Chapter 78 CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT | TIME

Chapter 78 CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT | TIME
CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT | TIME

ASPEN

It’s been twenty-four hours since they locked me in here. Maybe more. Time doesn’t make sense anymore. They won’t let anyone see me. No Ronan. No explanations. Just silence and walls that smell like rust, piss, and old sweat.

I spend most of the hours standing by the bars, fingers wrapped around the cold metal like it might answer me back. My throat burns from whispering to myself. “Please,” I murmur over and over again, my voice cracking like glass. “Just let it end. I don’t care how.”

Later, they moved me. Rough hands shove me forward and throw me into another cell. This one is crowded. Too crowded. Eyes land on me immediately. Heavy. Curious. Cruel. I keep my head down and my shoulders tight, trying to fold into myself, trying to be invisible.

That’s when he steps out.

The man with the scarred eye. The scar runs from his brow down to his cheek like someone carved it there out of anger. He smiles slowly and points at the floor. “Drop,” he says. “Give me ten.”

I shake my head. My voice comes out small but steady. “No.”

The smile disappears. The hit comes fast. Pain explodes in my side and my knees give way. Someone laughs behind me. Another kick slams into my ribs and I gasp. “You think you’re special?” he sneers.

I curl inward, tasting blood, my breath coming out broken and uneven. Hands shove me down harder. “Do it,” he growls.

I don’t.

That’s when it turns ugly. Boots. Pain. Laughter ringing in my ears like noise underwater. I see guards nearby. I see their shadows stretch across the floor. They don’t move. They don’t say a word. No one stops it. No one even pretends to care.

Night comes heavy. My body aches in places I didn’t even know could hurt. I lie still, staring into the dark, counting my breaths so I don’t cry.

Around midnight, when the cell finally sleeps, a whisper cuts through the air.

“Aspen.”

My eyes fly open. I sit up too fast and pain shoots through me. I bite down hard. Then I see him. By the bars. Real. Breathing.

Ronan.

I clamp a hand over my mouth. “What are you doing here?” I whisper harshly. “You can’t be here.”

“I’m getting you out,” he says softly.

“No.” The word rushes out of me. “You’ll get caught. You’ll ruin everything.”

“I don’t care,” he says, already working on the lock. “I’m not leaving you.”

A shadow moves behind him, and Brian steps forward. “It’s the only way,” he says quietly. “They won’t wait. Tomorrow will be worse.”

Silence stretches between us. Thick. Heavy. My mind races through faces, consequences, every wrong choice I’ve ever made. I think of the scarred man’s laughter. The guards’ empty eyes. The cold floor against my cheek.

My hands start to shake as I grab the bars. I’m tired of being brave alone. I’m tired of surviving.

The lock clicks.

I swallow hard, fear and hope tearing me apart. “If something happens to you…”

Ronan looks at me then. Really looks. His eyes are tired, fierce, full of something that hurts to see. “I already chose,” he says quietly. “Now choose me.”

The door opens with a soft scrape, and Ronan’s hand is suddenly on my wrist, warm and steady. Brian moves first, checking the hallway, then pulling me along.

My legs feel weak, like they might give up any second, but I force them to move. We slip through narrow passages, shadows clinging to us like they want to tell on us.

We are almost free when a voice cuts through the silence. “Hey!”

A guard steps into view, his torch flashing across our faces. My heart slams so hard it hurts. Ronan swears under his breath and grabs my hand tighter.

We run. Footsteps thunder behind us, loud and angry. I can hear my own breathing, sharp and panicked, mixing with Brian’s rushed curses.

Just when I think we’re done, a hand pulls me hard to the side. I almost cry out, but another hand covers my mouth. We stumble into a dark corner, bodies pressed close, barely breathing.

The guards rush past us, shouting, boots pounding the floor. I stay frozen, counting heartbeats, afraid even my fear might make noise.

When it’s quiet again, I finally look up.

Rachel.

Her eyes are wide but calm, like she planned this.

“Come on,” she whispers. “There’s another way.”

Ronan exhales like he’s been holding his breath for years. “You saved us,” he mutters.

She shrugs lightly. “I wasn’t going to let you get caught.”

She leads us through back halls I’ve never seen, turning corners that don’t make sense. We stopped at her room. She locks the door and walks straight to the wall, pushing aside a shelf. A door appears. An actual door.

My mouth falls open. “You’re kidding.”

“I wish,” she says. “My dad built this place. Secrets everywhere.”

She opens the door, and cold night air brushes my skin. Before we leave, she turns to me and pulls out clothes. Soft fabric. A dress. Real clothes.

“Put this on,” she says gently. “Maybe it’s time you stop hiding.”

My hands shake as I take them. I change quickly, peeling off the life I’ve been pretending to live. When I look down, it feels strange. Right. Wrong. Everything at once.

Rachel looks at me for a long second, then smiles sadly. “You don’t have to be Alex anymore.”

I step forward and hug her. Tight. Desperate. “Thank you,” I whisper.

She hugs back just as hard. “Don’t let them break you.”

Ronan clears his throat softly. “We should go.”

I nod. One last look at Rachel, then we step through the door. It creaks shut behind us, sealing the school away, and as the night opens up in front of me, I realize I’m no longer running as someone else. I’m running as myself.