Free Afire: Entire Blinded Series by Sarah Masters Page A

walking, it's a tough one, but I'll get through this somehow.
    "Fucking love you, Lee!” he shouts.
    I raise my hand, tears blurring my vision, and swallow, fighting the desire to shout the same back.
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Chapter Four
    To get to town I have to pass that bloody row of shops. Surprise, surprise, the gang of blokes loiter outside, hoods up, hands either in pockets or loose by their sides. Their hollers begin as soon as they spot me, jeers of ‘bent bastard’ and ‘queer fuck’ flowing over me, through me, burrowing inside. Those words spoil the memory of what me and Ryan shared, like mould on bread crust, but, like that crust, when you're starving you can cut it off and eat the rest. I tune them out, walking past with my head down. Uncaring if they think me weak, I keep going, more important things on my mind than their opinions.
    "Fucking retard!” one shouts. “Fucking arse-poking shit stabber!"
    That stings, but I don't have the energy to retaliate. Oh, the idea of it is there, all right, but I'm emotionally spent, too weary to get into it with them. Yeah, it'd cleanse me, make me feel a whole lot better, but like before, there are five of them and one of me. The odds don't look good.
    "You ignoring me, wanker?"
    I keep walking.
    "You ought to really scare him, Trev, know what I mean?"
    The second voice belongs to Michael Warner, a sheep who's followed Trevor around for years. I shrug off his words, knowing damn well what they mean, knowing what Trevor is capable of. What he's done before and how he got away with it because the kid he scared was too frightened to grass on who'd pulled a gun on him. Trevor wouldn't risk doing that again, would he? I don't want to hang around to find out so up my pace, my breaths coming out in quick bursts, adrenaline spiking, lending me extra speed.
    The housing estate tapers. Fields either side of the main road spread far and wide, and I look ahead. Though streetlights illuminate the path, the bordering hedges and trees give me an ominous feeling, like something's afoot. Something bad. No, those thugs back there, they're all mouth these days. Jobless, with nothing to do but rile people.
    Halfway along the road, I put my head down and press on, anxious to get into town to the cashpoint and the bus station. I have no bloody idea where I'm going, but it doesn't matter so long as it's away from here. The road stretches on, a lonely strip of asphalt, no cars speeding by, and town seems so far away. Stars litter the sky, and I stare at them, thinking that not so long ago my head was in the clouds and my body lay in Ryan's arms. How quickly things change.
    The rumble of an engine sounds, and another noise, loud, as if the car's exhaust is blowing. I turn, and the blinding light of headlamps greets me. Squinting, I turn away and blink, circles of illumination reappearing each time my lids close. The bag handles cut into my palm, and I switch hands, cursing myself for packing so many clothes. The car zooms past, and I stare at the taillights, eerie red eyes in the darkness. In the far distance, the shapes of town buildings come into view, indistinct, their rooftops bleeding into the night sky. I walk faster, glancing at my wrist to find my watch missing, the timepiece at home—back there—on the bookshelf.
    Shit. The last bus out of town leaves at eleven, and it must be nearing that now. The shop closes then, and the lights still blazed inside when I'd walked past, so maybe I'll make it. If I don't, God knows if I'll find a bed and breakfast open this time of night. I've never had to use one before so have no clue how they operate.
    Two headlight circles appear, growing bigger as the vehicle approaches. I avert my gaze, staring toward town, and walk faster, though the appearance of the car makes me feel less alone. It speeds, the harsh, blowing exhaust telling me it's the same car that just passed going the other way, and I guess they drove around the roundabout down