Change of plans.
Think.
Think.
Think.
I paced my bedroom floor as I tapped the side of my head. The new car Saint had gifted me would cause a distraction. Taking one of the cars Chemistry had given me would cause a distraction. August and Koen were still awake and they didn’t have the night off like I’d anticipated.
Think.
Think.
Thi–
I looked down at my feet and headed for my bedroom door. The extra weight in my jacket did nothing to slow me down. It reminded me of a weighted vest. The ones I loved to add to my workouts every so often.
“You’re a runner, Rome. RUN,” I reminded myself as I took the stairs of my home to the first floor.
I lifted the kitchen window and climbed through it. Walking out of the front door was not an option. Leaves crackled underneath my feet. I pushed through the grassy plain, desperate to find the opening in the fence that surrounded my yard.
I walked for a quarter of a mile in the back of my property before finding it. We’d gone over the escape route in the event of an emergency once in the daylight. I could hardly see a thing with the sun hiding tonight.
Once through the gate, I picked my feet up. Slowly, I gained a good stride. I began the long journey across Mt. Clarke.
Six and a half miles. I noted, pressing the timer on my phone.
Thirty-nine minutes.
Every thirty seconds, a street light shined down on me, acknowledging my presence. I kept my head low and my eyesstraight forward. My adrenaline pumped ferociously. Still, I pushed forward.
Minute six.
I was feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. Everything I’d endured over the last five years. The uprooting of my family. The death of my father. The incarceration of my brother. The loneliness. The solitude.
Minute fourteen.
And then there was Saint. He coaxed me to a more pleasant place. A better state of mind. He was my kryptonite. Thoughts of him were nothing in comparison to him. He was unimaginable. Inexplicable. He was perfection wrapped up in a person. And, he was mine. My person.
Minute twenty-six.
Sweat peeped out of my pores as my father’s face appeared in front of me. Run, baby. Run. He encouraged. Run.
Minute thirty.
My lungs were begging for relief, but there was no time to stop. No time to waste. No time to rest.
Minute thirty four.
My destination was within my reach. It was in my line of vision. I could see it. I powered through, making my way down the hill, careful not to fall.
Minute thirty six.
I pressed on. A burst of energy consumed me at once. It was just the fix I needed to power through.
Minute thirty eight.
I reached the entry with a minute to spare. Double doors slid open, welcoming me inside. With my head down, I pushed past the lobby and pressed the button for the elevator.
