Later, when she could breathe again, Rose would go over the events of that day, trying to find some logic in all of it, to determine if her heart leapt at the sight of Cal because of what he represented-freedom, safety, in that moment, at least-or because of him. It was a question she would never quite find the answer to; all she knew was, when he appeared in the doorway, framed by the afternoon sun, he had never looked so handsome.

They heard pieces of the fight, and Dan went to investigate. He ordered her to stay put, using his finger instead of a gun. Hastily, she made a note of that. It could be misleading, but she didn't think so. Sid was obviously the boss. From his behavior so far, she doubted he was handing out weapons.

Rose waited a moment. She held her breath, not sure if this chance was really presenting itself. And then she ran.

She didn't get far.

Dan burst through the door, a woozy Sid under his arm. She froze, and for a moment they just stared at one another. She heard footsteps behind her, and a new voice ask, "What's going on?" John regarded the scene with shock. She turned, and he shrank back, ducking his head for fear of being recognized. He was vaguely familiar, but Rose didn't know why. She looked over Dan's shoulder, to the door, and without giving herself time to think, rushed past him.

Dan dropped Sid, who sank with a low groan. John cried out but didn't follow her. Dan grabbed her arm as she reached the door. That's when Cal appeared. He held the gun loosely; his whole body was loose, as if he faced situations such as this every day. Of course, Rose would think later, his blind self-confidence served him well.

Cal didn't hesitate. He raised the gun. "Come on, Rose," he yelled, holding out his free hand. Dan moved toward them, undeterred. Rose took Cal's hand, and he pushed her through the door. She heard the shot, but Cal grabbed her arm before she could turn back. Without a word, they were off.

...

It didn't matter what direction they went in. They had no idea where they were, so any direction was as good as any other. They ran into the woods, numb to the branches whipping against their faces, leaving scratches and red welts across their skin. Rose barely felt her feet touch the ground; she seemed to be flying. Her hand was firmly wrapped around Cal's, and they ran side by side.

Suddenly, Cal pitched forward. Pain seared through his left leg, and he skipped a breath. He saw the ground rushing toward him and froze. Rose grabbed his arm and pulled him back, but it was too late. She only managed to slow him down. He landed on his knees; she was next to him.

Cal gasped. The pressure on his knee was excruciating. He clenched his jaw. Cold beads of perspiration covered his body. "What happened?" Rose asked. She tossed her hair back. Concern filled her eyes. "Cal?" He was slumped over, eyes closed. She tried to lift him up, but he resisted. "Just let me help you," she said.

"I can't," he said.

"Yes, you can. Just relax."

Slowly, Rose moved him back, so he was leaning against a tree. His right leg uncurled easily, but his left didn't budge. It was already swollen. "You have to move your leg," she said. "Just-"

"No!" he cried.

"Cal-"

"I can't," he insisted.

"We can't leave it this way," Rose said.

"I can't move it." Cal's voice took on a plaintive note. "Rose, it hurts too much."

"Let me look at it then," she said.

"Why?"

"So we'll know how bad it is," she replied.

"I can tell you how bad it is. I feel how bad it is!"

"We can't just sit here," Rose said. "We don't even know where we are or how far away help is. Those men could be following us!" She tried to keep her voice even, but it betrayed her in the end. "Cal, you have to understand. We will die out here if we don't keep moving."

"I can't move it," he said.

"You don't have to. We'll just take a look." She took hold of his pants and began tearing, starting at his ankles.

Cal's eyes widened. "What are you doing?"

"Getting to your knee."

"You're destroying my pants!" he cried.

Rose gave him a patient look. "How else am I supposed to examine it?" she asked. "Do you want to remove your pants?"

He balked at the suggestion, suddenly shy. "No. No, of course not," he said quickly. "It's too cold for that."

"Alright then."

Rose hid her shock when she saw just how injured he was. His knee was already at least twice its normal size, and it appeared to be changing colors, the bruises growing darker by the second. Cal could see most, but not all of the damage. "It's bad, isn't it?" he said, in a defeated voice. His head rolled back. "We're trapped here."

"We are not trapped," Rose insisted. "Weren't you telling me to have confidence, just this morning?" she added. "What happened to that?"

"That was before I broke my leg!" he yelled angrily. His dark eyes flashed. "How can I possibly go on now?"

Rose's features turned to marble. "Being angry with me won't change anything," she said, in a quiet but firm voice. "It won't get us home."

"Well, maybe it's your fault I'm stuck here, like this!" he said accusingly. "If I hadn't gone back for you-"

"I didn't make you hurt yourself," she said, in the same even tone. "That was an accident."

Cal stared at her, disbelieving. "An accident?"

"That's all it was," she replied. "It could've happened with or without me. It could've happened to me instead."

"Better that it had," he muttered.

"What was that?"

"Didn't you hear me?" he said coolly.

Rose shook her head. "I knew it wouldn't last. The moment we're free, you're back to the way you've always been. Blaming others for everything."

"If it was you," he said. "We'd still have a chance. We'll never make it if I can't walk. I could've carried you, but you'll be lucky to drag me a few feet."

"If you intend to have that attitude, I doubt I try," Rose said.

...

As soon as his head cleared, Sid began barking orders. "We have to find them. Now." His head ached, and when he moved, dizziness threatened to overtake him, but that could be dealt with. It was nothing compared to the problem at hand. "How could you let this happen?" he demanded.

"Us?" John said. "You let him out!"

"I did not let him out," Sid replied acidly. "He escaped."

"There's a difference?" John shot back. "Because there wouldn't be if one of us were involved!"

Sid's eyes narrowed. He stepped closer to John. "You're saying I caused this?"

"Yeah, that's what I'm saying. You started this," John said. "It was all your idea. You said you could handle it, and now look where we are!"

Dan put a hand on Sid's shoulder. "Fighting with each other won't help," he said. "It's everyone's fault. We all should've been more careful." He gave each of them a long look. "What matters now is getting them back."

"What if we can't?" John said. "What if they make it to town first?"

"We're thirty miles out," Sid reminded him. "And they don't have a car. They don't have anything. They don't even know what direction to go in. There's no-one else out we don't find them, they'll probably die."

"Then I say we get out of here," John replied. "Now, while we still can. They'll find someone. Too many people are looking for them."

"Up here?" Dan said. "Who would look up here?"

"The cops are looking everywhere, the whole state," John said. "Didn't you see the paper?" He shook his head. "How could I let you talk me into this?"

"Don't act like you didn't want to be part of this!" Sid snapped. "You wanted to get back at him as much as we did. No-one forced you. You knew the risks."

"Did I?" John asked. "Did you?" he added, turning to Dan, who shook his head. "Don't do this," Dan said. "We don't have time for this."

John was pale now, a thin layer of sweat covering his face. "You roped us into this," he said, pointing an accusing finger at Sid. "You made it sound so easy. You convinced me it would be over by now!"

"I never said that!" Sid replied angrily. "I said we'd get away with it, but I never said it would be easy! If you want out, go. Just remember, you'll be in as deep as the rest of us if they make it back to town." His eyes were cold. "They saw you too, remember? And he knows you."

John let out a heavy breath. His shoulders sagged. "What have I done?" he said quietly.

Sid clapped him on the back. Gone was the cold look; his eyes were bright and hopeful; he wore a lopsided grin. "You helped," he said. "We made something happen. And now, we've gotta finish the job."

"My wife," John said, not hearing him. "If she finds out..."

"She won't," Sid assured him. "No-one will."

"If we find them, then what?" Dan asked. "Are we still letting them go, after we get the money?" He searched Sid's face, but it was unreadable. That part of the plan had never quite made sense to him, but he'd kept his mouth shut about it. Kidnapping was simple. Keep them locked up; collect the money; disappear. Easy. And top it off, they'd get back at Hockley. Show him he couldn't just push people around. He couldn't do whatever he liked without any consequences.

The plan was to release their location to the cops after they collected the money, and after they'd made their getaway. As Sid explained, it wouldn't matter if Hockley and his fiancee knew what they looked like, if they were a thousand miles away, and after all, theirs weren't unusual faces. They could be anyone. Only John could be identified with any certainty.

All that had changed, and Dan feared, their plans had changed with it.

...

They'd barely made any progress. Despite her threat, Rose refused to leave Cal alone. He'd almost certainly die without her, and no matter how vile his behavior, she couldn't allow that.

His full weight was on her; his arm was across her shoulders. She had both arms wrapped around him, holding him up. He didn't try to limp. Instead, Cal just let himself be dragged. Rose's back ached from pulling him; her arms were getting stiff, but she kept going. Already, night was beginning to fall, and with it, the temperatures. Her mind raced. What would they do? Where would they sleep? How would they eat? Nothing in her life had ever prepared her for a situation like this. She wasn't sure she could handle it. Panic welled up inside her. It wasn't fair. She shouldn't have to deal with all of this herself. Her throat tightened, and tears burned her eyes.

"You have to help me," Rose heard herself say. Cal looked at her. "You have to try and walk more," she said. "I know you can."

"This is the best I can do," he replied indignantly.

"Just try," she said. "Please."

"I thought you were going to leave me behind."

"Don't tempt me," she said. She adjusted her grip on him. "Cal, I need you to help, or we won't make it more than a few more feet."

"I can't," he insisted. "I'm injured."

"Only one of your legs is injured. Try putting some weight on the other one."

"I don't know how you can ask me to do that," he grumbled. Slowly, he pressed down on his good leg. He started to wobble, but Rose held him steady. "Just limp," she said. "I'll keep you from falling."

Their pace only improved slightly, but with Cal making even a small effort, moving was much easier.

"Why don't you leave me?" Cal asked.

"Are you serious?"

"It would be easier," he said. "Without me, you could make it to help. It's what I'd do," he added.

"You would leave me out here?" Rose said.

"Not you."

"Oh no, of course not me," she said drily. "But you'd abandon someone, right? And I'm supposed to believe it wouldn't be me. You almost left me back at the house."

"I came back for you. I didn't go far," he argued. "I was overwhelmed. I wasn't thinking."

"You were thinking you could get away."

"Well, of course I thought that!" he said. "Wouldn't you? Didn't you think so, when you saw me?"

"I don't know what I was thinking." Rose was silent for a moment. "But I won't leave you. Not yet anyway."

"You do care for me, Rose, don't you?" Cal said. "A little?"

"Don't mistake decency with love."

"So, that's what you are. A good, decent person," he replied. "Unlike me."

"I didn't say that."

"You don't have to, Rose," he said. "Your thoughts are quite clear."

She shook her head. "You think you know everything."

"I know you."

"No," Rose said. "You don't."

...

"Let's stop here," Rose suggested. It was pitch black. She helped Cal sit down, ignoring his grumbling. Once he was taken care of, she sank to the ground. Shivering, she hugged her knees, bringing her curls around her arms, as if they could provide warmth. She heard Cal's breathing, low and quick. She didn't need to see him to know he was shivering as well.

Rose pressed against his side. Cal gave her a surprised look. Before he could say anything, she said, "It's too cold for arguments. If we want to survive, we have to help each other, like you said."He put an arm around her. Even in the freezing darkness, she was warm, and he was glad for her presence. "You don't have any secret fire building skills, do you?" she joked.

"Unfortunately not."

"I didn't think so," she said.

"There wasn't anything in all your books?"

"Not about this," Rose replied. She laughed dryly. "For two people with such expensive educations, we have very little practical knowledge. It seems like a waste of money."

"It isn't in the real world," Cal said.

"And where are we? This feels real enough to me."

"It isn't our world," he said.

"Your world," she corrected. "I'm not sure it's mine anymore."

"How can you say that? It's where you belong, where you were meant to be. What would you possibly do if you ran away?"

"I don't know," she said. "I might do anything. That's what makes it so interesting. If I ran away, my life would no longer be planned. I wouldn't know exactly what would happen each day."

"That just sounds irritating. Rose, most people enjoy routines. They enjoy knowing they'll have food and a place to sleep, nice things, friends, a purpose in life."

"I didn't say I don't want those things," she said.

"If you ran away, you wouldn't have them," Cal pointed out. "And that's what you want to do, isn't it?"

"I don't know. I don't know anything anymore."

"Well, I'm glad you're speaking to me," he said. "It may not mean much, but I am."

"I was disappointed in the way you behaved earlier," she said carefully.

"It's possible I overreacted. I was in pain and afraid...I'm sorry," he said softly.

"I've never heard you apologize before."

"I don't usually mean it when I do," he said.

"Did you mean it just now?"

"Do you think I did?" he asked.

The darkness was too thick even make out the shape of his face. Rose found his mouth. She traced his bottom lip with her thumb. Cal held his breath; the goosebumps arising on his arms weren't just from the cold anymore. "I believe you," she said. "But I'm not sure it matters."

"Of course it matters."

"Not if we die," she argued.

"Maybe that's why it matters," he said, holding her tighter.

...

They searched until dusk. Sid argued for staying in the woods and setting up camp, but Dan calmly pointed out their lack of supplies. "Besides," he added. "If they find us asleep, they'll probably kill us. He's still got your gun." Secretly, he wondered if they wouldn't be justified in doing so. John said nothing. He'd been silent since the confrontation ended, and despite Sid's outward demeanor, they all felt the tension.

When they woke up the next morning, John was gone. He took all of his things with him. He didn't leave a note. It was as though he'd never been there.

"Now what?" Dan said.

"Now we have him to worry about on top of everything else," Sid replied.