Stealing the Heart of Mr. Steele
Heart 60

Chapter 60 Chapter 60

[Cordelia]

Jude disappeared inside the building, holding my sister in his arms like a child in need of care. What is the real nature of their relationship? I she his willing accomplice, or has she been brainwashed and trapped here just as much as I have been? Is my sister still in there, waiting to be saved?

And all that nonsense she was rambling about us not being real sisters, about how Jude must be wrong. It is all so confusing.

I need to replace help. I can't leave her here, but I also don't want to stay. Jude is a madman. Not only do his experiments sound like something out of a bad science fiction movie, but they also involve the death of me and my child. I will never forget the sight of body parts floating in jars.

But I don't have time to think about any of this. I have to protect my child. And I cannot protect my or myself if Jude comes back out to collect me next. child,

rock of It takes me a moment to get to my feet, but I manage. I'm not wearing shoes or socks, so every the driveway cuts into my tender flesh, grown soft after weeks of drug-induced bed rest. Thankfully I am only at the beginning of my second trimester, so my belly is still small and has yet to grow cumbersome. The island is beautiful, this facility seems to be located on the edge of a state park. But in the distance, I see a town. If I can just get to the town, maybe I have a chance at contacting home, of letting someone know I've been kidnapped and where I am. Have Tilly, Clark, and Atlas been searching for me when I disappeared? Would they even know to look for me here?

It is dry and hot here, like a desert, without much shrubbery to use as cover. There also seem to be no sources of fresh water, with the lush gardens around the facility being artificially maintained. The rest of the island looks like much of Southern California-something in between paradise and a wasteland.

I have only made it to the edge of the property when I hear footsteps behind me. "Cordelia," Jude calls out from behind me, "Come out, come out wherever you are."

I rush towards the water. Maybe if I can reach the water, someone might see me.

Footsteps and rustling bushes bring my attention to my kidnapper several feet behind me. I will myself not to look back. I know that if I see how close he has come to catching me, I might give up.

And I can't give up. I won't give up.

My legs and arms pumping, my lungs nearly bursting, I race down the trail, I can see the water's edge and I know I'm close to being free of this nightmare. I am grateful for all the mornings I spent running, and all the races I trained for because even after weeks of inactivity, my body still remembers how to move like a

runner.

The problem is, that the man behind me also knows what it is to be a runner. Another set of feet, a faster set, runs behind me.

Moving with unexpected swiftness, I veer suddenly to the left, taking a less clear trail, hoping that with his larger bulk, he might replace that turn difficult. I hear him skid as he turns and I know it was only partly

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Chapter 60

successful. He'll catch me soon enough. I know it.

That doesn't mean I have to make it easy for him.

+25 BONUS

There is a downed tree in the path ahead of me. Making a motion like I am playing limbo, I slide beneath it, my small body almost too big to fit in the crevice. If he wants to follow, he will need to replace a way over

1. it.

I look back, smiling, until I see him jump over the tree almost effortlessly.

Damn.

"There you are!" He shouts as he continues to chase me. "I told you that you wouldn't get far."

As he grabs my arm, I realize my fate is sealed. I do not have enough energy to fight back.

The sound of propeller blades whipping through the air brings our attention to the sky. +25 BONUS