of the first airline I saw. The next flight
was leaving in thirty-five minutes, and was going to Colorado. I
booked it and charged the ridiculous $1600.00 fee on my credit
card. I buzzed through security pretty fast. By the time I got to
the gate, first class was already boarding. I only had a few
minutes to make a not-so-fun call.

“Mom? I’m on my way to Colorado, can you get
me a flight to Wichita?”

“What? What’s wrong?”

I looked around to make sure nobody was close
by. “I flew. In public, and I didn’t mean to do it, but I did.” I
put my hand over my mouth to stop the sobs.

“Okay, baby. Let’s calm down. Count to ten
with me. One, two, three...”

“Four, five, six,” I said in a shaky
voice.

“Keep going.”

“Seven, eight, nine, ten.” By the time I got
to ten, my voice had firmed up a bit.

“Good.” Her voice was smooth. “I’m going to
ask you some questions.”

“Okay,” I said. “Hurry.” She paused as the
attendant announced on loudspeaker the boarding of the first
fourteen rows.

“How many people saw?” she asked.

“Hundreds, mostly law students.”

“Like 100 or 200 or what?” she said.

“Maybe 150.”

“Okay. Were there any camera flashes or video
recordings?”

I thought back to the moment. I wasn’t paying
attention, but I didn’t remember seeing any, and I told her so.

“Good,” she said. “What happened?”

“I saved a little girl who fell off a
cliff.”

She exhaled loud and slow into the phone.
“Okay, let’s get you safe. Hang up the phone and text me your
flight number. I’ll purchase you a flight home, and text you the
details. I’ll have them leave your ticket at the gate. Okay?”