Chapter Five

It became even more terrifying to Son when the headlights behind started to beam in the mirrors; Alison felt fear gripping her as she held onto her seat so tightly.

“We’re being followed.” Alison’s voice wobbled from fear. 

“I know,” He replied, his jaws clenched as he glanced into the rearview mirror. He pressed the gas harder and the car let out a frightened roar in response as it moved faster. The pooling of thick clouds rolling across a soft bluish light illuminated the curvy and hilly streets allowing them to take sharp turns. 

“Who could it be?” 

“Adrian’s men,” Nicholas curtly responded, “they must have tracked us somehow.” 

Alison’s mind raced in unison with her heartbeat. She thought they could at least be safe for a little while. She didn't expect to be in danger immediately. “What now?”

Nicholas’s expression became glum. “We won't get caught.” 

The car behind increased its speed, the lights blinding. Alison could feel the fury radiating from Nicholas as he worked out their next move. 

“They are getting closer!” she screamed, terror, creeping into her voice. 

Nicholas remained mute. Instead, he sharply turned into a narrow dirt road, and the tires screeched as gravel flew into the air. Alison had her mouth agape in shock as she scrambled for the door handle; the vehicle lurched. 

The car that had been left behind came back roaring, the engine overheating as it set off in close pursuit.

The tension in his hands increased as Nicholas tightened his hands on the steering wheel, his gaze completely fixed on the route ahead. “Give me a second,” he said aloud. 

Ignoring what had been said, he drove off the dirt path and straight into the forest. The car lurched violently as it drove across uneven terrain and venation scraped against the car’s body. Alison flinched and leaned down to her side as a tree branch on the verge of her window flopped around. 

“Have you lost it?” she yelled while her heart pounded on her chest. 

Nicholas kept quiet, his fingers concise as he directed the vehicle neatly across the bumpy terrain alongside many trees. To Nicholas, the car had essentially become an extension of his body. 

The other vehicle struggled to keep up with the consistent speed as the headlights flickered in between the trees. Alison turned around, feeling unsettled in her stomach. 

“They are still coming!”

Nicholas's lips were compressed into a thin line. “Not for long,” He didn't even give her a chance to say anything as he slammed the brakes on the car, making the vehicle come to an abrupt stop. 

“What are you doing?” She asked, but before he could say anything, he took out a gun from his holster and simply opened the door. “Stay here,” He said in a way that made it quite clear that he had no intention of listening to her. She watched him as he plunged himself into the darkness. It felt like a mix of the forest being surrounded by her and her surrounded by the sounds of crickets chipping away by the rustle of the leaves and the roar of the approaching vehicle. 

As she gripped the edge of the seat, her heart began to race. She was conflicted between fear and hopelessness; she wasn’t feeling like staying behind, but at the same, she wasn’t feeling like getting in Nicholas’s way either.

The engine of the other car roared, and it was catching up to them. The car eventually appeared, its headlights shining on the exact location where Nicholas had positioned himself. 

Suddenly, out of nowhere… 

A view through the side windows, shattered by a loud gunshot, was accompanied by intense tire screeching as the car veered off the path, ultimately crashing directly into a tree. 

The expression on Alison’s face was one of utter disbelief as she vividly recalled Nicholas's position, gun raised high, prepared to take a shot as he awaited an unobstructed target. His hand motions were as steady as a sloth's while he moved with the speed of a predator chasing its prey. 

A man with a head wound opened the driver’s side door carelessly, leaving bloodstains on the ground. All he wanted was to dodge being shot and grab a weapon, but Nicholas bit him to it. 

Once again, another gunshot rang out as the man fell to the ground. 

Alison looked away, feeling a twist in her stomach. She was struggling to breathe; this was the onset of the pressure of recent events.

Surprisingly, from nowhere, the passenger door opened, and a man came out with his hands raised.

“Please don't shoot!” he yelled, his voice shaking with terror.

Nicholas pointed his gun at the man, his face expressionless. "Who sent you?"

"You know who," the man said, trying to keep his breath from shaking. "Adrian wants her dead, he knows that she is alive."

Nicholas clenched his jaw at that. "How did you find us?"

The man paused. Nicholas took one step closer, the gun menacingly pressed to his forehead.

“Answer me,” Nicholas snarled, his voice deep and menacing.

The man swallowed hard. "A tracker," he said after a moment of hesitation. "He put a tracking device on your car."

Nicholas's eyes moved to the wrecked car. His mind was racing with choices. He lowered the gun slightly but kept his expression neutral.

"Tell this to Adrian," Nicholas said, his voice low and menacing. "If he wants her, he has to deal with me."

Before the man could respond, Nicholas swiftly and forcefully struck him on the back with his gun, knocking him out.

He turned back toward the car but with purposeful steps. Alison watched him as he approached, and her heart was pounding in her chest.

“Are you okay?” he asked getting back into the driver’s seat.

She nodded, but her hands trembled still. "What happens now?"

Nicholas looked at her, his face bleak. "We remove the tracker. Then we vanish."

 As they drove away from the wreck but Alison couldn’t shake the feeling that it wasn’t over. Adrian was already scheming his next move from somewhere in the distance, and time was running out for her and Nicholas.