Prologue
Her heavy panting filled the air as she stumbled down the dimly lit street, her backpack thudding against her sore back. Getting away was the only thing on her mind--away from the man she thought she could trust. No way was she ever going back to him now.
She stopped running as she came upon his car--the only mode of transportation that she had used over the past year. She unlocked the car--Jared’s precious baby--and scrambled in frantically. She had to get out of here.
Relief began to pour through her when she crossed into the next county. Jared would expect her to go to Cassy’s dorm, not leave town. Cassy would protect her, she knew, but getting away from the man that took advantage of her... self-preservation and protecting Cassy were the only things she could think of. Her dear friend would be okay as long as Jared knew she wasn’t with her. A crack of lightning stretched across the sky, and the sky began to cry with her--like it knew everything she just lost. Her own tears made the road difficult to see and coupled with the rain, it was nearly impossible to drive. I have to keep going though. I’m not far enough away!
Another bolt of lightning flashed across her vision, and she didn’t have enough time to slam on the breaks before she ran into a tree lying across her only way of escape. Pain in her skull was the first and last thing she registered as the car she was in made its way down a slope, finally crashing to a halt at the bottom of a ditch.
