Ally waded her bare feet through the icy waters of the river. Up in the distance, a tall waterfall streaked the side of a small mountain in white. The closer she got to it, the louder the sounds became, roaring like an angry lion. When she rounded the last corner, she stopped to admire the view of the falls rushing from the mountainside into the bank below. The site would’ve been beautiful but she knew better. The same dream had plagued her for months. Except for the sound of her heart drumming inside her ears, the world went silent.
Something red hung from the top of the cliff, sparkling in the sun. She sucked in a breath as the image came into view. The front of a car suspended over the cliff, lodged in the rocks. She couldn’t see the driver, but from the way her chest tightened, squeezing the breath out of her, she knew.
“David!” She sprinted toward it. The icy currents drenched her legs and the bottom of her white dress.
“You can’t save him.” Sayeed’s voice echoed through the trees.
She ignored him and continued to run.
The water deepened with each step. Like angry hands, the rapids slapped against her body, shoving her away. She fought against the currents punching against her stomach and legs. None of it mattered. Because she could see him. His head rested on the steering wheel while the force of the water rocked his car.
Sayeed’s laughter filled the forest, grating against her ears. He grabbed her wrist.
“You’re not real.” Ally tugged at her arm, attempting to break free from his grasp. “You’re dead.”
“So is he.” His laughter grew louder, piercing her heart. “And we both have you to thank.” Sayeed gripped her shoulders, yanking her back as the car slipped.
She screamed for David as she fought to break free of Sayeed’s grasp. His arms tightened, suffocating the life out of her. When the car slammed into the rocks below, her knees went slack.
“You should have never left me,” Sayeed hissed over and over.
Soon another voice joined his. It was a woman’s. “It’s just a dream,” she whispered. Her voice grew louder and louder until it was all Ally heard.
She opened her eyes and gasped for air as she searched for the river, for the forest, for David. Instead, the bright red upholstered seat she sat behind greeted her. She clenched her lids shut. Although drenched in sweat, she shivered from the cold.
“You’re okay,” Leanna said as she draped a blanket over Ally. “It was a dream.”
Ally nodded and tugged the warm fabric close. Her iPod sat on her little table in front of her, and the headphones were wrapped neatly around the device. She slid the electronic into her purse and closed the table. “I need to go to the bathroom.”
Ally stared at the back of the brown-haired woman in front of her as she waited her turn for the bathroom. The dreams were right. Everything was her fault. If she had never left the compound, all the lives she’d lost would still be walking the earth, and she wouldn’t be thousands of miles in the sky headed to Germany. She looked over her shoulder at her ever-present shadow. Mercifully, Leanna hadn’t asked for details about the dream. Nor had she mentioned all the things Ally must have said out loud in her sleep.
Ally twisted the Styrofoam coffee cup in her hand while she stared at the back of the headrest in front of her. A movie played on the tiny monitor secured to it, but the thoughts filling her brain had nothing to do with the romantic comedy playing on the screen.
Unease swelled within, and the closer the plane inched to Frankfurt, the more the emotion grew. Her conversation with Eddie left her with more questions than answers. The one answer she did walk away with was everything happening was because of her.
She wondered if going into hiding was the right thing to do. Her mind flashed to Farah and the mystery person being held somewhere because of her. Would Eddie be able to find them in time? What if they were killed? Like Amir. She thought about her former bodyguard. He loved Farah and would have died for her. Her stomach twisted. And he did. Unlike Amir, she was running away when Farah needed her most. The thought didn’t sit well with her. How many more people would suffer because of her? If there was some way she could make a trade with the kidnappers, her life for theirs, she’d do it in a heartbeat.
Leanna leaned over and grabbed the cup of coffee out of Ally’s grasp before it spilled. “What’s up?”
She shrugged, and fixed her gaze at the movie playing on the little screen in front of her. Telling Eddie’s partner in crime her concerns about his plan didn’t seem like a good idea. “Nerves.”
“Nerves I understand, but…” Leanna squinted and stared at her as if trying to read her mind. “This is different.”
She picked up the snack bag from her table and pulled it open. “And guilt. I feel like I’m running away.”
Leanna gave her hand a squeeze. “You’re not. You’re making it easier for Eddie to do what he needs to do.”
Ally nodded and popped a salty pretzel in her mouth. That’s what she kept telling herself. Only time would tell if they were right.
She returned her focus to the movie, and thankfully, Leanna didn’t push. In fact, the woman didn’t speak to her again until the plane made its descent to Frankfurt Airport. By the time they taxied down the runway, the relaxed Leanna had changed into a serious one.
Before they rose to deplane, the escort handed her a cell. “Keep this on you at all times. Under no circumstances are we allowed to get separated. Understood?”
Ally nodded, slid the device into her jean pocket, and followed the handler off the plane. Tension built with every step she took.
“There’s an elevator to the right of the escalators. We’re going to take it down.” Leanna twined her fingers through Ally’s as they exited the breezeway into the terminal.