Now or Never ⇀ John B Routledge [1]

xvi. bruises

An hour had come and gone since Ashtyn began her long journey back to the Chateau alone. There were multiple times where she felt paranoid, like someone was watching her every move from a distance, but she came to the conclusion that it was just her mind playing tricks on her.

By now, the mainland girl was painfully exhausted. Every added step forward made her knees ache and she can't help but wonder: 'how much farther?' In order to check everything off their 'to-do' list, John decided that it would be best for the couple to split up. He needed to get the coded letter from Denmark Tanny translated and she needed to find Luke before Claudia.

Returning to the small shack alone was daunting for the sixteen year old though. Ashtyn didn't know what awaited her arrival, but if the roles were reversed, Luke would charge in headfirst for her. What kind of a sister would she be if she didn't do the same in return?

Her messy brown locks were tied up in a loose bun, bouncing with every step as she hesitantly walked through a patch of tall grass on the outskirts of John B's home. After the groups' encounter with that water moccasin in the cemetery, Ashtyn made sure to keep her eyes peeled for any of the creatures scaly friends waiting to pounce from their camouflaged hiding spot.

With her recent luck, she wouldn't be surprised if a poisonous snake did bite her right about now...

As she strode by Big John's vacant shed, an arm grabbed the sixteen year olds waist, pulling her behind the wooden building without much of a fight. Ashtyn's body stiffened when a large hand clasped over her mouth, muffling her scream for help as she ineffectively thrashed around.

Ashtyn felt sick to her stomach as she fought against her captor. She feared the unknown, and currently, there was a lot of that in her life. What if the person who grabbed her was a hitman and already took Luke out? Would she be next?

The male cursed under his breath when her elbow collided with his ribcage, causing his grip to loosen, but not enough for her to get away. "Ash calm the fuck down," JJ's familiar voice froze her in place. Out of the corner of her eye, Ashtyn caught a glimpse of messy blonde hair, which calmed her nerves.

JJ knew better than to jump her like that, so if he felt that this was his only option, there must be a problem. She swiped her hand back to smack the boys' bicep, "What the actual fuck Maybank? You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Shut up!" His hand clamped back over her mouth, shaking his head in frustration as he pointed at the tree line. "We're being watched."

Ashtyn followed the blonde's finger, finding a dark colored Chevy sitting at the end of the driveway. She could just barely make out the Kildare County Sheriff logo ironed onto the drivers shirt, which made her heart fall. Whoever was in that car was waiting to take John B away for good... "It's a cop."

"It's Shoupe," JJ mumbled.

Ashtyn shot him a confused look, "Who?" She was from a large city where it wasn't common to know an officers name, but things were different here. Everyone knew everyone.