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Two hours later, the three of them come back from setting up my present. They find me scrolling on my phone checking out some short videos of my favorite influencers.
“We’ll take that!” Orion plucks the phone from my hands and drops it in the front pocket of his jacket. “You ready?”
With a heavy sigh, I nod. Why are we doing something, on my birthday, that I know for a fact I won’t like? But they’ve been working so hard, I can’t bring myself to complain. Besides, I’ll have them make it up to me later…with tongue.
It takes Hadley about twenty minutes to explain and demonstrate how a rifle works. After the gun fiasco at the warehouse, I vowed never to hold a firearm again. Well, that didn’t last long, did it?
“Got it?”
“Yeah. I look through the thingy with my eye that’s the leader or whatever, aim, then pull the trigger and hope I’m not shooting any of you.” I grin like a lunatic and instead of getting upset with me, Hadley gives me a mirrored grin. Only difference is that I’m being a brat and he’s just…psychotic.
“I’ll be right back.” Hadley runs ahead through the woods, and seconds later, he’s back.
“We’ll stay behind you so basically…shoot at anything that moves.” I stare at Hadley.
“What if someone is taking a stroll? Or what about other hunters?” I’m two seconds away from freaking the fuck out.
“Not a chance. Our property goes on for miles and there are cameras all along the fence in some places and a wall in others. Like I said, if it moves, shoot.”
“Imma shoot you in a minute,” I mumble without any bite to it. Hadley knows he’s won so I may as well just go with the murdering flow. “Oh, that reminds me. It’s soon the season for our local serial killer. The local news won’t stop talking about it.” We’re walking in a straight line, and while the guys are careful not to make too much noise, I’m hoping to scare away any and all animals within shooting distance.
“Let’s play the silent game, shall we?” I look at Hayes and mimic his words by mouthing them. He retaliates by mouthingBrat.
I guess I am, but to be fair, they bring out this side of me. Besides, they’re like ten years older than me so someone’s gotta be the dad around here.
Oh!
“I wonder if I have a daddy kink.”
All footsteps freeze and when I turn back, the three of them are staring at me with different facial expressions.
Horror.
Curiosity.
Delight.
That last one is a surprise to no one.
I’m about to say something snarky when I hear movement. Fuck, why is there an animal here? I swear to fuck, I cannot kill something, not even something scary. Well, maybe a snake if I don’t have the choice.
“What was that?” I whisper-yell but the guys aren’t looking at me, they’re staring straight ahead and past me.
Turning to follow their line of sight, it takes me a minute for my eyes to adjust in the dwindling light of evening. It’s a shadow and it’s moving, running from side to side.
Tilting my head to the left, I continue walking, curious as to what kind of animal has that form. Maybe a bear? Fuck that, I’m not shooting a bear, that’s a hard pass.
It almost looks…
I keep walking and it feels like a cosmic pull forcing me to follow the animal, and as I do, the shadow transforms into a silhouette. A few more steps in and that silhouette takes on a familiar form as it turns around, heaving breath after breath and pressing its back to the trunk of a tree.
I gasp, my rifle falling to the ground and my chest constricting as though stuck in a vise.
“Happy Birthday, Little Rabbit.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Hadley