Chapter Eleven: Finding Nick

(Trouble In Paradise, Part 3)

***

The fire crackled merrily, the only thing with mirth after what had happened with the disastrous truth or dare.

Hayden eyed the forest, her anger at her brother now having bled out and replaced with worry. It was a game, and Sarah probably didn't know Emma would choose Nick over Jacob. But Hayden could hardly care about that, not when any of the people who ran into the woods hadn't returned—not when Nick hadn't returned. Each minute that passed without him coming back, his usual easy smile on his face and assurance he was fine, was a minute that felt like agony for Hayden, that felt like she lost more pieces of her soul the longer Nick was missing.

He was her twin, the other half of her. Hayden felt incomplete with him gone, like a piece of her had gone missing with him, the loss sharp within her, never to be healed until Nick was back, their halves made whole once more.

It was probably stupid and yet... and yet...

Hayden twirled the empty beer bottle in her hand, eyes still on the dark shadows of the forest as if one would materialise into Nick, before she heard something—howling.

Hayden frowned. Wolves? She thought there were no wolves here. But any excitement she might have felt at hearing wolf howls wasn't there, worry in place of it—and fear.

If Nick, Allison, Sarah or Abi ran into a pack of wolves...

No, they were fine. They had to be fine—Nick had to be fine. She'd feel it if he was hurt or... or dead, like some part of her had died with him. Right?

Right?

"That was some mighty fine social disruption Sarah did there, I have to say."

Dylan's voice snared Hayden out of her thoughts as she forced herself to refocus on those who were still there—Dylan, Ryan, Kaitlyn and Nora, who'd also been looking at the woods in worry for her girlfriend and her friend. Hayden tried to give her a comforting smile.

"Ah, or was it just the nudge that Allison needed?" Kaitlyn countered.

Ryan snorted. "Sarah's an evil genius, then."

"Didn't you guys see Allison's face? And Sarah's? That was not what she intended—she must feel like crap saying that dare," Nora reminded, eyes flicking back to the woods. "I hope Nick apologised to Allison."

"If he didn't, I'll kick his ass," Hayden muttered, but the bite in the words was dulled by the worry as she looked at the woods. "God, I hope they're okay. I hope they're almost back."

"Me too," Nora murmured, grabbing Hayden's hand. She held it back, squeezing it in comfort as they looked at the woods.

Fire crackling and Dylan's laughter filled the silence before Dylan questioned, "Who do you think is gonna make the first move? Nick or Allison?"

"Oh, good Q. My bet's on neither," Kaitlyn answered.

"Considering how much I've been trying to encourage Nick to tell her all summer, I'm going with Allison," Hayden betted, deciding to focus on that. Even though she hoped Nick had apologised to Allison—and he better had apologised to her—she could admit it might have been that last push to admitting how they really felt.

If only it didn't go down so in such a stupid way...

Again, Hayden looked at the woods, searching for any glimpse of her brother. Nick, where are you? Where are the others?

"I'm gonna go with Allison too, unless somehow Nick managed to do it," Nora interjected, throwing her lot in.

"I dunno, Nick's got the beast in him," Ryan countered.

"Uh, if by 'beast' you mean some sort of mild-mannered baby deer," Kaitlyn snarked. 

"Hey, don't let the cute preppy aesthetic fool you. It's like a steel barbecue grill under that shirt," Ryan defended.

Hayden wrinkled her nose. "Ryan, please never speak about my brother like that when I'm in hearing range again."

Kaitlyn let out a laugh while Dylan mumbled, "So you noticed that too, huh?"

Hayden gave Dylan a look before she turned to Ryan and said, "And you're wrong. True, Nick has muscles—we both have. Surfing and swimming is strenuous, especially in the ocean, and we like to keep fit. But Kaitlyn's right about Nick's inner beast being harmless."

Ryan scoffed in disbelief as Hayden paused before amending, "Although, if it ever comes to a situation where someone he cares about, like me or our brother or parents or one of us or Allison are in danger, he can get pretty protective. It's kinda a shared trait—I get pretty protective over those I care about too."

"So, like a wolf?" Nora inquired.

"Yeah, sorta. A wolf or dingo, or just some sort of harmless prey animal that goes into super protective mode. Like a magpie in swooping season," Hayden said, grinning as chuckles were let out, the words helping to alleviate her worry.

With the light mood still hanging over them, Kaitlyn looked around and asked, "So what do you guys wanna do now?"

"We could keep playing?" Ryan suggested.

Nora looked at Ryan and dryly commented, "Yeah, that won't end like the last time. Pass from me."

Hayden nodded, though they seemed to be in the minority as Dylan asked, "Yeah? Just the five of us?"

Majority won out as Ryan looked at Dylan and asked, "Alright Dylan. Truth or—"

Bloodcurdling screams cut Ryan off, followed by gunshots.

Hayden whirled to the woods, her heartbeat ratcheting inside her chest as she stood up, Nora, Dylan and Kaitlyn following her as Ryan said, "That sounded like Abi."

"And Sarah," Nora breathed, her voice full of horror.

"Oh my gosh!"

Hayden's blood went cold. Nick.

She moved to the woods, but didn't get far when Dylan grabbed her.

"Dylan, let me go!" she yelled, struggling.

"Hayden, we don't know what's going on, I can't—" Dylan started, only for Hayden to shout, "We know there was fucking gunshots and screams, Dylan! They could be in danger—Nick could be in danger! I need to find him! I need to find Nick!"

"She's right! We gotta help them," Ryan said right as Hayden finally pulled free, all of them turned to the woods.

"Wait, where did it come from?" Kaitlyn questioned.

Hayden had no idea, but she was ready to tear apart the woods to find Nick. A look at Nora told Hayden she was willing to do the same for Sarah as she picked up her axe.

"This way. Come on!" Ryan said, walking to the woods as Hayden and Nora followed behind, Kaitlyn on their heels, shotgun in hand. They walked into the woods, Hayden's heart thumping, her mind running over Nick, Nick being hurt, Nick running in the woods, Nick being in danger, Nick being—

"Oh my God. SARAH!"

Nora's scream cut the threads of Hayden's panicked thoughts as she saw Abi and Sarah run toward them and she felt her jaw drop in shock and horror.

They looked like they'd run out of a horror movie.

"Abi!" Kaitlyn exclaimed in her own shock and horror as they took in the sight of Abi and Sarah—Abi streaked with dirt and blood and limping, Sarah covered the most in blood and leaning against Abi, the source of the blood revealed when Hayden saw a gaping wound on her shoulder, blood staining her pink shirt crimson and streaking the length of her ghost-pale arm in rivulets of red. Her face was pale and full of pain, but both Sarah and Abi had one, wild-eyed expression on their faces.

Fear.

What had happened to them? To Sarah? And where were Allison and Nick? Where were they?

Where was Nick?!

"Help!" Abi screamed as she and Sarah ran up to them. When they did, the axe dropped out of Nora's hands and she raced to her girlfriend's side, holding her up as worry and panic was written all over her face, pulling her away from Abi as the limping girl panted and yelled, "Please... Nick! Help him!"

At those words, everything in Hayden went cold.

No. No no no no. He's fine he's fine HE'S FINE.

"Where's Nick?" Ryan demanded, worry in his voice, but Hayden barely heard it, feeling like she was underwater, her heart pounded out of her chest, the words Nick! Help him! running over and over in her mind, Abi had to be wrong, Nick was fine, he was fine, her brother, her twin, was fine, WHERE WAS NICK!?

"I-I..." Abi stammered, fear still on her face.

That snapped Hayden out of her frozen state as she ran up to Abi and grabbed her by the shoulders, shouting, "Abi! Where is Nick? Is Allison with him? Is he close? Is he safe? Is he hurt? Abi, tell me! Where is my brother!? Where is Nick!?"

Abi only panted, and Hayden shook her, screaming, "Abi, tell me! Tell me where is he! Tell me if he's hurt! Just, please, TELL ME!"

"Hayden!" Kaitlyn barked, pulling her away from Abi as the other girl gasped for air, fear slowly bleeding out of her face.

"He's in the woods."

Hayden whirled to where Sarah was leaning against Nora, her face ghost-white but clarity was in her expression as she swallowed and continued, "He's back there. Allison... she's with him. She told us... to go get help. She... Nick..."

Sarah slumped against Nora, the other girl immediately grabbing hold of her as gently and as steadily as she could as Hayden stood there, feeling both numb and prickly at once with fear.

Kaitlyn, who gave her a worried look, turned to Ryan as she offered him the shotgun and yelled, "Go after Nick! Go!"

Ryan looked terrified, before he adopted a determined face and said, "Okay. I've got this."

At hearing that, Kaitlyn threw him the shotgun, Ryan catching it as she warned, "That shotgun's got a hell of a spread. Be careful."

Ryan nodded, then he was running into the woods after Nick.

A heartbeat later, Hayden was right on his heels, not grabbing the axe Nora had dropped—her mind just focused on getting to her brother, on making sure he was safe.

Kaitlyn didn't try to stop her—she knew nothing and no one could stop Hayden from going after her twin brother, especially if he might be hurt as badly as Sarah. Instead, she focused on Abi as she and Nora helped them back to camp, Nora picking up the axe as she did, and wait for Ryan and Hayden to return with Allison and Nick.

***

Hayden's feet pounded across the ground, in time with her racing heartbeat and thoughts. She kept in pace with Ryan, the both of them running as fast as they could to where Nick and Allison were, and yet it didn't feel fast enough, that Hayden had to run faster, she needed to get Nick as quick as she could, she had to.

If he was hurt, hurt as badly as Sarah, or... or...

No. Hayden couldn't think that. She couldn't bear to think that about her twin, her other half, the other piece of her soul. She couldn't lose him.

She wouldn't lose him.

She just had to run faster!

Hayden and Ryan ran and ran, their breathing, their footsteps, their heartbeats, the sound of ravens and the creaking of trees the only noise around them, but Hayden barely heard any of it, her mind zeroed in on getting to Nick. When she and Ryan came to a gorge, Hayden didn't hesitate to leap across it and take it as a shortcut, forcing herself to wait and extend a hand out to Ryan as he made the jump, catching her hand as he did so she could pull him further onto the other side. Once they were, they traversed down the rocky side, Hayden's mind and heart screaming at her slowness, but if she broke her ankle she couldn't help Nick, so she forced herself to go slow until they were on safer ground, leaping across a rock and running flat-out again before coming to another crevice, an overhang above.

Hayden immediately leaped and landed, twisting and holding a hand out. "I got you, Ryan!"

He nodded, before jumping, crashing against the side of the overhang as he grabbed her hand. Muscles straining, Hayden pulled Ryan over the side, the both of them grunting and panting with the effort.

Then they were running again, choosing a shortcut over a brook and jumping from boulder to boulder to the other side, up stairs and onto flat ground. Every part of Hayden's body was screaming with the exertion, but her mind, her fears, her desperation to get to Nick, was screaming louder.

They skidded around the corner and what Hayden saw nearly stopped her heart.

A large man wearing overalls with blood all over his face and holding a gun had hold of Nick, dragging him away—but it was unsuccessful, because Allison was there, the front of her greyish blue shirt and olive-green cargo pants and her hands red with blood as her teeth were bared in a feral snarl, bloodied hands wielding a tree branch she was smacking against the man, who looked terrified of this tiny, tree-branch-wielding girl who stood between him and Nick. And Nick...

Nick was covered in blood, his face screwed up in pain. His leg... his leg...

It was a mess of blood and torn flesh, blood oozing out from the gaping, brutal wound on his leg, there was so much blood.

Hayden's stomach hollowed and her heart froze at seeing it, at seeing her brother so hurt, in so much pain, like a physical pain inside her, like her leg was feeling an imprint of the pain as well.

"Fuck, shit, fuck fuck fuck! Fuck! Shit!" Ryan cursed as he raised the gun and Allison smashed the tree branch against the man dragging Nick away, screaming, "Let him go! Let him go or I'll kill you! I'll fucking kill you, bastard!"

That—the man dragging Nick, the man holding the gun, the man who might have hurt Nick, the man who might want to kill him—snapped something inside Hayden.

Face contorting in her own feral snarl, Hayden glared with all the fury of an enraged sister at seeing her twin brother hurt and in danger and being damned if she did nothing to save him as she lunged at the man, roaring, "GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY BROTHER!"

She collided with the man, causing him to let out a surprised noise but he still had a tight grip on Nick. But Hayden wasn't done, picking up her own branch and standing next to Allison, the both of them ready to pummel the maniac dragging Nick away, a protective snarl on her face.

If this fucker wanted her brother, then he had to go through her and Allison. Hayden would tear him apart before he could drag him away, let alone ever touch Nick again.

"Hey! Get the fuck off of him!" Ryan yelled as Hayden twisted, seeing Ryan holding the shotgun. 

But the man kept dragging Nick, each pained grunt her brother made tearing Hayden's heart apart and increasing her protective rage as she slammed her branch into the man's stomach. He grunted, but kept going despite Hayden slamming his stomach again and Allison beating his arm with the branch.

"Stop! Stop! I'll shoot!" Ryan warned.

Hayden barely heard the warning, consumed with beating the man who was still dragging Nick away, each rapid breath and pained noise fuel to the fire, she would not let this man take her brother after he hurt him and Sarah, she would not let him hurt Nick more, she would not let him take her brother away.

She was so consumed she almost didn't hear Allison hissing, "Hayden, duck!", before the shorter girl pulled her down to the ground—a heartbeat before the shotgun went off, deafeningly loud.

The man let out a grunt as the bullet's spread hit him, before he dropped Nick and walked away.

The minute he was gone, Hayden was at Nick's side, holding him as she begged, "Nick? Nick, can you hear me? Oh God, Nick, please, say something!"

Nick's eyes, fogged with pain, drifted to her, and he mumbled, "Hay-Hay."

Hayden choked on a noise that was between a sob and a laugh at hearing the childhood nickname, wanting to throw her arms around him but she refused to put him in any further pain, her eyes returning to his bloodied, savaged leg. Agony ruptured her as she choked on a breath and whispered, "Your leg..."

"Holy shit, dude!" Ryan exclaimed as Hayden hovered near Nick, wanting to touch him and not wanting to touch him so she didn't cause him any more pain as Allison kneeled next to her, worry and fear all over her pale features.

"Not... not..." Nick groaned.

The sound of the shotgun meeting the forest floor told Hayden Ryan was running toward him before he did, as Nick gasped out again, "Not..."

"Don't speak, Nick. Just... gather your strength," Allison whispered, before she turned to Hayden, fear even more evident. "There was a... it..."

Hayden shook her head—she didn't want to know what had done this to her brother. She wanted to bring him back to camp, to give him proper medical care. She just wanted him to be okay.

He will be. We'll get him back, and we'll be okay, Hayden told herself, repeating it over and over, as if thinking it might make it real.

She pretended it was.

A clink came and Hayden and Allison looked to see Ryan holding a vial that had dark liquid inside, almost like the one Hayden had found that was still in her pocket and Abi told her what she and Nora had found. Not like that was important—the only thing that was important was Nick and getting him to camp.

Ryan seemed to think so as he put the vial away and asked Nick, "Hey, hey. Can you walk?"

"Can... Gotta go... gotta go," Nick slurred as he pushed himself up, Hayden immediately coming to his non-injured side and helping him.

"Nick, I don't think you should put pressure on that leg, if it bleeds—" Allison worried, only for Nick to interrupt, "I'll be fine, Allie. I'll be... fine..."

His head slumped down, shallow breaths slipping out of his mouth as Hayden exchanged a worried look with Ryan and Allison before Ryan said, "C'mon, let's get back to the fire."

And they were moving, getting as fast as they could to the bonfire. To its safety.

Because they would be safe there—they had to be—and then they could figure out a way to fix Nick's leg and Sarah's shoulder and get help away from the gun-wielding man.

They would be fine. Sarah would be fine. Nick would be fine, even as he more often than not leaned against Hayden instead of running on his own. Everything would be fine.

Hayden couldn't think that they wouldn't. That it couldn't get any worse than this.

***

Oh, but it will Hayden...

Seriously, last chapter was Sarah and Allison pain/trauma, and now this was Hayden pain and trauma, Twin Sister Style™ And it's only gonna get worse for her and Allison :)

But yeah, we're really getting into the storm now!! I am so excited and for the build-up of what will happen to Sarah and Nick (and Hayden steadily realising something is very, VERY wrong with her brother until it's too late) >:)

Next chapter will be soon!

Please read, comment and vote!

GhostWriterGirl out!