CHAPTER TWENTY
I awoke to the sound of my window being jimmied. My eyes flew open. It was dark in my room except for my bedside lamp and I was stil in bed, stil tied to the posts. My muscles ached and cried from being pul ed in the same position for so long. I was alone.
Wel , not quite.
The window final y slid open, clattering in the frame. I froze, unsure of who it was, what it was. Did the winged demon babies final y come for me? Was it something worse, like the giant spider?
“Hey, kiddo,” Dex whispered. “It’s just me.”
I heard him hoist himself through the window and land softly on the carpet. He appeared beside me. Like before, he crouched down so he was at my level. I moved my head on the pil ow to look at him.
With blood crusting at the corners of his eye, he gave me a quick, almost shy smile. I hated how it made me feel. His smile stil had the ability to make me feel good.
“Sweet climbing tree you’ve got there,” he said, nodding his head at the outside. He looked me up and down, frowning, then asked, “How are you?”
“How do you think?” I replied, my tongue feeling sluggish.
“Yeah,” he said slowly. “I know. I’m going to get you out of here, OK?”
“Where?”
“I said I had a plan. Your parents never gave me a chance to tel it to them. You just have to trust me.”
My eyes narrowed at him. “How the fuck do you think I can trust you?”
He winced and rubbed at his thin beard. “I deserve that, I know. And I don’t blame you. But none of that’s important right now. Later, yes. Not now, kiddo. Ada was right. You can’t stay here. Whatever’s inside you, it’s going to kil you.
Sooner rather than later. And a hospital, alone...Perry you don’t want to die in there.”
My eyes flickered in alarm.
He reached over and stroked my hand gently. His touch made gooseflesh appear on my arm. “It’s true. I’m not trying to scare you. In fact, you’re the one who’s scaring me. As usual. But we have to go. Wil you come with me?”
“You’l have to untie me,” I said in a hush.
He leaned in closer. “I’l risk it.”
“Promise you’l tie me up again after?”
I expected him to have some sexy remark to that. But his face was stern, washed with determination. “I don’t want to.”
“But you have to. Or I won’t go. I don’t want to hurt you again.”
“Even though I deserve it.”
“You deserve something. But not that.”
He nodded and took a deep breath. “OK, deal.”
He leaned over me and untied my left arm. He smel ed the same as ever. Old Spice, Nicorette gum. I tried not to breathe it in, just in case it messed with my heart a bit. But it was hard.
My hand came free and I wiggled it as he untied the other one. He paused before heading down to my legs and shot me a wry look out of the corner of his eye. He was waiting for me to attack him.
I smiled quickly. “I’m OK.”
He nodded, and chewing on his lip, he undid the other two legs. As he worked, I stretched my arms and back and reflected on how odd everything suddenly was. Here was Dex, someone I had known in the most personal level possible and it felt like we were almost strangers. Like we were starting al over again. It made me a little bit sad. But I pushed the sadness away because I couldn’t afford to vulnerable. Not only because it made me more susceptible to that thing, but because I didn’t want to backslide, as foolish as that was. Dex had just warned me that I might die because of this but I wanted to hold onto my precious pride.
But what use was pride if you were dead?
When he was finished, he came back to me and gently slid his arm underneath my back, easing me into a sitting position.
“Here, up you go. Easy...take it easy.”
My heart pounded in my head and I pressed down on both temples. His warm hand cupped the back of my head, supporting me. I pointed at the rope, keeping my eyes shut.
“Tie me up,” I said, grinding my teeth against the pain.
“Right now?”
“Please, Dex.”
He sighed and reluctantly tied the rope around my wrists and ankles.
“Do it tighter,” I whispered harshly.
He stopped and tilted my chin up so I was looking at him.
I opened my eyes. His eyes were large and searching mine. I could see my reflection in them.
“What?” I asked. “You saw what I did. Your throat is practical y blue.”
It was now. Blue and purple and ugly. Al because of me.
“I don’t like this.”
“And I do?”
But he tied my wrists and ankles tighter, stopping just before the circulation was cut off.
“I’m obviously going to have to carry you,” he said warily.
“Obviously,” I whispered back.
He put his arms behind my back and knees and lifted me up with little effort. I was right. He had bulked up a bit.
Not that it matters, I thought quickly, then tried to concentrate on the task at hand. Mainly, getting the hel out of Dodge without my parents, or Maximus, or Ada, catching us. Stil , as I rested my head in the crook of his sweet-scented neck, I couldn’t help but wonder how I smel ed; my last bath having been days ago. And that was with spiders.
“You OK, kiddo?” he asked after taking a step.
I nodded and breathed into his neck.
“Here goes nothing,” he said quietly. He adjusted my weight on him and quickly opened the door with his hand. It creaked open slowly. The lights in the hal way were on but the ones on the stairs weren’t. I hoped he wouldn’t fal down them; we’d both be hurt and we’d be letting everyone know what we were up to.
He tiptoed (if it’s even possible to tiptoe when you’re carrying someone) to the edge of the stairs and then careful y made his way down them. I wanted to warn him to be extra quiet since Maximus was asleep in the living room but I didn’t want to open my mouth.
We made it to the hardwood floors and he turned toward the front door.
Then stopped.
There was someone standing there.
We waited until the figure came forward and the light from upstairs il uminated them enough.
It was Ada. She was stil in her clothes, having not gone to sleep yet.
“What are you doing with her?” she hissed.
“I’m taking her. This is part of the plan.”
“Taking her where? You never told me the plan.”