“Is it his fault?” Holly asked. “Did he have a part to play in my kidnapping?”
“According to Trevor, Loch tried to get out of our little operation some time ago but failed. Now he’s here.”
Holly’s gaze darted to Loch’s. His eyes bore into hers.
“But even so,” Elise continued, “if he can switch sides easily once, he can do so again. He’s the sort who will play us both until he figures out which side is the winning side.”
“That’s not true!” Loch pled.
Something in his voice pulled at Holly’s heart. She should’ve been happy to leave him here. After all, he was the one who had first shown Trevor’s lackeys where she lived. He helped them track her at one point. He even tried to get her out of Silver Spruce. He would’ve succeeded if Johnny, Keller, and Garret hadn’t shown up.
Despite all of that, Holly didn’t feel right about leaving him behind. She couldn’t explain it, but she knew Loch wasn’t the villain of this story. He wasn’t even the villain’s sidekick. He was someone who had made a bad call and then tried to rectify it. As much of a pain in the ass as he was, he didn’t deserve to be left behind.
“If he stays, I stay.” Holly nodded stiffly.
Elise’s brows shot up. She stood silently as if she were waiting for Holly to let her in on the joke. When Holly said nothing, Elise let out a sigh and tossed some powder onto Loch’s bindings.
She left Holly’s cell and quickly unlocked Loch’s with her blade.
Once he was freed, Loch stepped around Elise and entered Holly’s cell. He took her by the wrist and checked her arms over.
“What are you doing?” Holly asked.
“Making sure that powder is what she said it is.” He ran his thumb over the back of her wrist. “Are you all right?”
“I’m confused, but fine.” She nodded. “Are you okay?”
“I was a little worried you were going to leave me here, not going to lie.” He laughed uneasily.
“I wouldn’t have forgiven myself.”
“As sweet as…whatever this is…is, we have to go.” Elise stood in the opening of Holly’s cell.
Loch stepped between Holly and Elise.
“Why would you help us?” he demanded. “Who are you?”
“She’s Trevor’s sister,” Holly replied.
Elise bristled as if the words offended her.
“What?” Loch looked at Holly, brow furrowed. “Trevor doesn’t have a sister.”
“He does. She’s right here. She’s losing her patience,” Elise said through gritted teeth. “If you want your freedom, take it now. In a few minutes, the window we have is going to close, and I can’t promise it’ll ever open again.”
“We’ll take it,” Holly said before Loch could say anything else.
Loch tightened his grip on her arm.
“Trust me, okay?” Holly pleaded.
Loch’s eyes searched her face. He sighed and shook his head.
“Fine. I trust you. If this gets me killed, I’m going to haunt you forever.”
“That’s the spirit.”
“Come on!” Elise took off down a corridor. The darkness quickly swallowed her.
Holly and Loch ran to catch up. As soon as they entered the dark corridor, Loch reached for Holly’s hand.
“They might try something,” he warned her. “At the very least, we’ll know where the other is.”
“Right.” Holly squeezed his hand and pressed on. As they walked, she felt the ground curve upward. Pale light seeped into the corridor from up ahead. Holly quickly realized it was moonlight.
Elise stood at the opening of the mine, looking nervous.
“Will you hurry up?” she called in a hushed tone. “By the look of it, you two don’t even want to escape.”
“Why are you doing this?” Holly asked when she and Loch reached the mouth of the mine. “Why betray Trevor?”
“I’m not betraying him.” Elise’s pale eyes glowed in the moonlight. “I’m trying to save him.”
“I don’t understand.”
“You don’t have to. All you have to do is go.”
“Holly, now is not the time to linger.” Loch pulled Holly toward the woods.
“Thank you!” Holly called back to Elise, but the other woman had already returned to the mine.
She and Loch ran, hand in hand, until Holly’s legs ached and her lungs burned. She tugged on Loch’s arm until he slowed his pace.
“We can’t stop,” he said. “We have to get somewhere safe.”
“I can’t breathe.” Holly doubled over, straining to get air into her lungs. She felt Loch’s large hands on her back, guiding her to an overgrown stump.
“Catch your breath,” he urged. “I’m sorry. It’s easy to forget that human bodies can’t take as much as shifters.”
Holly leaned on him to stop herself from sliding off the edge of the stump.
“Why not shift now?” she rasped. “We could get back to the house so much quicker.”
“It’s much easier to track a bear shifter barreling through the woods than it is to track two human forms on foot.”
Holly nodded. The burning in her lungs finally began to subside. She felt as though she’d be able to run for another stretch without passing out. She tugged on Lock’s sleeve to tell him, but his focus was elsewhere.
She looked up at his face. His eyes blazed. His whole body was rigid as he listened to their surroundings.
“There are shifters in the woods,” he whispered. “Nearby.”
Fear sized Holly’s chest. They were still so close to the silver mines. It was probably some of Trevor’s followers patrolling the area. They were going to get recaptured before they even had a real chance to escape.
Loch pulled Holly to her feet.
“Stay close to me,” he whispered. “If they attack, run. Don’t look back. I’ll buy you time.”
“What?” Fear twisted in her gut.
“You’re the one who needs to survive
