Page 128 of Running from Drac

She attempts to make contact with the side of the mountain and barely misses. Her legs just aren’t long enough.

“I can’t,” she yells, slipping even lower. God, the next scream she makes slices through me like a blade, the fear building in her eyes as I struggle to hold her.

“Please, Eddie. Don’t let go.”

“I won’t,” I yell, tears spilling down my cheeks. “Pippa, don’t you dare let go!”

Red and blue lights form below her, an army of cops and paramedics appearing out of nowhere. From somewhere down below, I hear someone yell, “Help is coming! Don’t let her go, kid.”

“I can’t hold on much longer!” I scream back. “I’m losing her.” My feet start slipping over the edge, my body doing everything in its power to not topple over the cliff too. “Come on, Pippa. I can’t lose you too.”

Our eyes meet for the briefest of seconds as her lips part into a heart-wrenching smile, the kind that splits a soul in two.

“Don’t smile at me like that, Pippa. Like—”

“Tell her I’m sorry, Eddie. If you ever see her again, please tell her that.”

“You’re going to tell her yourself. We’re going to get through this.”

She frowns, both of us feeling the end looming. “I’ll always love you, Eddie, even if you never loved me back. When you remember me, try to remember the good things, okay?” My body inches even more toward the edge, her weight dragging me down with her. I can hear the crunching of gravel behind me.

Reinforcements are here… they just don’t make it in time.

“Pippa, don’t let—”

Her fingers slip out of my palm, eyes rounding in insurmountable fear as our touch severs her and her scream pierces the air with a gut-wrenching sharpness as she drops into the void below. It only cuts off when she smashes onto the ground, the shattering of her bones the last sound I hear.

“NO!” I shout. “Pippa!”

The silence after is torturous. The guilt, even more disabling. She’s right. This is my fault…

I fall to my knees, breath torn from my lungs. My scream rips through the sky, the kind of sound that shatters bones and glass.

Strong hands clamp down on my shoulder, and I jump, scrambling backward in a strange, hazy fear.

“It’s okay, Eddie. It’s okay.”

“I tried to stop her,” I sob. “I tried.”

Through my tears, his face comes into view, familiar… friendly.

“Do you remember me?” he asks, kneeling so he’s on my level.

My head moves, but in what direction I’m unsure. Everything is so fucked up right now that I can barely focus.

“I’m Cipher. You bought my bike.”

Recognition kicks in, and I throw myself into his arms, clutching onto him like I’ve known him for years. “I didn’t kill her,” I sob. “I was trying to save her.”

Cipher’s hand gently pats my back. “I know. It was all on video. We have cameras up here; they were triggered and recorded everything.”

Pulling away, I suddenly feel very stupid. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s okay. What you just witnessed… well, it’s not easy.”

“How would you know?”

“Because I watched the mother of my child die in front of me. Death is never easy, especially when it’s someone you deeply care about.”