Chasing The Forbidden

Chapter 9

The Breaking Point

"Nolan, gaze at me." Though my voice shook, I forced myself to remain cool as I cradled his face with both hands. Hidden from Julian's men, his eyes were blank, and his breathing was labored as we crouched in the small lane.

He said, "I'm fine," but the blood streaming from the wound over his brow screamed otherwise.

"No, you're not," I answered, sounding more sharply than I wanted. "We are encircled; you are tired and bleeding. Tell me, then, what the strategy is?

His hands firmly but not cruelly curled around my wrists. His voice was low but firm, "The plan is to keep you alive."

My heart tightened at his unvarnished will, but wrath soon followed. Then what about you? I asked. "You think I'll just watch you wreck yourself for me?"

He snapped, pushing away, saying, "This isn't up for dispute, Sophie. Leaning against the wall, he bent his head back as if the weight of the earth were bearing down on him.

"Well, too bad," I shot back, not wavering. "I am not bidding you farewell. Not like this moment.

His head turned toward me, and for a few seconds the fragility in his eyes stopped my breath. "Sophie," he began, his voice faint now, "if something happens to you”

I stopped, stepping forward to interrupt. "Don't act in that way. Make this not about defending myself but about us. Whether or not you like it, we are in this together.

His jaw was stiff, he fixed me, and I could see the fight raging inside him. Finally, he sighed angrily, frustrated. "You're not impossible."

And you are stubborn, I shot back.

The strain between us changed momentarily, alleviated by the smallest trace of a smile on his lips. But the instant was fleeting.

Steps echoed from the street, a piercing noise. Nolan grasped my hand, and his attitude sharpened right away. He said, dragging me more into the alley, "Move."

We zipped across the small tunnels, the sound of pursuit getting louder as we went. Although my legs hurt and my chest burned, I refused to slow down. The only thing keeping me from floating off was Nolan's hold on my hand.

His hissing, yanking me into a corner just as a shadow appeared behind us. A bullet ricocheted against the wall, the piercing sound making me flutter.

"Nolan!!" I gasped, panic poised to overwhelm me.

"Keep running!" he said, his voice strong and direct.

We broke into a little courtyard, the only escape blocked by a high fence. Nolan hesitated not once. He pushed me toward a stack of containers. "Climb," he directed.

"What about you?" With a trembling voice, I asked.

He declared, "I'll be right behind you."

I paused, but his eyes' earnestness had no space for debate. With fingers sliding on the rough wood, I scrambled onto the containers. Nolan gave me a boost; his hands tightened against my waist, and I pulled myself over the fence.

I turned to find him the instant I went down the other side. One of Julian's men exploded into the courtyard, gun raised, midway up the containers.

As the man fired, I yelled "Nolan!"

Nolan was lowered to the ground and rolled to evade the bullet. Reversing himself, he struck the man in the leg. The assailant cried as he collapsed, but more were approaching.

"Go, Sophie!" said Nolan, yelling, his voice unvarnished with desperation.

My heart thumping, I shouted, "No!" "I'm not heading off without you!"

"I said go!" he yelled, and I froze just from the sheer power of his voice.

But again, another explosion rocked the ground before I could reply. The building next to the courtyard started to fall with a loud sound.

I yelled "Nolan!" and grabbed him while trash poured down.

He stared at me, something like regret filling his eyes. "Run," he murmured, his voice almost heard among the tumult.

Then the dust sucked him in.

Nolan either lies buried under the debris or is alive. The stakes have never been higher, as Julian's soldiers close in and Sophie leaves to look after herself. Has the risk claimed him for good, or will she be able to learn the truth and save Nolan?

"Nolan, refuse to lie to me." Though my voice was only a whisper, in the poorly lit room, the weight of my words hung strongly. "What then do we even have if I cannot trust you now?"

He stood across from me, the faint light streaming through the broken blinds framed in his shadow. His mouth shut, and he turned away from me. The stillness was intolerable.

"Sophie," he said, his voice full of feeling, "I never wanted you to get hurt."

"That's not a response!" I shot, the annoyance spilling over. Desperate to close the gulf separating us, I moved closer. "You keep me in the dark, although you say you are trying to protect me. Nolan, I am hungry for the truth. Everything.

His hands balled into fists at his sides, and for a split second I thought he might snap not at me but more at the unworkable circumstances we were in. His voice low and strained, he replied at last, "You don't understand what's at stake."

Then let me understand! With a cracked voice, I said. One cannot expect me to keep running blind. Whose struggle are we engaged in? Their wish is what? And what is that I bit hard, my heart thumping. "What aren't you letting me know?"

When his eyes locked with mine, the anguish in them stole my life. "Julian doesn't just want me destroyed," he claimed. "He wants everyone I know obliterated. First with you.

I retreated, the weight of his comments descending on me. "What? What did you do?

He laughed, saying, "I was stupid." "I relied on the wrong people." Made deals I ought not to have done. And as I aimed to leave... " He trailed off, running a hand through his hair. Julian made it plain that quitting was not an alternative.

The air seemed to thicken around us, his whispered horror filling the space. "And now he's hunting after me because of you?" My voice just above a whisper, I asked.

Yes, Nolan answered, his voice quivering with shame. "Because he understands I will do anything to keep you safe."

At his confession, my emotions turned upside down, but the resentment boiling under the surface would not be subdued. You should have informed me, I murmured, my voice quivering. "You should have let me choose whether I wanted to join this mess."

His shout, bouncing off the walls, "I didn't want to drag you into it!" "You deserve better than this. More than me.

"That's not your option for decision-making!" I returned fire. If we are in this together, we make decisions together. You believe you are protecting me, hence you cannot drive me away.

Our unspoken emotions, which we had both been ignoring, threatened to overwhelm us like live wire.

His voice breaking, he murmured at last,

"I can't lose you, Sophie." "Not once again."