*places gently and runs away from the rocks of shame being thrown at me*

Chapter Thirty-Four

Scott's POV

Where's my phone? I pulled the phone out of my pocket, and chucked it into the woods in the opposite direction. Didn't know if it was bugged, but I wasn't gonna wait around and find out. I put my hoodie up, walking in the dim light. I'd run to my friend's house to grab my stuff, but realized that men were staking the place out.

Just keep calm. Don't look back. Don't look back.

A branch crunched behind me, and I twitched in its direction.

Damn it!

Screwing it all, I took off at high speed through the woods. I couldn't hear anyone behind me anymore; that was a good sign. I finally made it to the woods behind the bus stop, praying that the next bus was pulling up.

More men! Shit, shit, shit!

This was already my fault. I stupidly decided to play bass for Serpentine, which was advertising around town. I'd missed music so much, and I took that gig at the first chance. People talk, so of course someone would have recognized me, and in a town this little of course it got around. Stupid, stupid! I wouldn't even be shocked if the reason they were looking for players was because someone set them up to lure me out; it was the perfect plan. I acknowledged that the Black Hand was no idiot, but there were some days where I (begrudgingly!) admired his dogged strategy. Sometimes I wondered if he was affecting my psyche, moving things so that I'd end up places…

Not now! There was no time to feed into my paranoia. I needed to skip town. Soon.

I ran a few miles down into even more empty country, coming across a small grocery store. I walked through the front, and saw the lone cashier speaking to two cops. I glanced at them, and the two cops turned in my direction. Something about the glint in their eyes let me know that they weren't trustworthy. I turned to walk away.

"Hey! You! Get back here!" one of them shouted.

They came at me, and I juked them, running to the back of the store. Not Nephilim, and easily outran. I burst through the doors in the back, and kept running down the road at full speed. Eventually I came across a shabby gas station. I was ready to head off the road, nervous about more snitches, but jerked to a stop when I saw the payphone. The light overhead twitched, and it was in a position that would hold my back to the road. Exposed. Still, there was no one around and I heard no cars. I took my chance, praying it was still functional.

Blessed to hear the dial tone, I shoved coins into the slot and dialed Nora's number. Nora might only be human, but she was my only ally at the moment and I needed help. My heart was pounding and my breathing was erratic.

"Where are you?" she answered, impatiently.

I don't know how she knew I was in danger, but thank God! "They're onto me, Grey. I saw them at the Devil's Handbag. Hank's men. I bolted."

"Scott!" Oh. Not worried for me, then. "Where are you?" she repeated.

"I don't want to say over the phone." I looked over my shoulder. "I need to get out of town. When I went to the gas station, Hank had men there. He has them everywhere." I continued to explain my situation, when I heard sirens coming down the road. "Can you meet me in thirty at my hideout?" Please, PLEASE don't fail me now, Grey!

"I'll be there in thirty." Thank God!

"You remember the way?" I said, already beginning to lean away from the phone.

"Yes."

I wanted to reply, but the cops were in sight. I was just going to have to believe her. I hung up the phone and took off full speed toward the beach.

I paced in the cave, waiting. I was two seconds from bailing when I heard footsteps. I paused. They weren't confident steps, nor were they silent ones. No Nephil could be that clumsy. I did a birdcall, similar to what my mom called the "who cooks for you" owl when I was a kid. The steps stopped. I did it again, and a flashlight beamed in my face.

"Put the light away!" I hissed, waving it away. Nora began climbing up the rocks, awkwardly shuffling a duffle bag.

"I'm sorry I'm late!" she cried, puffing as she climbed. "I was at Delphic when you called. I don't have the Volkswagen, but I did pack you clothes and a winter hat to hide your hair. There's five hundred dollars in cash, too. It's the best I could do."

I didn't know where she got this stuff, but it didn't matter. I pulled her up into a hug, grateful for the speed of the help. "Thanks, Grey."

"The stuff you brought will help. Maybe I can hitch a ride out of town." Or take their car and leave the five hundred.

"If I asked you to do something for me first, would you consider it?" she asked. I looked at her; I'd do anything other than stay at this point.

"Throw away the Black Hand's ring. Toss it into the ocean. I've thought this through. The ring is pulling you back toward Hank. He put some kind of curse on it, and when you wear it, it gives him power over you. It's the only explanation. Think about it. Hank wants to find you. He wants to draw you out. And that ring is doing a stellar job."

I thought about how I'd just been wondering how he could know where I am, or what I needed. On some level that I didn't understand, Hank may have been doing exactly what Nora claimed. It started off so well with it on, but I'd gotten reckless. Even so- did it mean that I truly was weak without it?

"And the powers?" I asked both myself and her.

"They're not worth it. You made it three months relying on your own strengths. Whatever curse Hank put on the ring, it's not good." Her gray eyes were pleading with me. I knew she didn't trust the ring, but this was the first time she'd been so passionate about it. My insecurities threatened to bleed through, but for the first time in a while I felt like I might be able to believe I could live without it.

"Is it that important to you?" Am I that important to you?

"You're important to me." I felt my heart swell. Aw.

"If I say no?" Will you give up on me?

"I'll do everything I can to get it off your hand. I can't beat you in a fight, but I can't live with myself if I don't at least try."

I snorted. "You'd fight me, Grey?" I could hold her up by the scruff with one hand, but I appreciated the conviction. She'd cleared up all my doubts, without even knowing it.

Her eyes narrowed and her chin tipped up. "Don't make me prove it."

I took the ring off of my finger, looking at it for one last time.

"Here's your Kodak moment," I teased before hurtling it like a baseball into the waves. I heard her release a breath in relief.

"Thank you, Scott."

"Any other last requests?"

"Yeah, go!" She sounded so…sad. Was Grey gonna miss me? Was…was my mom gonna miss me? Aw shit- Lynn.

"Can you check on my mom every once in a while, make sure she's hanging in there?"

"Of course."

"You can't tell her about me. The Black Hand will leave her alone as long as she thinks she has nothing to give." I was a terrible son- complete trash. I hadn't even checked on her myself. Now I was leaving her with a friend that did nothing to deserve my messed up issues.

Nora nodded. "I'll make sure she's safe." She pushed me weakly. "Now get out of here before you make me cry."

In the split second I went to move, I heard them. They were close. I could have gotten out of there, but Nora wouldn't be able to. I wouldn't be able to move as fast with her, and she would have gotten hurt if I'd tried. I certainly couldn't abandon her there, not in the hands of the same father that was willing to kidnap and torture her for three months. It was me they wanted, me they deserved to have. I could only hope they'd focus that anger on me and not her.

And in front of me was the one person who cared. Who understood everything I was, and still cared. She looked confused, wondering why I hadn't moved.

There'd been something I'd been thinking- no, dreaming about- for a long time, and God knew I'd never have another chance when they caught me. I moved forward, and before she could say anything, I placed my lips on hers. Not like our kiss in the summer, where I'd been drunk and unsure. I was more sure of myself at that moment than I'd ever been about a girl.

I opened my eyes, and Nora stood there, shocked. "You've been a good friend. Thanks for having my back."

Nora touched her lips, then looked behind me where I sensed other Nephilim approaching. Her eyes widened in fear.

"Hands in the air, hands in the air!"

I'd been trying to keep a brave face for Nora, but I lost a little resolve when I thought about the torture that awaited me. I dropped the bag and lifted my hands above my head. I felt a heavy weight come across my head, and was out before I hit the ground.