Although most of the hallways were empty and nob*dy seemed to look twice at us, the sheer amount of nervous energy I felt didn’t lessen. It felt like Griffin could return any moment just to catch me in the act of escaping, and I’m not sure I could lie my way out of this one. I was wearing the backpack that contained everything I’d brought with me and I had left a note for him on his b*d.
Just a couple of hours and you’ll be home-free, Clark.
Alessia was a lot calmer than I was. Although she did seem to have her guard up, she wasn’t shaking or giving herself whiplash every time she heard what sounded like a footstep in the castle hallways. She walked through the castle like she belonged here and I could only hope some of her confidence rubbed off on me by the time our escape plan was finished.
Every step felt like a step closer to freedom, and by the time the south entrance came into view, I was digging my nails into my palms so hard that I drew blood.
“I see someone,” Alessia whispered, and my stomach dropped. “That’s my escort – Benito. Don’t say anything, I’ll do the talking.”
Sure enough, a tall, middle-aged man stood by the door to the south entrance. He reminded me a lot of Esther. He had the same cheery smile plastered on his face.
“Alpha Alessia,” he greeted her as she got closer, “Are you ready to depart to the airport? A car and driver are waiting for you outside.”
As we got closer, his gaze shifted to me. “Oh, who’s this?”
“She’s with me,” Alessia answered curtly, “She’ll be leaving with me.”
Benito raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Nob*dy arrived with you, this must be a new friend you made while you were here.” I tried my best not to make eye-contact.
Two things were clear: one, Benito wanted an actual explanation of who I was, and two, our original lie was slowly unraveling. Alessia and I had originally planned to say that I was part of her pack, but since Benito had been Alessia’s escort at the castle, there was no way he’d buy that. He knew she had come alone.
Despite Benito’s curiosity, Alessia shut him down in a very Alessia-like fashion.
“Look,” Alessia snapped, “Her pack is in California. She needs a ride and I said she could come with me that’s the whole story, okay? Is that a problem with you? All the Alpha kids have to be out by this afternoon anyway. Do you really want another guest stuck here?”
I held my breath.
This was the moment of truth. Either he was going to let us go or he was going to hold us up and ruin my one shot of getting out of here.
Benito’s eyes glazed over for a moment and then he looked back to us, smiling. again. “I’ll arrange for another plane ticket for your friend, but in the meantime, there’s a driver waiting for you outside.”
He opened the door for us and Alessia immediately pushed past him. “Thanks,” she muttered. I wasn’t far behind her, and I tried not to make eye contact with Benito. He was looking at me closely, like he was trying to see if he recognized me.
“Thanks,” I said, and then I walked into the crushing Canadian air. It was even colder than I expected, but fortunately, a black SUV was only steps away. The driver was at the ready to help us with our bags but Alessia completely ignored him, throwing her bag and my backpack into the trunk.
As I climbed into the SUV, I finally let out the breath I’d been holding.
I’m in the car. This is it, I made it.
Alessia sidled in next to me while the driver slid behind the wheel.
Okay, let’s get this show on the road I want to leave this castle behind as soon.
as possible.
I looked out the window. Benito was still standing in the open doorway, staring at us with that same chipper smile. The SUV rumbled to life and we began moving.
Finally!
“Goodbye!” Benito waved to us, “Safe travels, Alessia and Clark!!” (19
I gave him an awkward smile and Alessia completely ignored him.
“That was f**king close,” she muttered to me, “I was lying my ass off to that guy.” Her voice was low, and had I not been next to her, I wouldn’t have heard her. Now, in the confined space of the SUV, Alessia felt like the nervous one. She wasn’t as shaky as I was, but I could read the anxiety in her b*dy language.
“You did good,” I whispered back, “You’re good on your feet.” She scoffed but didn’t reply.
Although I was still practically trembling, it felt like my nervous energy was dissipating with every mile we put between us in the castle. The driver was silent and I watched the dark evergreen trees pass in a blur.
I’m out of his castle, and once I’m on that plane, there will be no way for him to stop me.
It wasn’t until we were halfway to the airport that I felt a startling realization wash over me like cold water.
How had Benito known my name?
I had never told him my name, so that meant one thing: he had known who I was.
“If we act like prey, they’ll act like predators.” – Alyxandra Harvey
For the remainder of the two-hour drive to the airport, I was on edge. Benito knew my name-he knew who I was. Did that mean I’d been caught? Did Griffin know I’d left? Was he on his way to stop me?
The car was completely silent, but it felt like the driver was going to pull over any minute now and tell me the ruse was up-that Griffin was already on his way to drag me back. Or even worse, that Griffin would be waiting at the airport for me, ready to stop me from getting on that plane.
Although I felt like a bundle of frazzled nerves, Alessia spent most of the drive napping. Since we had gotten into the car, her anxiety seemed to disappear-she clearly thought our escape attempt had been a success.
I had two options. I could wake her up and tell her something was wrong, that Benito shouldn’t have known my name. Of course, we weren’t really alone. The driver was only a few feet away from us, and he’d definitely hear the entire conversation. If Griffin wasn’t already alerted to my disappearance, he probably would be then. Any chance we might still have at escaping would be ruined.
The second option was to remain silent and hope Griffin wasn’t waiting at the airport, ready to pull the rug out from under me.
And if he was, I’d deal with it then.
I decided to go with option two.
It’s going to be okay. You might still be able to get away. You don’t know for sure that you’ve been caught, I told myself. While it did little to actually help my anxiety, I repeated that thought for the entire rest of the ride.
“Alright, passengers. You’ll find your oxygen masks located in the overhead bins. Should the cabin lose pressure, oxygen masks will drop down. Please place the mask over your own mouth and nose before helping others.”
The flight attendant’s voice was monotone and tired as she lazily demonstrated how to use the oxygen mask. It was clear she gave this same speech several times a day.
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