Page 45 of Obscurity

The inside of the tent was small—two uncomfortable air mattresses, each shoved into opposite walls of the tent. There was maybe a foot of space between them—just enough room to place their backpacks and shoes.

They had arranged their sleeping bags on top of the mattresses earlier and had set the single lantern near the entrance.

Olive lay on her bed, listening to Jason’s steady breathing beside her. Sleep was impossible.

Every sound outside made her tense. The wind. The rushing water. The footsteps that probably belonged to guides—who’d since transformed into security guards.

“You awake?” Jason’s whisper was so quiet she almost missed it.

“Yeah.” She turned toward him in the darkness, acutely aware of how small their tent was, how close they were lying. “I can’t stop thinking about what Connor said.”

“About Chloe leaving the promotional shoot?”

“Yes. I need to know what he knows. I’m hoping I’ll get the opportunity to talk to him tomorrow.”

“He seems like a good source of information.”

“And I keep thinking about the mine also.” Olive shifted, and her arm brushed against Jason’s. Even that slight contact sent electricity through her system. “It seems like the perfect place to hide something.”

Jason was quiet a moment. “You want to check it out?”

The words she’d been waiting to hear . . .

“I think we have to,” Olive whispered. “Connor indicated Chloe was headed there before she disappeared. It only makes sense.”

“It could be where she is now.”

The possibility hung between them like a prayer and a nightmare.

If Chloe was in the mine, she might still be alive. But she also might not be alone.

“It’s risky,” Jason said.

“Everything about this place is risky. But we can’t just lie here and wait for something to happen to us too.”

His gaze locked with hers. “Okay. But we do this together, and we’re careful. If something feels wrong?—”

“Then we get out immediately,” she finished.

“Promise me.”

The intensity in his voice made her turn toward him, though she could barely make out his features in the darkness. “I promise.”

For a moment, they lay there in the dark. Olive felt hyperaware of everything—the warmth emanating from Jason, the way his presence made her feel both safer and more vulnerable at the same time, the way her soul longed for someone to share her life with.

“We should go now,” she whispered, though part of her wanted to stay in this moment. “While everyone’s drunk or asleep.”

“Let’s get moving.” Jason sat up, ready to start.

But the weird ache remained in her chest.

Because she didn’t really want to go to the mine.

She’d much rather stay here with Jason and pretend everything was fine between them. Like they could have a future together.

She’d been going solo at life for so long, and she hadn’t realized just how weary she’d become.

Not until now.