Page 50 of Hunt Me

When I stop, the echo stops.

When I move, it picks up again, seconds after my own footfalls. My cochlear implants don’t work perfectly, but they’re picking up something, and there’s not a chance in hell I’m going to ignore the danger I’m possibly in.

My hands are trembling when I drag my phone out of my pocket, and I hold the umbrella close to my head as my thumb swipes on the screen. I might not have Archie’s number, but I have the number to the cat café.

I don’t have a clue how long it’s open, but I can hope someone’s there. If Percy or Milo is taking care of the cats,maybe they’ll hear the call. Maybe they’ll send him for me. Maybe he’s there.

The café is only half a mile from campus. Maybe he can make it. Maybe he can save me again.

I pick up my pace again, the sound of the person following me even louder now, and my thumb struggles to hit the café number, but eventually, it connects. The ringing call erupts in my head through my Bluetooth on my processors, and I wince against the pain. I hate making calls this way, but it does allow me the freedom to drop my phone in my pocket and move a little faster.

Unfortunately, the sound of the person following me doesn’t fade.

“Thank you for calling Toe Beans Cat Café. You have reached us after hours,”the recording says.“Please leave a message with your number, and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can…”

I open my mouth to speak when I hear another distinct chime. My implants are dying. The battery is going, and that sound is telling me that I have seconds left.

I start running faster as I attempt to speak while my head goes silent again, and I fumble in my pocket for my phone. “Hi. It’s Denver. Shit, I—” I heave and gasp into the speaker as I see the campus parking lot come into view. It’s almost completely empty this late at night. “I need to reach Archie. My cochlear implants are almost dead, and I think there’s someone following me. I’m almost to the college campus, and I don’t know if I’m being paranoid or…fuck. Maybe this is nothing. Actually—” I let out a half-hysterical laugh as my feet hit the asphalt of the staff parking lot. “—it probablyisnothing. Ignore this. Uh…okay, bye.”

I hang up, unsure if my whole message was recorded or not because I had no way to tell if the answering service had cut me off or not.

My breath is coming in gasps now, and I have a stitch in my side that forces me to fall back and lean against a tall lamppost. My knees press against the cold concrete base, and I glance behind me, but there’s no one.

Just a little fog and a lot of rain and total emptiness.

Fuck, I look like such a fool. There’s no way in hell Archie is going to want me after this. I’m so fucking embarrassed I want to die. I debate calling the café back when I get to my office for my charger and telling them I’m fine, but I feel like that’ll just make me look worse. Instead, I take a fortifying breath and glance toward the path that leads to the staff office doors.

The rain isn’t letting up, but it cools down my heated skin as I adjust the umbrella back over my shoulders and head toward the sidewalk. I’m alone, and I can’t hear what’s going on around me, but it’s fine. I really was being a complete fucking weirdo about all of this.

I mean, I can’t blame myself. I’ve been through hell and back, and someone did recently try to strangle me, but that’s no reason for me to think that I’m being chased through the dark. In the unsexy way. I nearly laugh as I reach the dark space between the humanities building and my office when something prickles along the back of my neck again.

I turn and squint, but I can’t see anything. The lights are out here, of course—but they’re always out, so that’s nothing new.

‘I’m fine,’ I sign against my leg, mumbling to myself. ‘I’m just being a coward. No one is after me.’

I take in a breath, on the verge of laughing, when suddenly I lose my footing. Except no. I didn’t lose my footing. The sensation is delayed, but seconds before I hit the ground, I realize I’ve been pushed.

The umbrella flies from my grasp, and I hit the pavement hard enough to knock the wind out of me. I feel a rough cry against the back of my throat as I scramble to sit up and fill my lungs with air, and that’s when I see him. The dark, looming shadow from the alley after my show.

He’s in the same hoodie, now stained brown with old blood, wearing the same gloves, his face hidden so I can’t see anything except a slight glint in his eye.

I open my mouth to scream when the gloved hands curl around my neck and begin to squeeze. And once again, like before, the edges of my vision start to turn dark. But this time, there’s no Archie to save me. This time, he’s made sure I’m completely alone.

My fight or flight leans toward fight, and I try to wriggle out of his grasp with a surge of adrenaline, but it’s no use. He’s stronger than me, and he lifts me into the air, then slams me down against the pavement. The side of my forehead splits against the concrete, and the pain is so intense I nearly lose consciousness right there.

I want to scream for help, but the hands around my neck are still squeezing, and I’m losing the strength to fight. Fuck, I really am going to die this time. I’m going to die before I ever see Archie again.

Before I take the stage again.

Before I get to tell anyone I love them.

I kick my feet, but the motion is so weak, the figure on top of me barely moves. His grip tightens…and then everything goes black.

But it only lasts a second. Suddenly, I’m free, gasping for air, clawing at the ground as my body begins to regain consciousness. The weight on me is gone, and I get another burst of adrenaline, which gives me enough power to roll onto my side. I can barely see, blood dripping into my eye, but Iprop up on my elbow and grab my bag, and that’s the moment I realize I’ve had some method of defense this entire time.

Fuck, in my panic and fear, I’d forgotten the gift Rene had given me months ago. I shove my hand into my bag and feel around until my fingers come into contact with the one thing that can save my ass right now.

The weight is heavy against my palm, and the trigger is soft, and just as a face appears in my vision, I slam my fingers over the button and close my eyes so the pepper spray doesn’t get me too. I hold it there, over and over, until suddenly the can is wrenched away from me, and when I roll over, gasping for air having gotten a bit of it on my face, I manage to peer through the haze of blood and realize that I completely fucked up.