Casing ??

Chapter 26

James: I'm coming. Send the address.

Diana: I'm not sending the address until I know more.

James: For fuck's sake, Diana! Elina is gone, this isn't a damn joke.

Diana: She's awake.

Just as I read the last part, a new text slid in from him.

James: At least tell her I'm coming for her. I'm already in the car.

She pulled her phone back, hiding it under the table as something stirred behind me. I didn't dare turn my head, but by the yawn that came, I was pretty sure it was Nina.

James was coming, and he didn't know anything about this. What we had was still real.

I kept silent but sent Diana a grateful look before deciding I had to eat. She replied with a mischievous smile, and I'd never been more grateful for my luck before—both by cleaning up blood with her a few days ago, and with her deciding she wanted to help. I made a mental note to thank her later, no matter the outcome of this crappy situation, as I started to shovel my breakfast into my mouth.

The day went by boringly, before I picked the books back up. Nina tried to talk to me and apologize again, but I wanted to be a stubborn brat for once and shut her out. I probably wouldn't be able to keep that up for very long, so I distracted myself with reading the three books Hank bought for me. They weren't my usual picks, two of them being so fluffy and heartwarming I almost puked. If I hadn't been in this awful situation in my real life, I'd have loved them. The third, however, was a little darker and I shut myself inside the bedroom as I devoured it.

After it was gone, and I'd flown through three—not very long—books, I ended up staring out the window. The city looked the same as Datoches; busy, full of life and tall buildings, but it was so completely different still. There was no darkness hanging over the horizon, no news of bodies floating in the river or the canals, and no seemingly abandoned warehouses used for criminal activities—as far as I knew.

Durfair was once a plan for a future, but not anymore. My past, my present and my future was all in Datoches—my home.

Whenever a car sped through the streets, my heart skipped a beat and I wondered if James had come to take me back, if Diana had given him the address. I ended up looking out the window and just...exist for most of my night. I even said no to dinner when Diana popped her head in to ask what I wanted.

But then—as I turned to find something to drink, I spotted something along the wall outside. I kept staring at it. Then I opened the window and leaned out into the biting cold air, confirming my hopes; it was a ladder.

And I could reach it, if I stretched long enough. Or jumped.

But James said he was coming.. Could I wait? I wanted to go, and be my own person, and save myself without depending on anyone else...so I decided to try.

I took a duffel bag I found in the closet and stuffed it full of the clothes Hank bought me, as well as the books. I then grabbed my wallet from the bedside table and opened the window up wider. I had no desire to get stuck here, waiting for a man to rescue me.

The cold got me the second I climbed into the window, making my whole body shiver. I held onto the edge and stretched, the bag falling from my shoulder to my elbow as I tried to reach one of the bars.

I made the mistake of looking down. My stomach jumped up into my throat, taking my lungs and heart with it as I stared down at the open street below. I was almost ten stories up. On eight or ninth, I think. I had to admit I didn't pay much attention when we arrived, my stubborn ass wanting nothing to do with the whole place.

The regret mixed with the anger I still had towards Hank and my father, towards everyone else who was involved in hijacking my life like this. That anger and commitment was what made me stretch a little too far.

My breath caught in my throat as I lost no hold on the window and fell forward. My life didn't really matter much as my stomach dropped back down and turned around, making me nauseous. But then I caught one of the bars, and held on, hanging on the ladder on the side of the building.

I made a mental note to check for fire escapes when I eventually was back to look at an apartment in Datoches, so I wouldn't have to do this with flames chasing me from inside. This was bad enough.

But I was safe. And I was on the ladder, ready to descend and find the street. I just hoped I'd be able to make it down and away before anyone entered the bedroom and found me gone with the window open.

The cool air felt rough in my lungs as I moved down. The steel I held onto made my palms and full gets numb, and I knew with every last bit of myself that I'd made the right decision—

"Elina!" The whisper-yelling came from above, and I looked up at Diana's wide eyes. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm not waiting for a man to save me when I can do it myself," I whispered harshly back.

She only chuckled in response and shrugged. "Fair enough," she muttered. "I'm changing with one of the guys in thirty minutes. I'll try to find you."

She winked at me again, and closed the window. Then she was gone, and I continued my path down to the ground. I considered myself lucky that she was the one in the apartment at the moment, and not one of the guys. They'd probably already run downstairs to grab me.

There was a jump down to the sidewalk. It was wet and splashed as I hit the ground, but I couldn't see anyone, so I started walking and pulled the duffel bag up to my shoulder again.

I didn't know where to go, but I had to get away before anyone recognized me, or saw I was gone. The fresh air was so much nicer than I thought it'd be, even if I hadn't been held inside for more than a day and a half. It was just...I knew how much I'd have to give up to stay like that, and I refused to do it.

So I walked through the unfamiliar streets, getting as far away as I could in half an hour, until Diana said she'd find me. Not that I knew how. So maybe, instead, I'd find some sort of station and purchase a ticket back to Datoches.

On my own.

My feet were hurting by the time I found a bus station, and made my way towards the time table to see if any long distance routes were leaving soon. I'd have to wait until morning for a bus to go all the way, but I could get on one in forty minutes and change two times during the night.

It didn't seem ideal, but then again, nothing in my situation was ideal at the moment.

I pulled my wallet out of my pocket and started walking towards the ticket booth, when a car stopped a little further away, its lights blinking twice. That couldn't be a coincidence. I bit my lip and put my wallet back inside my pocket as I looked closer.

The car was small and sleek, expensive but not new. It had a few bumps and scratches, and in the light from the street lamp above it, it shone a metallic purple. None of the men dad worked with would be caught dead in a vehicle like that, which left only one viable option.

Diana.

Through the pain, I jogged over to the car, and my suspicions were confirmed when she waved me towards her, as if urging me to come faster. The door opened when I neared, and I slid into the seat and closed it just as the engine revved and she moved away from the station.

"You left at a great time," she commented, checking behind her before merging into traffic, "twenty minutes or so after you ran, Damian and James showed up, with Hank in shackles. I never told them the address."

I shuddered. "In shackles?"

"Yeah," she confirmed. "It was brutal. When James found out you weren't even there, Hank's skull cracked."

"Did you tell him—"

"I told him you left on your own, and that I was pretty sure I knew where you'd end up." She flicked her blinker on and turned down a street. "You'd be stupid not to go to a place like that, or the train station, or anything else, really."

"Is Hank—"

"He's fine." Diana didn't seem in the mood for any more questions, so I bit my tongue and tried to focus on the road ahead instead. Even though I wondered where we were headed, why, and who'd be there.