We drove away from the scene of the crime just in time to avoid the onslaught of police cruisers responding to reports of gunfire. Tucked safely away in Guy's sprawling blue Lexus, we made our way through the streets of Austin in silence, save for the sound of our breathing. I’d been quick to try and stem the bleeding from my head wound, if only to keep from ruining the interior of Guy’s car, but found it was almost impossible to do so.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said after I fussed with yet another series of napkins. “They’re covers. Besides—the car’s the least of my concerns right now.”
“Where are we going?”
“Hill country, even if it’s the last place I want to go.”
I cradled the back of my head with one hand and fought to control the nausea that threatened to send the contents of my stomach onto the floor of Guy’s nice car. Breathing, carefully, as to not overstimulate myself, I rolled the window down just a crack and leaned my head against it—immediately prompting a look from Guy, but not the question I’d expected.
The silence was bliss after all I’d went through.
I kept hearing the same sound in my head.
Bam, the gun went. Bam bam bam.
During the chaos of it all, there’d been little time to think of anything. We’d packed two bags, carried them out to the car. Afterward, Guy had said we’d pick up food once we got out of Austin and we were free of the burden of the police department, but that had been the least of my concerns. I’d noted, upon our departure, a tear in his suit where the bullet had grazed and cut straight through, but he’d been quick to rebut my offers of help.
You’re hurt worse than I am, he’d finally said.
He was right. I’d been slammed into the corner of a counter and been cold-clocked with a pistol. How I was even awake, much less lucid, was beyond me, but so far I was faring well. The sharp pain in my back had since dulled to a low throb—which, I hoped, meant it wasn’t too serious.
So early in the evening, the traffic through west Austin was a nightmare. He immediately bypassed I-35 and instead took Congress all the way down to William Cannon—which, eventually, would lead us out of Austin and into Hill Country.
Sometime during our merge onto William Cannon, I nodded off and fell into a deep sleep.
When I woke later to a throbbing head and a back with what felt like a needle lodged into my spine, I lifted my head away from the window to look out at the world before us.
Hill country.
Even so late at night, it was stunning in its beauty. Flanked by blue bonnets on both sides, bordered by tall grasses in various colors further out, and sprinkled with wildflowers in every shade and hue imaginable. With the headlights striking their surfaces, they resembled the mystical Wonderland Alice had so unfortunately fallen into, albeit with a sinister shade that reminded me of the Cheshire Cat and all its creepy riddles.
“Guy?” I asked, turning to face him. “Are you all right?”
The sweat beading down his forehead gave no indication that he was. The heater was cranked full blast, and both windows were rolled up to trap the near-suffocating air that permeated the inside of the vehicle. I almost told him to turn the air down and roll down the windows, but when I reached out and found his skin to be cold as ice, I jerked my hand away, trembling at the shock in temperature difference.
“Guy?” I asked. “What—”
“Good,” he said, not taking his eyes off the road. “You’re awake.”
“What’s going on? Why are you sweating?”
“I’m cold, Jason. Really, really fucking cold.”
“But you’re sweating—”
“I’m not like most normal guys, babe, but I think you already figured that out already.”
I didn’t say anything. I wasn’t sure what to say.
Guy returned his attention to the road and focused on a slight dirt runoff that likely led to an old farm trail. “I’m pulling over,” he said.
“Guy, what’re you—”
“Just trust me! Okay?”
I flinched at the bark in his tone, but nodded as he pulled over and killed the ignition.
One moment, the lights were on, illuminating the rolling fields of flowers before us. The next, it was dark, and I could only see by the light of the moon.
Guy took my hand. “You said you trusted me,” he said, stroking my knuckles, a faint echo of discomfort pulsing from his glacial fingertips. “Right?”
“Yeah,” I nodded. “I trust you.”
“I can’t explain right now. I’m… starting to fade. I need you to do something for me. It won’t hurt, but… it’s not going to be pleasant either.”
“Guy,” I said, quickly losing my cool as he began to shiver violently. “What’s—”
“Please, Jason. Help me.”
The rings around his eyes glowed brighter than ever.
I swallowed a lump in my throat. “What do you need me to do?” I asked.
“Kiss me,” he said.
Leaning over, he took both sides of my face in his hands, tilted my head to the side, then captured my upper lip between his.
A spark ignited between us.
The immediate sensation of standing in the middle of the freezing-cold rain consumed my body like a voracious predator. Shocked, initially, by the contrast in our persons, I almost recoiled, but I held myself steady as he grounded me with his hands. His fingertips slid down my face, tracing one cheek, then my jawline—his tongue slid into my mouth and a spark of pleasure unlike anything I’d felt before shocked my senses. It was then and there I submitted to his needs, and reached up to take hold of the back of his neck and skull.
His tongue slid across my lips.
I groaned as he pressed his mouth against mine.
The pressure of his hand against the swollen spot of my spine instantly imparted comfort that no medication could’ve offered.
Just as quickly as it begun, it was over. Guy pulled his hands away from my face, then withdrew mine from the back of his head. “We’re done,” he said.
“I,” I gasped, “You—"
Guy forced a smile.
I looked around at the interior of the vehicle. Unlike before—when it had been sheathed in the tight, oppressing grip of heat—it was colder than hell. Ice particles lit the frame of Guy’s brow and the windows were completely fogged and frozen over.
I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Guy,” I said, turning my eyes back on him to find that his irises had since lost their vibrant, aqua glow. “What just happened?”
“I’ve got some explaining to do,” he said. He put the car into drive and flicked the defrosters on. “There’s a rest stop up ahead. We’ll talk there.”