Chapter Seventeen

Garrett

So Bella's father knew or suspected something, that could be awkward for me but for now I would concentrate on keeping the car on the road and Bella safe. As we turned a sharp bend I saw something ahead on the road and swerved to avoid it which only made the wheels aqua plane and the car started spinning. Bella's screams filled the interior as I fought with the steering but it was no good and the face of the hill running alongside the road loomed ever closer. Giving up the unequal fight I put one arm across Bella's chest holding her back against her seat and the other behind her head to save her from whiplash as we hit the bank hard. There was a loud bang and the car bounced back across the road hitting the crash barrier so hard it buckled and then gave allowing the car to tip over the edge of the bank that side and cartwheel slowly down to the bottom about fifty feet below.

When it came to a punishing and sudden halt I waited but I couldn't smell any burning, I needed to get Bella out fast though because I didn't know if gas was leaking out, the rain was washing any scent out of the air. The other thing that concerned me more was the reason for the crash, the shape in the road had been something large and I know we hit it a glancing blow but as we dropped from sight I thought I saw movement which meant it was still alive and could well be a nomad and any nomad causing an accident deliberately was looking for trouble. I couldn't afford for him to find Bella, especially as she was bleeding from her arm where the side window had shattered as we rolled over and over.

I scrambled free of the twisted wreckage and looked around but I couldn't see anything through the driving rain so I concentrated on getting Bella free of the car. Luckily by holding on to her as we fell I managed to stop her being too badly injured but she was bleeding and in shock. I needed to get her somewhere warm and dry as quickly as possible. With a wrench I prised her door open and helped her out to stand shivering and white-faced, one hand on her injured arm.

"Bella?"

She looked at me her whole body shivering,

"We have to move, Can you walk?"

She nodded so I took her hand and led her away from the car towards the woods,

"Why aren't we going to the road? Someone will see us there."

"I don't know who caused that accident Bella but I don't think it would be safe to go back, not until I know more. If you can't walk I'll carry you but I'd like to keep my hands free if I can."

She nodded again and slipping and sliding in the mud we made the illusory safety of the trees. Once inside I halted briefly to listen, yes someone was definitely coming down the bank and quickly so deciding getting Bella to safety was more important than identifying our assailant I picked her up,

"Bella I want you to close your eyes."

She looked at me confused,

"Trust me, it'll be easier if you do"

Her eyes slowly shut and I set off at a run towards Port Angeles which I knew was the closest place to find shelter and hopefully safety but it was still some miles away.

For the first five minutes I was confident that I could outrun my pursuer, the noise of his feet became less distinct with every second but then I understood I'd been played as I heard noises up ahead, I'd been pushed into a trap. Looking around wildly for some way out I saw they had picked their spot with some cunning. I was in a narrow ravine with mud slicked sides that I couldn't hope to climb with Bella in my arms and too high to jump. Seeing an opening through the rain I ran to the slippery wall of mud and rock and jumped up to a ledge leading to a cave entrance hoping it would go back far enough to provide shelter and protection. If it was narrow enough I could stop our pursuers whoever they were from reaching the vulnerable girl.

Once inside I realised my mistake, it was just what they wanted and it had been prepared for our use. It did have a narrow entrance way so I was confident I could keep Bella safe from attack, at least from the outside but now we were trapped, a human blood drinker and a bleeding human, not a good combination! At the end of a short tunnel was the main chamber, small but dry and lit by a small battery operated lantern so I put Bella down and checked that no one was trying to enter although I thought if it had been their intent to kill or capture us they would have done so. In the centre were two blankets along with bottled water so I grabbed the top blanket and knelt at Bella's side keeping my ears pricked for any movement at the entrance to the cave.

"Where are we?"

She looked around her eyes unfocused and I cursed under my breath, did they have any idea how dangerous their little stunt could have been? Bella could have died in that crash or were they counting on me to save her? None of this made any sense but for now Bella's comfort was my main concern.

"We're in a cave, care of the people who ran us off the road. It seems they expected us. There are blankets and water but first let me take a look at that arm"

She looked down at the bloodstained sleeve of her jacket as if it were something alien,

"Oh"

I cleaned the wound with some of the water and heaved a sigh of relief when I saw it wasn't as bad as I'd feared but the smell of the blood was getting to me and it took all my strength not to bite into her soft flesh. I tore strips from one of the blankets and once I bandaged the wound and put the blood soaked wadding into the water that circled us the scent became more bearable.

"How does it feel now?"

She tried to move it and flinched,

"It hurts but I'll live, I've done worse. I'm so cold though."

"Yeah, well there aren't any clothes here and I can't light a fire but if you strip off the wettest of your clothes and wrap a blanket round yourself I think it will help. I'll be watching the entrance while you do that"

She looked a little uncertain so I handed her the dry blanket and went to stand in the narrow passageway hoping I might get some clue as to what this was all about but all I could hear was the rain driving down and water rushing past. I had no idea why we were here or who had done this but I vowed I would keep Bella safe and I would find out who was behind it. Suddenly there was a strong scent of blood and I turned fast to see only the water flowing out of the cave. Running back to Bella I saw she was sitting hunched up with the blanket tightly wrapped around her looking my way worried.

"What is it?"

"Are you OK?"

She nodded but I saw her flinch and knew she was feeling like prey with a predator close by, she could feel her danger. I looked more closely but couldn't see any blood and I was sure her arm was the only injury that had bled unless of course she was bleeding internally but if that were the case surely she would be looking sick.

"Garrett you're scaring me, what's wrong?"

I shook my head, my jaws clamped tightly shut, and I went back to the cave entrance still trying to work out why I could smell blood so strongly and cursing my thirst as it flamed in my throat.