Page 156 of Cruel Abandon (Fallen Royals 5)

And if he hadn’t already been set on Sky, this was just another piece to stack him against her.

“You still with me, Liam?”

I straighten. “Yes. What happened?”

“A 9-1-1 call from Skylar. Masters took her. We’ve traced her location. She’s near the Cambridge Reservoir. She said she had escaped….”

“Holy shit. Detective—I’m here. There. At the reservoir.”

She inhales. “We’re sending patrols. I’m on my way. I’m supposed to tell you to wait for us.”

“What was that, Detective? You’re breaking up.”

“Bad connection?”

“I think I’m losing you.” I hang up and shove my phone back in my pocket. “She’s here. Somewhere.”

“Fuck,” Caleb swears. “No offense, man, but this place is massive.”

He shows me a map of the reservoir and surrounding forest. It’s framed in by three roads. There’s the lake, and then a small building at the top of the hill. There’s a road that leads directly to it that connects…. Not twenty yards from where we stand.

“We need to block that road,” I say.

He nods once, getting in the car.

I tilt my head back and catch sight of a few stars. For a moment, all I do is breathe and listen. And then I say to the sky, “I’m coming for you.”

We pick up the hiking trail to the water tower. It runs parallel to the road, and a bit lower. I strain to move faster, but my muscles scream at me. Caleb falls behind, but I don’t care. Worry is infused in every beat of my heart.

In the distance, the sound of a car’s engine rumbles toward us. If she’s not in it, she’s running from it.

“Skylar!” I scream.

Nothing. Not even the wind anymore.

Caleb catches up to me and I nod at him, then continue on. We stop intermittently and yell her name.

The trail we’re on climbs rapidly, and soon both Caleb and I are out of breath.

“Sky,” I yell again. It seems pointless to scream through the trees, but she’s here. I know she is.

And then, finally, a reply. “Here!”

I jump off the path and skid down the slope, shocked at how high we’ve come. She must’ve done the same—just dove off it in an attempt to become inaccessible. I get to the bottom and swing around, trying to pick her out from the shadows.

“Liam?”

I whirl around. “Oh my god.”

Sky comes out of the shadows like a ghost. Her arms are bare, and she has a long scratch down one arm. There’s blood… Oh god, there’s blood all over her face.

I shrug out of my coat and wrap it around her shoulders. “We need to get out of here.”

“M-Masters.” She grips the front of my shirt with both hands. Her eyes are wild. “He’s here. He’s going to kill us. He killed—I think he killed Whitney.”

She trembles under my touch.

“Let me get you out of here,” I beg. “I’ll go back for Whitney. For Masters.”