Page 76 of Woven Souls

Fuck, fuck, fuck, we need to get goingnow.

“What’s—” Theo starts, but I’m already tossing him the keys. With my poor vision, nighttime driving is out of the question.

“Tell you in the car.”

We all climb in, and Theo whips the van out of the parking lot. I look over my shoulder as we hit the road, but I can’t make out if they’re watching or not.

“One of them has their phone out,” Jonah says, leaning between me and Theo in the front.

“Who does?” Theo shots me a worried glance.

“Two guys from Everlast were here checking in and noticed me.” I give everyone details of the quick run-in. “I think it’s safe to assume that there’s a wanted poster for all of us.”

Theo’s grip on the wheel tightens. “Fuck, I hope they didn’t catch our license plate number.”

“Can’t we rent another vehicle?” Willow’s question causes both Theo and me to grimace.

Theo glances at her through the rearview mirror.

“We were supposed to return this one a few days after you and Jonah took off.Technically, this one is now officially stolen. I don’t think the rental company would take kindly to us showing up and asking for a new one.”

“Stolen?” Willow repeats sharply. “Isn’t this van inmyname?”

From way in the back Kwil chuckles. “Thank goodness you’re a forgiving person.”

“Shut up, Kwil! This is serious!” Willow shrieks. With a huff of annoyance, she adds, “I’m going to kill you guys if I get arrested for this.”

Grand theft larceny is the least of our concerns right now. If anyone figures out what we drive and our license plate number, there’s nowhere we can hide. We’ll be hunted down and killed before we ever make it to Everlast.

A heavy stone sits in my stomach as we race through the dark back roads.

Chapter18

WILLOW

We don’t stop at another motel for the next three nights.

Instead, we drive through the night, each taking turns sleeping while the others stay up and keep a lookout. I find it harder to sleep like this. Not necessarily because sleeping in a van isn’t all that comfortable. I’ve done that loads of times in the past in my VW bus with no problem. The difference between those times and this time is now I have demons after me, possibly the police, and most likely Ghosts who may or may not have been tipped off to our general location. With danger and problems around every corner, sleep is elusive.

It doesn’t help that everyone keeps telling me to sleep.

“Willow, you’re expending more energy than any of us sending these things into the Realm of the Dead. Just get some rest,” Kwil encourages at a quick pit stop after a particularly long stretch of driving. “We’ll wake you if we need you.”

The next leg of the trip Kwil held me in his arms. I’d hoped that would help make me feel safer, but it didn’t.

“You’re getting grouchy, go to sleep!” Jonah insists seven hours later.

“No, I’m not!” But even as I say it, I can hear the attitude in my voice and feel the hard set of my jaw. Okay, maybe I am getting grouchy.

At a gas station stop, I get out of the van to stretch my legs.

I use the facilities, which are located on the back side of the convenience store attached to the gas station. On my way back, I run into Theo. He walks straight towards me and grabs me by the wrist. Theo pulls me close before pinning me against the side of the building. His body crowds me as he reaches out to brace himself with one hand against the wall. The other takes my chin and forces me to meet his gaze.

“Theo, what—”

“Shh, or you’ll draw attention to us,” he murmurs as his lips trail across my cheek before kissing me thoroughly. When he pulls away, he adds, “My queen is on edge, and it’s my duty to take care of her.”

Theo leans down to kiss along my neck. His hand slips past the waistband of my leggings and teases my clit. I moan and lean my hips into his hand. I reach up and grab his shirt to pull him closer to me