Page 90 of Creeping Lily

I turn and run. As fast as my legs will carry me. The dirt sprays beneath my feet, the music chasing me in jagged waves, but it’s notRadioheadthat hammers in my ears.

It’s his voice.

Roaring my name.

Like the hunt’s only just begun.

47

TITAN

If there’s one song that could sum up everything about Lily and me, it’s this one. The lyrics aren’t just words—they’re a mirror. They reflect exactly who we are, what we are, and the twisted place we’ve ended up. She might not realize it yet, but I’m her creep. I’m her weirdo. And she’s the only person in this world who trulyseesme.

My strides eat up the distance between us. She’s fast, but I’m faster. My legs were built for this chase, and I’m desperate enough to win it. She doesn’t stand a chance.

I reach her in a heartbeat, my hands snapping out to clamp around her waist. She jerks and thrashes, kicking her legs like she’s trying to fight the air itself. Her scream catches in her throat as I lift her clear off the ground, her feet swinging helplessly.

I haul her against my side, locking one arm around her waist like a steel band. She claws and writhes, but I keep moving, dragging her back toward the car without slowing down. Each step pounds like a drumbeat in my ears—mine, hers, and the rhythm of this moment.

By the time I reach the car, the fight drains out of her. Herbody softens, sagging against me. No more thrashing. No more defiance. She’s not giving in—not really. She’s just saving her strength.

But to me? She feels like someone who’s finally accepted where she belongs.

“If nothing else, I enjoyed the chase,” I murmur, setting her down by the passenger side. Her feet barely touch the dirt before she bolts—again. Ten steps. That’s all she gets before I’m on her, my hand clamping around her arm and yanking her back. Ten steps too far, if you ask me.

This time, I don’t just catch her—I slam her against the car so hard the metal groans. My body curves over hers, caging her in. She hangs her head, breathing hard, her mind already spinning with her next escape plan. I lean in close, brushing her hair aside so my breath grazes the sensitive skin of her neck.

“How far do you think you’ll get before the coyotes find you, Lily?” I whisper, my voice low enough to curl around her ear like smoke.

“Better them than you,” she spits back, venom laced in every syllable.

If I were a weaker man, her words might have cut deep. Instead, I feel a grin tug at my lips. She’s got fire. And I’ve got all the time in the world to watch it burn.

“You think that now,” I say softly, “but one day you’ll see—I’m the only salvation you’ve got in this world.”

“You think that,” she parrots, turning my words back on me, “but I don’t need saving if you’re the one doing it.”

The sound that rumbles out of me is half chuckle, half growl. She does that to me—pulls something feral and amused out of my chest.

“Here’s how this is going to go,” I tell her, spinning her around until we’re face to face. My body pins hers against the car, every inch of me a wall she can’t push through. My handcomes up, thumb and forefinger framing her jaw. My touch is slow, deliberate—a caress that says exactly what’s on my mind. There’s no mistaking the hunger in it.

She jerks her face away from my hand, a flash of disgust in the motion—but her pupils tell a different story. They’re blown wide, dark and hungry. My strange little Lily, all sharp edges and shadowed corners, carrying a past so poisoned it seeps from her skin. She can lie with her mouth all she wants, but her eyes betray her—violence doesn’t scare her like it should. It stirs her.

I slip a syringe from my pocket, letting it dangle between my fingers before waving it slowly in front of her face.

Her breath hitches. Fear sparks in her widened eyes, and she stares at me with a silent, desperate plea—don’t drug me again.

“If I give you another one of these,” I say, my tone almost casual, “you’ll start hallucinating. One more hit after that, and your brain activity will be… permanently altered.”

I stop, watching her reaction. She’s trembling now, the anxiety rolling off her in waves. I already have her compliance, but I want more. I want it etched into her bones.

“You’ll lose control of your body. You could have a stroke. Maybe your heart gives out. Worst case?” I lean closer, my voice dropping to a dark murmur. “You spend the rest of your life drooling in a bed somewhere, a living corpse. You’re not exactly known for making good choices, Lily, but I strongly suggest you avoid this one.”

Her throat bobs as she swallows, nodding once—slow, reluctant. Her gaze stays glued to the syringe as I tuck it back into my pocket.

I guide her to the car, one hand firm on her elbow. Once she’s inside, I pull the seatbelt across her chest and click it into place like it’s a shackle. She’s not going anywhere.

I stroll around the hood, unhurried, and slide into the driver’s seat. “How about some Alanis?” I ask, folding my legs inand turning the key, like we’re about to take a pleasant little drive instead of me dragging her deeper into my world.