The Survivor (Book #2)

Chapter 43

When I got back home, I ran straight to my room, ignoring Damon and the other boys. The next day, the pattern continued.

I begged Dominic to drive me to school in the morning, and he acquiesced despite feeling uncomfortable about it.

I passed Brooks between classes, and he gave me a sad smile. When I sat next to Caleb in class, I explained that I wasn't talking to Damon, I wasn't trying to avoid everyone. He understood, even if he seemed sad about it too.

At lunch, I texted my friends that I would be studying in the library, and they came to study beside me, luckily without Magnus or Asher. It was nice to have some girl time. I didn't tell them what had happened between Asher and me because I was sort of reveling in the fact that I had enjoyed such a beautiful moment without anyone knowing besides him. I thought about texting him or saying something, but I was still all twisted up in my feelings, so I avoided him. When he tried to catch me after Marine Biology, I ducked into the crowd to circumvent him.

This behavior became a habit as the week progressed. I spent hours studying in my room, accepting dinners left by Charlotte outside my bedroom door, and thanking Dominic for making the extra trip to my school. He didn't try to solicit any information from me about my silence, and I was grateful for that. Damon hadn't tried to talk to me or talk to anyone about me, so I did the same with him.

After school on Friday, I walked to a side street near campus that had become the spot in which I waited for Dominic. He had just gotten out of an online lecture but texted that he was on the way to get me.

I sat on the curb with my backpack at my feet, grateful that California weather ensured decent weather year-round. It was a little over a week until Christmas and I was perfectly comfortable in jeans and a long-sleeve T-shirt.

I scrolled through social media on my phone tiredly, barely noticing people's posts but double-tapping my friends' pictures regardless. It had been a while since I was on Instagram, and I had a lot of catching up to do.

I stopped scrolling when an image of myself appeared and then groaned aloud. It was the picture of me at the movie theater, clutching Dominic's hand and looking up at him with what looked like awe. I checked the number of likes hesitantly and silently screamed when I saw that it had surpassed one hundred. I checked the comments section next with trepidation.

There was a comment from Valerie calling me adorable and a comment from Tricia saying that I looked like I was 5. The other comments were varying shades of kind to insulting, but I tried not to take it personally. The caption Brooks had given the picture was "she looks up to us. Especially Dom." so I knew he meant no harm. Despite this, I commented that he was an idiot before going back to my feed.

I briefly gave the picture a closer examination, trying to see what Brooks had seen in it. He had the eye of a photographer, so I knew there was evident beauty, even if I was having trouble spotting it. I supposed it was kind of cute in a childish way. It looked like a little girl looking up to an older brother; the photo hadn't captured my fury.

There was a crowd of people behind us in the shot, but one individual in particular caught my eye as I examined it closer.

In the corner of my screen, I could see the arm of a man leaving the frame, in motion as if he were walking away from the theater. That arm was distinctly familiar, and my breath caught as I realized why.

The muscular limb was attached to a broad shoulder, with a dark blue shirt sleeve just made the edge of the photo. His face and the majority of his body were cut off, but the arm looked just like my uncle's.

I pressed my fingers to the screen to zoom in on the image when my phone screen turned black. The battery had died.

I tried to rationalize what I had seen as adrenaline shot through my veins and my feet began to get a little bit numb. The picture didn't even show the full body of a man, it was just an arm. I'm sure people could have very similar-looking arms. It wasn't like there was a shortage of tall men with muscles.

I knew I was probably overreacting. But just to be safe, I kept my eyes peeled until I saw Dominic pull up to me on the motorcycle. As he drove us home, I stayed focused on the cars and people around us. There was nothing out of the ordinary.

If my uncle had escaped from the police and they were still looking for him, he wouldn't be at the movie theater. He wouldn't be near a school, especially not the school that I attended. He would be far from here, on the run probably, trying to avoid being recognized.

Wouldn't he?