Page 32 of I Don’t Need Your Protection (Harrington Bay Academy #1)

“No way,” Luna says. “We made it this far.”

“We can order from the window,” Jemma reminds her. “We won’t need to leave the car.”

“That’s right. Okay, let’s go as fast as possible.”

As Clarissa drives us toward the ice cream shop, the rain gets even heavier. I want to tell her to head back, but the girls seem adamant about seeing this dare through. Maybe I need to relax and just go with the flow. After all, I want to have fun with these girls.

“Hey, should we show her the place?” Clarissa asks the others.

Luna and Jemma exchange a look. “You think she’s ready?” Luna asks.

“I think so,” Jemma agrees.

“What?” I ask.

Clarissa slows down before what looks like an abandoned area. She kills the engine and opens the door.

“What are we doing here?” I ask.

“We want to show you something,” she says. “Another secret only the three of us know about.”

“But it’s raining,” I remind them.

“It’s worth it,” Jemma tells me. “Trust us.” They get out of the car and shield their faces.

Once again feeling good that they’re sharing another secret with me, I get out of the car. Clarissa takes hold of my arm and leads me further down. It’s hard to see because of the rain, but it appears like there are a lot of destroyed and abandoned buildings.

Suddenly, she gives me a big shove, sending me tumbling to the ground. My palms scrape across the pavement and I cry out.

“Stay away from Warner!” she yells as she kicks what looks like discarded boxes and old wood at me.

“What?” I ask, covering my face as she kicks other things at me. Luna and Jemma do the same.

“Who the heck do you think you are?” Clarissa continues to yell. “You come to my school and steal my boyfriend. Go back to where you came from, you freak! If I see you go near Warner again, I’ll make your life at Harrington Bay a living hell.”

She and the others kick a few more things at me and then sprint away. I hear the sound of a car drive off.

I slowly lower my hands from my face and blink as the cold rain pelts down on me. Did they just abandon me here?

I don’t understand. Was this the reason Clarissa invited me to her sleepover? So they could abandon me here? My friends were right about her—she is a witch. She’s been after Warner all this time. I’m such an idiot for thinking I could trust her.

With the rain showering down on me so heavily I can barely breathe, I manage to find a half-demolished building that has a tiny spot to take cover from the rain.

It barely shields my body, though. I cross my arms over my chest and shiver, trying to keep my face clear so I can breathe.

Was not taking my jacket part of Clarissa’s plan? All I’m wearing is my pajamas.

What can I do other than wait for the rain to let up? I have no phone and can’t call anyone. I can try to find an open store and use their phone, but is it safe for me to walk all alone at this hour in nothing but soaked pajamas? Then again, it’s not any safer staying here.

I try to fold myself into my hiding spot so no one would find me here. It still doesn’t protect me much from the rain. “Please make it stop,” I beg whoever will listen. “Please make the rain stop. ”

It doesn’t seem like it’s getting any lighter. In fact, it gets heavier. My body shakes so badly and my limbs have grown numb. Even if I want to leave, I don’t think my legs could support me. I think…I think I might die.

Is this my end? Dying in the rain because of a bunch of horrible girls? What would my parents say if they saw me like this? They would be heartbroken. But if I do die…at least I’ll see them again.

“No,” I whisper, my teeth chattering. “Be strong. Survive until the rain lets up.”

My eyes flutter shut, but I force them open. I want to survive this. I need to survive this. But how tempting it is to just give in…

“Addilyn!” someone calls.

My eyes open to slits. Is someone calling my name or am I hallucinating?

“Addilyn,” the voice gets a little louder. “Addie.”

Strong arms scoop me up toward a strong, warm chest. I recognize his scent immediately. My eyes flutter open. “Caleb?”

Through the heavy rain, I see him staring down at me with concerned eyes. He pushes my face to his chest and secures me in his arms. “I’ve got you, Addie,” he murmurs as he stands and walks away with me in his arms. “You’re safe.”

“I…I didn’t think…you’d come,” I say through chattering teeth. “I thought I would…die.”

He stops walking and stares down at me with the most intense eyes I’ve ever seen on him. “I will always find you.”

He wraps me as tightly as he can to keep me warm. I feel his heart racing in his chest. It’s obvious he was very worried about me, and that touches me in a way I’ve never been touched before.

“Caleb,” I say.

“Shh,” he says softly. “Preserve your strength until we’re in the car. But stay with me, Addie, okay? I can’t lose you.”

I snuggle in his arms, trying to suck in as much warmth as I can. My body is still shaking like crazy and I still can’t feel my limbs.

Caleb reaches the car and shifts me in his arms to reach for the back door.

He gently lays me down on the back seat, and then disappears.

For a second, I freak out at the lack of his presence, but then I hear the trunk open and shut.

A second later, Caleb returns and throws a blanket over me.

He leans into the car to stretch the blanket up to my chin, then tucks it underneath me, ensuring that every part of me is warm and cozy.

“I thought they liked me,” I whisper as tears seep out of my eyes. “I thought we were having fun.”

Caleb brushes the back of his fingers across my cheek, his expression still full of concern. But also relief. He says in such a soft voice that I barely hear him, “I thought I would lose you.”

“How…how did you find me?” I ask as I continue to shiver. Caleb rubs his hands over my shoulders and arms to warm me up. “How did you know where to look? Did you secretly implant a tracking device into my arm?”

“No,” he says softly as he continues to sweep his fingers over my cheek. “When I saw the girls return to the room and you weren’t with them, I confronted that witch and demanded she tell me where you were.”

My eyes pop open. “But, Caleb—”

“I know. It was a risk I needed to take. I needed to know where you were.”

“Caleb?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you. You saved my life.”

He bends forward and presses his forehead to mine. “Please don’t thank me for looking out for you. I would take a bullet for you.”

“I wish I could hug you, but my arms are trapped in this cocoon.”

He leans forward and, as soft as a feather, he sweeps his lips across my forehead. “We should head back to school and get you in a warm bath.”

He gets out of the backseat and slides into the driver’s seat.

On the ride to school, he keeps me engaged in conversation because he’s scared what would happen if I fall asleep.

Once we get back to school, he somehow manages to get me past the guards and into my dorm.

I’m half-sleeping, so I don’t really understand fully what’s going on around me, but I’m sure the guards who work for my grandfather and are undercover help him sneak me inside.

He puts me under his blanket as he runs a hot bath. Did he put me in his bed and not mine because he doesn’t want my bed to get wet? But what about his?

He returns and carries me to the bathroom. Once he unwraps the blanket from around me, I fling my arms around him and hug him so tightly, I feel every muscle in his torso.

I don’t have to say anything to show this wonderful person how much I appreciate him. I know he knows. He’s pretty soaked, too, which doesn’t exactly help with my trying to get warm, but I don’t want to let go. I wish I could stay in his arms forever.

“You’re okay, Addie,” he whispers as he tightens his arms around me. “You’re okay.”

I think he’s reassuring himself more than me.