Page 46 of Wildling

Keely interrupts, pulling the phone away before I can grab it. “Sorry. We shouldn’t have said anything.” She elbows Gabriella. “Beth is going to kill us if we show this to her.”

I place my hand out. “Don’t worry about Beth. Give me the phone.” How do people know who the Archer is? I’ve only ever told one person about him.

Gabriella grabs the phone back from Keely and hands it to me, narrowing her eyes at Keely. “She deserves to see it.”

My heart turns to stone when I see it’s a replica of my painting. I’ve kept my latest painting entirely private, not showing it to anyone. Keely can’t take her eyes off me as I admire it. “Have you seen him before?” she finally asks.

I bite my bottom lip like I might chew the damn thing off. Somehow my painting was leaked. “No. I have no idea what this is, do you know where this came from?”

Gabriella just shrugs. “I don’t know…It’s all over Reddit. I hate to admit it, but he’s kind of hot.”

Keely elbows her. “Gabriella, don’t say that.”

Gabriella turns red this time. “Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that we thought you were dead, Layla. Everyone thought you were dead.”

I lift my chin. “It’s fine. It’s just some stupid sketch. It doesn’t mean anything.”

“So, this wasn’t the man who took you, like everyone’s saying online?” Gabriella presses.

My vision blurs as nausea washes over me. Something tangible grazes the edge of my mind.

Sunlight blinds me and cold steel presses between my thighs. A new sensation forms. The fresh memory hits me like a maelstrom. My bare feet patter against the earth, and my heart pounds in my chest. Dirty tears run down my face, while I bolt across the forest floor, running for my life.

Gabriella’s face tilts as she sets down her coffee. “Layla, are you okay?” Her voice sounds a million miles away like she’s talking through a tunnel.

“Layla.” Keely grabs my hand, and I jerk back my body in fight mode.

They both stare at me with deer-like eyes. So innocent. Not tainted like mine. They haven’t experienced horror. Not yet…

“Sorry.” My voice breaks. “My brain’s frazzled.”

“Understandable for everything you’ve been through.” As if she could possibly understand any of this. Keely keeps her eyes on mine, then parts her lips as if to say something, then snaps them shut.

“What is it?” I ask her.

She keeps a healthy distance across the table. “Do you remember anything before it all happened?”

I narrow my eyes, not understanding her question. “I remember everything before it happened. I just don’t remember my captivity.”

Why the hell would she ask me that?

Before she can respond, the door swings open, bringing in the alpine air and a whir of snow. An older man walks in wearing a Carhart jacket and baseball cap that covers his face. Keely and Gabriella seem unbothered by him, but I can’t stop staring, and darkness slithers into the room with him.

He’s so familiar even though I can’t see his face. He looks like Frank—but that’s impossible. The way the barista smiles at him tells me he’s a local, not just a passerby. He orders a black coffee and sits near us but doesn’t look up.

I rise and put on my coat as quickly as I can before he looks over. “Thanks for the coffee, but I really have to go.”

“Wait…Layla,” Keely yells. “I need to talk to you.”

I rush past Frank without looking at him. “I’ll see you both soon,” I call over my shoulder.

Once I’m outside and away from them, I grab my phone and flip through my missed calls looking for the last phone number Sarah Crawley called me from, and that’s when I see a blue truck parked across the street.

Chapter 21

The Archer has me in a chokehold.

I’m fueled by blind loyalty as I bolt outside. I’m constantly protecting a man I can barely remember, especially given he is tormenting me. Yet every decision I make is centered on Nick, especially as I ran by his blind grandfather without screaming bloody murder.