Trace grabs ahold of my hand. It brings me courage and warms me on this cool night. I squeeze onto it a little tighter as we start to follow the trail of grass that has been trodden on.

I jump whenever I hear some kind of rustling in nearby trees but am assured by Trace's grip that everything will be okay. I move my body closer to his, so that out hips are meeting as we walk. It gives me some extra assurance that I will be safe.

We walk along, together and alone, in the woods. It is actually quite calming. That is if you ignore the fact that we are trying to pursue kidnappers that have Cyrus.

Times like these when I am alone with Trace in the wilderness are times that I truly enjoy, although something does seem to be missing. Despite the fact that we infuriate each other, I have come to consider Cyrus's company as a necessity. It is strange with it lacking. Even though he wouldn't talk very often, especially not to me, he always had a very distinct presence.

I lean into Trace a little more as we continue walking through the night in search of some sign of Cyrus. I have no clue how long this will take, so I should get comfortable.

As it starts to get lighter outside, we start to get more and more impatient. We are definitely not catching up to them, and now it doesn't seem as if Cyrus would try to escape anymore.

Our spirits are lifted as we come across a gory sight. Two mangled corpses stained with blood are strewn on the ground. I almost gag at the very sight of them. The bile starts to raise up in my throat, but I am strong. I can fight this feeling.

Trace slowly walks around the bodies. He kneels down and briefly examines each one. The throat of one is slit, the dried dark clots are bridging the gap of the slit. There is also a blood stain concentrated on the abdomen, so he must have been stabbed there first.

The other one is laying face down. I am glad I don't have to see this one's face, because one dead, blank state is enough for me. The shirt is torn in multiple places along the back, as if the attacker had no care whatsoever for what they were going after. There are multiple stab wounds, but the worst one is on the vertebrae. I quickly look away once I truly see how deep it is.

The image stays in my head, though, as spots start to take over my vision. I try to blink them away, but they remain after I open up my eyes. The blackness starts to multiply at an alarming rate until everything is gone and I can't sense anything.

-----

"Nyx," a voice says. It sounds as if it is from miles away or under the sea. I can just faintly hear it. Why would somebody be calling me?

"Nyx," it repeats, this time more urgently. I can now tell that the voice is coming from right next to me. I blink away the darkness, and find Trace looking at me with his eyebrows furrowed.

"I was worried about you," he whispers as he leans in right next to my face and gives me a light peck on the cheek.

Trace waits until I am fully conscious and then points down to something white on the ground. It contrasts greatly with the dark brown of the dirt. Trace leans down and picks up the piece of white cloth. Something is written on it in a deep red color.

I struggle to convince myself that it is not blood. The gnawing feeling that is in my head won't go away. Finally, as Trace holds it up at an angle where we both can read it, I accept the truth. Even though I should feel sickened due to the fact that I am reading a message written in a substance that used to provide life to a once living person, I don't. Instead, I am both ecstatic and terrified due to the content of the message.

Trace reads it aloud as I do so in my head. "To whom it may concern: I managed to fight back against my kidnappers and left them for dead. I was forced to flee so I will be at the farmhouse waiting for you. ~C"

Trace pauses for a second, giving his brain time to actuall comprehend the words he recited. Although this pause only lasts for a few seconds, a minutiae of the time I am used to sitting in silence, it feels as if the ticking of time is slowed macroscopically. Every second laboriously comes, just barely making it to where it needs to be. I know what Trace's next move will consist of, so the tension and waiting is becoming unbearable.

"We need to go meet him. We need to leave now. What if somebody actually lives there and was just on vacation when we snuck in? What will happen to Cyrus then? Come on, Nyx, we need to make sure that Cyrus will be okay!"

I grab ahold of Trace's shoulders, as if it can stop him from ruling on and in about something that I'm positive we should not do. He is like a child that wants a new pet. There is only one that I can tell him, although I know he will not listen.

"No," I say this simple, yet devastating word forcefully.

Trace's eyes lower but he hasn't given up yet. I just know it. "Why not? What have we got to lose? Anyways, Cyrus is my best friend. I can't just leave him hanging."

I can feel my blood start to boil. I'm sure that my hormones are contributing to this fury. "What have we got to lose?! I don't know, maybe the freedom of my daughter and myself? Are you crazy for wanting to go back to the Inside? We have spent enough time there!" There is no way that I can control my voice as it raises to a scream. Hasn't Trace listened to what I said, how I can not go back there again? Doesn't he even care for me?

"I'm sorry, Nyx. I know that you don't want to get caught, but I promise you, I won't let you if you come with me. I will do anything that I can to protect your life and that of your child, even if it means putting mine in grave danger. I love you, Nyx, so that's why I want you to come with me as I go to meet Cyrus, somebody whom I also care deeply about."

I am silent. I just stare blankly at Trace. I don't want to give in to him, I want him to give in to me. I never want to have to set door in the Inside ever again. I would rather die than do so.

Trace is clearly discouraged by my lack of response. He decides to try a different angle. "Okay, Nyx, here is my ultimatum. You can either come with me as I go to the Inside to meet up with Cyrus or you can be left here in the woods to fend for yourself as I go to the Inside. What will it be?"

Trace has me caught, and he knows it. I will not leave Trace. If I do, then I can't be positive that I will ever see him again. I will be in constant worry of his fate and forever hope that the impossible will occur as we somehow find each other. It is a cruel move by Trace, one laced with desperation, yet I still can understand where he is coming from. He is desperate not to lose the two people he cares most about.

I open my mouth, dry air escapes through my mouth. I quickly wet my lips as I prepare myself for the response. It is a simple response, but I still don't want to do it. "I will go with you," I say to Trace through gritted teeth. He smiles slightly at me. He seemed to enjoy playing with me, even though I hated it.

Trace and I change our course so that we are retracing our steps from when we went on the expedition to find Xander in the Inside. I am not ready for this walk. I am not ready to have to face my old life once again.

~~~~~

Once again I want to thank you guys! Enhanced is just shy of 700 reads and is currently ranked! None of this would have been possible without you guys! I will hopefully be updating again Sunday or Monday!