Page 65 of Hide And Seek

Last night, I’d told myself I was being paranoid. That I was letting fear twist everything into something worse than it was.

But I wasn’t. Rhys had actually… and then I’d actually…

My throat tightened so hard it burned. I couldn’t finish those thoughts either. Couldn’t look at them directly. I was too scared. Too horrified. Too ashamed of myself.

“Are you okay?”

Rhys’s voice cut through my horror-struck reverie. I flinched slightly and looked up at him, my heart slamming so hard it honestly felt like it might echo off the shed walls.

His eyes had narrowed just a fraction, studying my face. “You look like you just saw a ghost,” he added.

For a second, I was convinced he could hear it all. The panicked heartbeat. The realization in my mind. The way everything inside me had just come apart. I was sure that he’d see it written all over my face. That he’d know I knew.

And then he’d…

Stop.

I forced in a breath, slow and shaky, dragging a smile onto my lips that didn’t feel like it belonged to me. “I’m just really tired. I haven’t been sleeping much, for obvious reasons.”

His expression eased, and he nodded. “I don’t think anyone’s sleeping well right now,” he said. “We can just skip lunch if you want, and I’ll walk you back to your cabin so you can take a nap.”

“That’s probably a good idea. Thanks.” I swallowed hard, heart still thumping so hard my whole chest ached. “And thanks for the lesson.”

“Yeah.” His mouth tipped at one corner, amusement flickering in his eyes. “The lesson.”

The way he said it made heat flicker low in my stomach, completely at odds with the ice still coiling through the rest of me.

He turned and unlocked the shed door, stepping back and gesturing outward. “After you.”

I hesitated for a second before moving. I was hyper-aware of him behind me, and the fact that he could plant an ax in my back if he wanted to. Or chop off my head. But I forced myself to keep going, each step measured and controlled, even as my pulse roared in my ears.

Nothing happened. No sudden movement. No hand grabbing me. No blade sinking into me. Just the sound of the door creaking behind me as I stepped out into the open air.

Not so far away, I could see a few guys tossing an old football back and forth across the grass. Relief hit me hard enough to make me dizzy. There was no way Rhys could do anything to me now. Not in full view of all those other people.

When we finally reached my cabin door, he patted my shoulder, and I barely managed to stop myself from flinching again. “Have a good sleep, if you can manage it,” he said, tipping his head slightly. “Hopefully the cops are here by the time you wake up.”

“Yeah. Hopefully,” I replied. My voice sounded way too thin.

With that, I walked up the steps, rapped on the door, and waited. Tamsin let me in a few seconds later and closed the door behind me as I took two trembling steps inside. The click of the lock finally echoed through the room. Only then did I move again, taking a few unsteady steps forward before grabbing the nearest bunk post.

My whole body was shaking.

“Holy shit. Are you okay?” Jasmine asked, jumping to her feet.

Wren and Tamsin were already moving too, their faces tightening with concern.

“I…”

Nothing else came out.

My chest hitched, breath coming too fast now, too shallow, my thoughts tangling over themselves so badly that I couldn’t grab onto a single one long enough to speak it.

“Did something happen?” Tamsin asked, eyes flashing with concern.

“N-no,” I said, shaking my head. I took a deep breath, and then I finally managed to spit out a coherent sentence. “I think Rhys might be the killer.”

Jasmine’s eyes bulged. “What?”