My eyes adjusted to my surroundings. I could just make out a guy beginning to climb up the shelves.

    I hoisted myself up and scaled the structure after him.

    "Hurry!" he whispered. I could hear the smile in his voice.

    I continued scrambling after him, wondering if Eden was being led out like I was. I pushed one foot off a metal rod, my hand grabbing the shelf above. The pounding footsteps below matched my racing heartbeat.

    A hand grabbed my wrist, urging me to come forward. I made it to the top of the shelf, then looked over to see a guy who looked to be about Adria, my sister's, age. He pressed a finger to his lips, one of his large hands on my shoulder.

    His eyes reflected the lights being waved below, and I found his features to be oddly familiar. His wide eyes, dirty blond hair, and determined expression didn't look completely foreign to me.

    Before I could place my finger on it, he sat back on his heels and stood, grabbing one of the rafters above. He helped me up beside him.

    "See that vent?" he asked as he pointed to the other side of the building. "We'll make it."

    His crawl continued. I followed the stranger, trying not to worry myself over where Eden was.

    I concentrated on keeping myself securely on the beam, focusing on the small square of light. When we made it, he slid the vent off, then pushed himself out feet-first.

    I imitated him and looked down to see we were on a fire escape. I glanced around for Eden, then spotted him at the bottom of the stairs.

    I followed the guy to the ground, relieved that Eden was okay, but also frantic. We were still being chased. It couldn't be this easy.

    As soon as I reached Eden, he embraced me tightly.

    "I thought you were right behind me," he muttered in my ear.

    "Sorry," I whispered back.

    When we released, our rescuer was looking at us with a crooked smile.

    "Thank you," I said, unsure of what to do. He just grinned even broader, then glanced behind us.

    "Don't thank me yet!" he exclaimed, sounding almost joyous as the guards began advancing toward us. "This way!"

    He took off running in the opposite direction. The guy glanced behind to make sure we were following, then made a sharp right turn. We still weren't anywhere near the wall.

    "What are we doing?!" Eden shouted at him as more guards flooded the path behind us.

    "Something radically stupid!" he answered, laughing. Panic rose in me once again. The pursuers were gaining, and our leader seemed like a nutcase.

    We didn't really have any other choice, though.

    Finally, we made it into an open lot full of trucks, identical to the ones that we had seen entering earlier.

    "Aren't they a delightful sight?" the guy said, standing beside Eden and I, hands on his hips.

    I looked at him with a bewildered expression. He winked at me, then began to walk forward to a particular vehicle.

    Eden narrowed his eyes at the guy. I was about to ask Eden what we should do when a shout reached our ears from behind. I whipped my face around to see them closing in, weapons raised and directed at us. I started running again, just making out the guy's head above the vehicles.

    "Would you help me for a moment?" he asked ever so calmly when we reached him at the propped-open hood of one of the trucks.

    He didn't wait for an answer as he shoved a couple of wires into Eden's hand.

    "Well well well," he tsked, another grin crossing his features. I peered over his shoulder, but didn't see anything peculiar.

    "What are you doing? We have to go!" Eden exclaimed, sounding irritated.

    "Patience is a valuable virtue," he laughed, twisting and pulling something out.

    Eden's face was red, from both frustration and the run. His knuckles were turning white from his grip on the wires. I bit my lip.

    A sea of guards was rushing toward us, and I inched closer to Eden, who took me by the arm as if trying to protect me.

    "And our great escape continues!" the guy proclaimed, motioning for us to get in the truck.

    I scrambled into the passenger seat, Eden's face peeking between the headrests from the back. Our rescuer whooped and accelerated the truck, clearing a path.

    "Oh I forgot to ask," he started, hardly paying attention to what he was doing. "What's your name?"

    "W-what?" I stuttered.

    We made a sudden turn and I flew into his shoulder.

    "Your name," he repeated, picking up speed once I sat up. In all honesty, I didn't know how to answer the question.

    "Now isn't a good time for introductions," Eden snapped.

    Another sharp turn and we were out of the gate, still more shots ringing out as we barreled up the terrain.

    "Well, I'm Lincoln! And I'm saving you by stealing this truck, taking out the tracking system, and losing them in the woods before the day begins," he said, as if he was explaining that 2+2 equals 4.

    "Where are we going?" Eden prodded, still sounding annoyed.

    "Does it matter?" I shot back.

     He gave me a look as I clutched the arm rest. I looked into the rearview mirror to see more trucks chasing us. My ears rung with the sound of something diving close by. A few moments later, in the distance, I saw it explode, sending the earth into the air. My stomach turned.

    Lincoln was now concentrating, the tip of his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth. We dodged trees and bends of the river, steadily passing through a thick forest. The tension in the car was thick.

    I drew in a deep breath.

    "I'm Rowin," I said.

    Lincoln smiled at me, somehow maintaining the same speed he was driving at.

    "Nice to meet you," he replied.

    I glanced in the mirror to see no one in pursuit of us and began to relax a little.

    "This is Eden," I said after a moment. He grunted from the backseat and I rolled my eyes. So much for gratitude. "Where are we going?"

    "Someplace safe, I promise," Lincoln answered, running a hand through his curly hair.

    "What makes you think I'd trust you again?" Eden demanded.

    The question made me freeze. I didn't really consider that we were being abducted by someone, only that we were being led away from getting caught.

    Lincoln nodded, as if expecting the question.

    "I thought we could catch up a little, maybe meet up with some people we once knew. I want to explain everything," he replied.

    Eden stopped talking, so I assumed that was enough of an answer for him. I shook my head, not understanding the elaboration.

    Abruptly, the truck stopped. I slammed against my seatbelt, my breath hitching in my throat. For a moment, we sat there, silence prodding at my ears.   

    Lincoln looked just as confused as I felt. Then the engine turned off altogether.

    He tried starting it again, but nothing happened. His fingers frantically pressed controls, and I began to understand that he hadn't anticipated this. Something that sounded like a large lock clicked into place and panic flashed across his face, only to be replaced by another grin.

    "Another adventure!" he declared, but his voice wavered. "Hand me that bag."

    Eden gave him a large backpack and he dug around it in. The whole truck was jerked upward.

    "What's happening?!" I asked.

    "Basically they're catching us with this huge metal detector thing. Big technological advancements or something," Lincoln halfway explained, distracted.

    Lincoln took something from his bag that looked like a small hatchet. Without our consent, he began smashing the window. I covered my face as it progressed from cracking to shattering.

    "Okay, we're gonna jump!" he shouted over the pulsing that was coming from outside. All kinds of alarms were going off, including the ones in my mind, but all I could do was nod.

    Eden climbed out from the backseat and Lincoln motioned for him to go first. Eden glared at Lincoln, but jumped anyway.

    It all seemed too surreal to grasp.

    "C'mon Rowin!" Lincoln said, grabbing my arm.

    "A-Are you serious?!" I stuttered.

    "Serious about living!" was his joking reply.

    I took a deep breath and crawled over his legs to the open window. Wind whipped at me as we steadily rose higher. Below, I could see Eden's face, staring up at us. I thought of Seth and the crazy things we had gone through.

    The compass, his memories, my  memories, losing each other. Jumping out a window was nothing.

    I crawled out and let out a yelp as I fell toward the earth. Tree branches flew by and scratched my arms. Wind took away my ability to breathe for a moment. My ears throbbed with the overwhelming pulsation coming from the sky.

    I slammed into the earth, shock overtaking my body.

    My head began to pound. The sound blended together in my ears.

    Eden was above me, shouting, his eyes wide. All I could do was stare and breathe.

    Blink. In. Out.

    Lincoln was next to me, his gold flecked eyes filled with a deep concern. He clutched the backpack to his chest with earnest effort. Eden's arms were slipped under me and he lifted me to his chest. He began to run.

    His feet hit the ground, each step causing my head to throb.

    Thump. Thump. Thump.

    I tried to focus on him. His faded hair, his teasing smile that I knew well, his ideas for pranks.

    His heart.

    Thump. Thump. Thump.

    Blink.

    In.

    Out.

<<<<<<<<<<

(a/n)

SO MUCH IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN AND I CANNOT WAIT FOR YOU TO EXPERIENCE THIS WITH ME!!!

The guy in the picture above is Ashton Irwin, if you didn't know, and he is Lincoln in this story. (: 

QUESTION: is this an okay continuation so far? (Sequels aren't my strong point oops)

As always, thanks for reading. And if you wouldn't mind taking .163 seconds to hit the vote button or commenting your thoughts, I would love that. I seriously enjoy interacting with every one of you! 

(btw I have a Twitter & an Instagram which are both under the username rayne_abigail  & it would be swell if you wanted to follow me 😎)

Much happiness,

Abigail Rayne

{7.15.16}

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