Too Late, Mr. Mills: Watch Me Leave

rning fog was so thick it felt like wet cotton stuffed down her throat. Adriana G

ip

w adrenaline that had become her only fuel. The relentless, driving panic kept her legs moving even when her lungs burned and her vision blurred. Her sil

a, pl

log, her ankle twisting, but the pain didn't register. Nothing regist

a flash

, a violent splash of red. It was a beacon

long the hem. Pippa had picked it out herself, spinning in front of the

ould crack. She lunged forward, her feet slipping on the wet leaves

, her breath held until her lungs screamed.

was

a tight ball. She looked like a doll that had been tossed aside, a toy forgotten i

ly audible over the pounding of bl

was nothing but a high-pitched ringing in her ears, a sound that drilled into her

ps brushed P

It was the cold of stone, of meat left o

deep in her stomach. It was the sound of a soul being shredded. She collapsed forward, gathering the tiny, stiff b

g back and forth. "Please wak

shoulder. There was no response. No hug bac

l chime that sounded obscene in the silence of the woods. Adriana fumbled in her pocke

voice was a

flat, clipped, and laced with irritation.

nd. The father of t

he words tumbling out. "I

connection. And then, the distinct clink of ice against gla

, his tone dripping with disdain. "You're

her. "No, you don't understand. She's dead. Sh

? That's your new angle? You think telling me my daugh

air out of her lungs. He thought she was lying. He th

voice cracking, raw and bleeding.

hysteria. "When you decide to act like an adult and d

ette,

ice floated through the receiver. It was sweet,

ing into something warm and indulgent.

ead. The warmth he gave to another woman while his wife

ic

ence of the woods rushed ba

ed down at Pippa's pale face. She was alone. Truly, compl

Red and blue lights flashed through the trees, strobing

e! We fou

p. She didn't shield her eyes. She just held Pippa tighter, pressing

ut the people around h