Beneath Dark Skies (Rolling Hills Ranch #1)

58. Adrain

FIFTY-EIGHT

ADRAIN

PANIC

Day 453

I tear away from Kenji and Theo, speed walking toward the main house, determined to reach Farron first this morning. As I press forward, a distant shout suddenly echoes across the stillness, halting me in my tracks. My breath catches, and my shoulders tense as I whip around, searching for any sign of another breach or the dreaded shuffle of the undead. But everything remains disturbingly quiet, the silence oppressive, broken only by the wind that suddenly picks up, yanking my hair back and sending a sharp sting across my nose. The cold is settling in, a bitter reminder that winter is closing in fast, and the first snow is only a matter of time.

Pulling my coat tighter, I quicken my pace towards the main house, my thoughts circling around Farron. I’ve been consumed by thoughts of her all night, and a determination has taken hold of me. I know why she ran last night–I know everything feels like a lot for her all at once, and I know her immediate reaction is to hide until she’s ready to face whatever she’s hiding from. But it’s time to finally talk things out with her, once and for all.

Just as I reach the porch steps, my hope of finding Farron inside is shattered by the thunderous sound of hooves pounding the earth. My heart leaps into my throat as I spin around, scanning for the source. That’s when I see her racing out of the barn on EJ, her face contorted with fear, clear from even this distance. Panic surges through me like a bolt of lightning, and I break into a run, my voice tearing from my throat in a desperate shout. “FARRON!”

She doesn’t turn back. Not even once.

My mind races as I spin around, ready to bolt back to Kenji and Theo, when I see them running toward me.

“We heard you shouting for Farron. What the hell happened?” Theo asks, and from his expression, I can tell he’s just as worried and confused as I am. Kenji, on the other hand, is already looking off into the distance, his sharp eyes tracking Farron’s black curls as they whip violently behind her while she rides off.

“I don’t know,” I admit, trying to calm my racing heart. “I was heading to the house to see if she wanted to talk when I saw her bolt out of the barn on EJ, looking like she was in a panic.” My movements are sharp as I sign, but the tremble in my fingertips is noticeable the second my motions stop. “Something’s not right.”

Theo says what we’re all thinking already. “We have to go after her. What if she runs into trouble?”

“What if whatever’s happened is a fucking trap, and there’s people out there waiting?” Kenji asks, making my blood run colder. “I suspected something different, but…It’s not impossible to think that someone’s been fucking with Rolling Hills and responsible for all the break-ins lately.”

A shiver runs down my spine at the thought, and without another word, we all nod in agreement and hurry to the barn to saddle our own horses. As I fumble with the tack, my eyes are drawn to a horse I’ve never seen before. It’s white with black spots, and though I can tell it must be stunning when clean, it’s currently in bad shape—dirty, worn down, its ribs jutting out painfully. I can’t help but wonder if this horse is the reason Farron took off the way she did .

It takes us far too long to get our horses saddled up and ready to go, but the second they are, we climb on top. As we take off, we urge them to pick up the pace, heading south in the direction Farron was last seen. As we pass the fence line, we come to a brief halt, trying to get our bearings.

Theo quickly signs first, turning to face me. “Which way was she heading?” The panic threatens to rise again at the thought of Farron being out there alone, possibly lost or in danger. Kenji doesn’t miss a beat as he responds, “There’s a small town south of here—the one Peter and Jasper came from. We should check there first.”

Without hesitation, I dig my heels into my horse’s sides, urging him forward. The sooner we confirm whether she went that way, the sooner we can continue the search. I know this town was cleared of the infected after Jay went searching for his mom, but that was over a year ago. Who knows what’s out there now? And Farron… I didn’t see a weapon on her when she left. The thought makes my stomach drop, and I push my horse even harder, the urgency pounding in my veins.

As the town comes into view, we push our horses harder, racing into the heart of it. I scan the area frantically, but there’s no sign of Farron or EJ. We pass a few buildings, and suddenly, a blood-curdling scream splits the air, making us all come to an abrupt halt. Kenji quickly signs to Theo, relaying what we heard.

My blood runs cold as one name fills my mind. Farron.