I slipped on the slick grass, my knee striking a buried stone, but I forced myself to keep moving.

Behind me, Cole’s boots crashed heavily against the wooden porch steps.

“Eleanor!” he roared.

His voice was thick with a mixture of anger and sudden, cold panic.

I did not look back.

I scrambled through the gap in the rusted iron fence at the edge of the property, my coat snagging on a thorn.

My old sedan sat idling twenty yards down the street, its headlights switched off to blend into the darkness.

I pulled my phone from my pocket as I ran, the screen slick with rain.

The display showed Captain Merritt’s name, the incoming call vibrating against my palm.

I swiped to answer and threw myself into the driver’s seat, slamming the door.

I locked the doors immediately, the heavy thud of the deadbolts bringing a brief second of relief.

Cole emerged from the shadows of the driveway, his face pale and distorted under the yellow glow of the streetlamp.

“Eleanor, where are you?” Merritt’s voice came through the speaker, sharp and urgent.