Winter’s gaze shot to the hotel door when a sound of voices filled the hallway...
It sounded like two men arguing... but she didn’t know why or what they were arguing over.
Her breaths became shallow when the knob turned on the front door, and it pried open seconds later.
It was Cameron... holding a mini carton of milk in his right hand... one that was usually meant for one serving, and he was arguing with a guy outside the room.
“Leave her alone,” the guy told him. “Or I’ll call the police.”
Winter froze...
She knew who that was...
What was he doing here...? How did he know where they were staying?
“I’m not going anywhere,” Cam said, rage catching in his tone.
Not enough for just anyone to realize it... but enough for Winter to know he was pissed.
“She’s my girlfriend,” he stated, “not yours, whoever you are.”
Girlfriend? she echoed through her thoughts. Have I agreed to this?
“Just let me see her,” the guy said, “just to make sure she’s okay.”
She looked up to the door then, seeing Cameron blocking the doorway from a particular guy with blonde hair and green eyes.
She locked eyes with Kit, and she saw his brows draw together when he noticed her eyes harden in fear...
She could feel her blood slowly consume in ice... like she were stuck in a freezer...
But she watched his eyes move down to the computer that she read the article on... and realization clouded the dark green in his gaze... and he looked back up to her...
And just like the picture in the article... his soft green eyes were now hard in cruelty...
“Just let me see her,” he told Cameron, watching Winter back away toward the bed.
“Dude,” Cam said, “get the hell away from this door right now before I call the police.”
Kit looked from Cam, to Winter...
And he smiled at her... a dark, mischievous smile that was lethal around the edges...
She knew what the look said, You’re next.
But before Kit could ask Cam to get through the door again, he slammed the wood in his face, and Winter could hear him stumble back a couple steps from in the hallway.
Cam locked the deadbolt and dragged his hand down his face as if that guy annoyed him, sighing as he set the carton of milk on the kitchen counter.
“Wint—” Before he could finish calling her name, he looked up to where she stood, seeing her inches from the bed, staring at the door in horror. “Hey...” he said softly as if attempting not to scare her, shrugging off his jacket as he stepped over to her, “why are you shaking?”
She backed away from him, coming up short against the bed and fell onto it, letting out a small yelp.
Cameron stopped next to the table where his computer sat.
One glance at the article, he sighed, realizing what just happened.
“You weren’t planning on escaping were you?” he said then. “You didn’t even want the milk... You just wanted to snoop, huh?”
She was silent, just staring up at him with wide eyes.
“You saw it then?” he said, gesturing to the computer. “The article?”
“Do you work for him...?” she whispered, voice shaking.
Cam shook his head. “No.”
“Who do you work for?” she questioned, tears brimming in her eyes. “WHO is he?”
“Snowflake...” he whispered, stepping over to her, “let’s take a breath, alright?”
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” she shouted, scooting toward the headboard as an attempt to get away from him.
Cam just sat on the foot of the bed, giving her distance while studying her next move by searching her gaze.
“Is he...?” she whispered. “Is he one of you? Does he want to kill me? Do YOU want to kill me?”
“No—I don’t know—and no,” Cam stated.
“How do you know he’s not one of you?” she questioned.
“Because I can usually sense it.”
“Why is he here?”
“I don’t know, Snowflake.”
“Does he want to kill me?”
“I don’t know that either.”
She was gasping now, her head clouding with fog and she couldn’t form a single coherent thought.
“Will you let me near you?” Cam said.
She didn’t respond, just watched him with wide eyes that started blurring with tears.
“I’m coming closer...” he warned, crawling onto the bed.
She backed against the headboard further, as if she thought she could melt through it and disappear from him.
He got closer to her, touching her hand but she pulled out of his grasp, making his eyes shoot to hers.
He saw the fear swirling around in there... like a hurricane or a monsoon...
“Don’t fight me...” he said, reaching for her, “don’t.”
“No...” she whispered, attempting to shuffle away but he caught her arm, dragging her down onto the bed. “No!” she cried, kicking but he straddled her legs, eliminating the use of them. “No! No! NO! NO! NO!”
“Winter...” he whispered.
She was writhing from under him, screaming and crying... pleading with tears burning her eyes like acid...
“NO!” she screamed, kicking. “NO! NO! PLEASE! NO!”
He leaned down then, grabbing her wrists and raising them to the top of her head.
“NO!” she screamed. “STOP! NO! PLEASE! STOP IT! LET ME GO! LET ME GO!”
But he lowered himself onto her, using his free arm and wrapping it around her back, pulling her into his hold.
“Shhh...” he cooed, holding her to him while she wiggled from under him. “Don’t fight me... I won’t hurt you... I won’t... You know this....”
“No!” she sobbed. “No! Please! LET ME GO! NO!”
He only rested his head on her chest, still holding her to him with an arm as she kicked and cried...
He could feel the fear swirling inside her... turning her stomach... burning every thought like fire... filling her blood with ice...
“Shhh...” he soothed, resting his cheek on her chest. “I need you to calm now... I need you to breathe now, alright?”
“I can’t!” she yelled, still attempting to break free. “I CAN’T!”
“You need to,” he said softly, “or you’ll faint. And we both know you don’t want that, right?”
She was silent, still trying to kick him.
“You can’t get me to let go,” he said then. “I won’t.”
“No...” she sobbed, trying to pull her wrists out of his hold but the hand that held them tightened its grip.
“Are you going to take deep breaths with me?” he said, “or are you going to continue to fight? Either way, I’m not letting you go.”
She continued to kick out her legs, writhing from under him, trying to turn left, then right... Needing to use all her energy before giving up...
He let out a defeated sigh, still holding her down as she fought him.
“Winter...” he whispered, hearing her cry out for help. “Winter, Sweetheart....”
“Help...” she cried softly. “Help....”
He felt her fighting slow, and he held her down while she used every last bit of energy to wiggle out of his grip... only to fail...
But when she relaxed into the bed, he rose his head from her chest, seeing her lashes open, though they were soaked, and she was staring at him, watching his next move.
“Done?” he said.
She was silent.
“If you kick me,” he stated, “I won’t be too happy, alright?”
She was still quiet.
So he released her, easing his grip slowly and testing whether or not she would run or fight again, but she didn’t...
She was limp under him like a rag doll...
So he sighed, slipping off the bed and lying a blanket over her.
“No...” she whispered, sobbing the word.
“Relax,” he said, “a little blanket’s not going to kill you.”
She watched as he stepped over to his computer and shut it, wrapping the cord around and shoving it—as well as her previous change of clothes, her unopened burner cell, and other junk they left—into a backpack he bought at some point.
And he threw the bag over one shoulder, stepping over to the bed and setting one knee onto the mattress, lifting Winter with both arms and holding her to him with an arm under her bottom.
“Cameron...” she cried silently.
“Don’t talk anymore,” he responded. “Don’t lose all your strength, alright? You already lost most of it fighting.”
She was silent after that.
“We’re going to go to a different hotel—or most likely motel,” he said, “one where he won’t be able to find us.”
“Where...?” she whispered.
“A really crappy one.”
“Why?”
“Because those motels most probably don’t have their own computer system.”
And he threw his keycard onto the counter of the kitchen, starting to the window.
He stopped in front of it, looking down to Winter who rested her cheek on his shoulder, staring off into the distance with glistening eyes.
“Hey,” he said, making her glance up at him, “hold onto me, alright?”
She clutched onto his shirt with the little strength she had left, Cameron questioning why the hell she wanted him to hold her now, but pushed the thought away.
And he jumped out of the window, holding her face to his neck as the world fell out from under them, attempting to calm her down so she wouldn’t scream...
And she didn’t...
He just ran up to the street and turned right, darting faster than light a couple blocks from where they were in a millisecond.
He stopped then, hearing a little squeak come from Winter when she lurched forward, but he held her to him.
“You okay?” he whispered, raising the blanket up to her shoulders so she was warmer.
A nod.
“I’m noticing you’re not fighting me anymore,” he stated.
She shook her head.
“Why?”
She looked to him, eyes glistening a dark grey, but wrapped her legs around his waist, raising herself a little higher before resting her cheek back onto his shoulder, gripping onto his shirt.
“Because that answers my question,” he stated sarcastically.
She grasped his free arm then, making him eye her suspiciously when she placed it on her back.
He just held it there, watching her groan in annoyance. “I don’t know what you’re asking me, Snowflake.”
She raised herself a little higher, pulling the blanket over herself more and moved his hand on her shoulder blades, attempting to move it in circular motions.
“Do you want me to rub you back?” he said then. “Is that what you’re asking?”
A nod.
He couldn’t help but chuckle. “Alright.”
She melted into him slightly when he stroked her back in long, circular motions.
“Like this?” he wondered softly.
Another small nod, though he could see her lashes lowering.
He continued the gesture, watching her ease into his grip while checking his peripheral vision for threats and ending up fining none.
He waited until her eyes were closed, and her previous strained breathing came out long and soft...
She was dreaming nicely now... like an angel...
And he ran again, passing by the crime scene earlier and the rest of the city lights flashing by until he made it to thirtieth street, stopping suddenly.
But when he looked down to Winter... she was still asleep in his arms...
And he smiled, stepping up to the crappy motel and opening the main door, the bell ringing above him.
“Hello,” the store owner said, “what room are you looking for?”
“A king,” Cam said. “Preferably one that won’t gross her out.”
The worker chuckled. “Yeah, I get it. People can be pretty messy, huh?”
Cam watched him shuffle through a notebook of some sort.
“Yeah,” he said, “the cleanest one we’ve got is room 104... It’s down the hall, on the right.”
“How much?”
“Forty a night.”
“That’s all?”
A nod.
So Cam tossed two twenties on the counter, the desk clerk sliding a key across the lament before getting back to watching the football game on his smart-phone.
So Cam looked down to Winter, checking to see if she was awake...
She still was sound asleep...
Poor thing... she wore herself out...
“Umm, sir,” Cam said.
The desk clerk looked up. “Yep?”
“Do you have... candles or something like that?”
He clicked his tongue, sliding open a desk drawer and searching through the junk. “Scented or unscented?”
“Either.”
“We have rose scented, watermelon scented, or beeswax.”
“I’ll take the watermelon,” Cam said.
The desk clerk tossed three candle sticks onto the counter, putting up his hand when Cam opened his wallet. “It’s on the house.”
So Cam just shrugged, grabbing the candles and shoving them into a cup holder pocket in his bag, looking back down to Winter.
Still sound asleep...
So he made it down the hall, turning right to room 104, sticking the key in the knob and turning it.
He flipped on the lights, glancing left and right, making sure no one was hiding in the shadows.
He checked under the bed, in the bathroom, closet... and found no one, so he kicked the door closed and pulled out the stick candles, setting one on the nightstand, one on the dresser, and one in the bathroom.
After pulling out a box of matches he bought from his pocket, he struck one and managed to light all three candles without burning himself.
And he blew the match out, tossing it in the trash bin and went to the lights, flipping off the switch.
When he made it to the king-sized bed, he scanned the sheets for anything gross before setting Winter down onto it, pulling the blanket up to her shoulders when she shifted to her side, burying her cheek into the mattress.
“There...” he said softly, “this should help you sleep....”
He looked around the room again, scanning for threats, and shuffled off his pack, tossing it on the side of the bed before getting in beside her, pulling the blanket over them both and tugged her shoulder so she faced him.
He wrapped his arms around her, brushing her hair out of her eyes as she groaned in annoyance, attempting to shift away from him.
He couldn’t help but chuckle at the gesture.
“No,” he said playfully, tugging her shoulder so she faced him again. “Come here, you silly goose.”
“Nooooo!” she whined, struggling to get out of his grip as he pulled her to him.
He only laughed softly, brushing some hair to the sides of her face as she kept her eyes closed.
“Still asleep?” he said softly.
She nodded and he laughed in amusement.
“Snowflake,” he said in between chuckles, “you do know if you actually were asleep, you wouldn’t have responded, right?”
She opened her eyes slightly, sending him a lazy glare and closed them again.
“Come here.” He lifted her by the armpits, making her whine in annoyance when he rolled her on top of him, holding her while she squirmed in his grip.
“Nooooo!” she said, kicking out her legs lazily. “Nooooo!”
He only laughed, pressing her head to his chest with one hand, the other rubbing her back gently.
She melted into him slightly.
He kept on calming her while she relaxed into him, eyes weighing down after every stroke of his palm, until she nuzzled her face into the nape of his neck, making him smile at the gesture.
“There you go...” he said, a smirk curling his lips. “Was that so hard?”
“You’re mean...” she muttered into his neck, though her words slurred from exhaustion.
“I’m mean?” he echoed. “You’ve hit me how many times in the last three days?”
She let out a mixture between a choke and a giggle, which Cam assumed she sounded like when she was tired.
But she did something unexpected, and leaned up to his face, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek...
If he wasn’t as pale as hell, he’d be blushing currently.
But she rested her head back onto his chest, nuzzling her face into the soft skin of his neck. “There, better?” she said, sounding as if she were half-asleep.
“Are you feeling alright?” he said suddenly, making her look up to him curiously, but she didn’t move her head off his chest.
“Yes...” she said, “just tired... why?”
“Nothing...” he muttered, grasping her shoulders and shoving her off him.
She let out a yelp when she landed on her side of the bed, him rolling on top of her seconds later.
He gently nibbled the sensitive part of her neck, making her giggle at the feeling.
She kicked out her legs as an attempt to get him off... but her head moved to the side almost instinctually to give him more room...
He moved the kisses up to her jaw, watching her face for fear but ended up finding none...
Though her giggles slowed to silence... and were replaced with soft moans...
Once he pressed a kiss behind her ear he stopped, resting his forehead against hers.
She could taste his minty breath... and she could smell his cologne... but she saw his eyes grow dark with her reflection...
Before she could ask him if he was okay, he rolled off her and tugged her shoulder so she faced him, wrapping an arm around her while pulling the blanket over them both...
When they were both comfy, he started rubbing her back again in long, soothing motions... making her breaths softer after every stroke... and after a minute, she relaxed into the bed, feeling him tuck some hair away from her lashes...
“Cam... eron...” she managed to whisper through her paralyzed lips.
“Shhh...” he soothed. “No more talking. Go to sleep.”
“But I haven’t told you...” she whispered, “yet....”
“You can tell me later,” he responded.
“No...” she said, almost whining the words, “no... I need you to know....”
“Know what?”
“I lo... you....”
“What?” he questioned, shock rattling through him.
But she was already asleep, resting peacefully in his arms like a beautiful angel...
He sat up then, staring down at her as she rested on the bed, breathing softly.
“What...?” he whispered even though she couldn’t hear him. “What did you say?”
No response.
“Snowflake…?” he said. “Winter…?”
Did she just say what he thought she did…?
“Winter…” he said, shaking her a little.
She groaned in annoyance at the movement, turning her face into the mattress…
So he stopped, looking down at her as she slept blissfully…
“I’m going to get you to say it aloud,” he stated to her. “And you will say it and mean it.”
He pulled her to him then. “You will… I don’t care how long it takes… You will….”
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