A
I slow down once I’ve put some distance between myself and the beach house. Riding an ATV naked is quite the experience. I stop on the beach, still buzzed with excitement. I fucking love that I got away. That was so much fun.
I’ve covered enough distance that I know Alessio can’t be here anytime soon. I pace the beach, staying in range of the quad. If I drive it, the sound of the motor will give away my location.
Having a vehicle makes the experience of being prey very different. The things I need to consider have changed: now I am much, much more mobile, but ites at the cost of making a loud noise. Overall, my situation is definitely better, but theknowledge that using the ATV tells Alessio where I am is a little bit nerve-racking.
I see something in the distance, all the way down the beach. Is that him? I can’t tell. It could be a rock, or even a tree. Is iting toward me? I nce behind me at the quad. How long would it take to run back to it if I needed to?
A rustling. I spin around, facing the trees. Just the wind. Just the wind. Dammit. I jog back to the quad. My gut is telling me to change locations.
***
Alessio
In the distance, the ATV’s motor rumbles. I do one more pass through the house, looking for my phone, but I know in my heart that A took it. And as goddamn frustrated as that makes me, I have to admit there’s also a grudging respect. That was a smart move. Not only did she get away and take my vehicle, but she stole the device that allows me to control it remotely. She made it a lot harder for me to stack the deck.
She’s going to get punished for this. Thoroughly. But apparently, my wife is made of stronger stuff than I thought. That realization is a pleasing one. It makes me less concerned for her safety, knowing she can take care of herself.
Not to mention, it will be even more satisfying when I catch her and make her submit to me all over again.
The backpack by the door is missing. I didn’t notice it in the rush of watching her escape, but she must have taken it with her. My first thought is that I’m d she has the re gun in case anything happens.
My second thought is the sAge realization that I now have another way of turning things in my favor.
I go upstairs and get myputer. Pulling up the video feed for the backpack camera, I see trees rushing by as she rides the quad. I watch her until she stops, scanning the area around her for andmark that I recognize.
My tablet is charging next to me. The first thing I did after she escaped was plug it in. It was at 0% battery then, now it’s at 12%. Not great, but hopefully, enough. I power it on and run the app that connects to the quad bike.
For safety reasons, I can’t kill the motor while she’s driving, and I wouldn’t want to. But I can make it so as soon as she turns it off, it won’t turn on again. Quickly, I download the software for the backpack camera to the tablet. I don’t want to carry this thing around, but it’s better than theptop. I’ll use it to keep tabs on her location until she’s back under lock and key.
***
A
I speed by a yellow g and decide to stop. Just to check what it is. It’s a station with protein bars, bottled coffee drinks in a mostly melted cooler, and little packets of Oreos. I grab two Oreo packets and head back to the ATV.
It doesn’t start. Swearing, I give it a moment and try the ignition again. Still nothing. Fuck. Is it out of gas? I hop off and circle the vehicle, looking for anything wrong.
Then I jump as the motor revs. Vrooooommm. Vrooooooooommmm. Holy shit, that scared me. For a moment I’m excited, thinking I somehow fixed it, and then I realize:
Alessio is toying with me.
The motor stops, and a chilles over me. I’m being hunted again, without a vehicle. And something tells me Alessio is going to be even more forceful this time.This text is property of N?/velD/rama.Org.
I take off into the woods, neck prickling with goosebumps.
***
Maybe 20 minutester, I’m feeling slightly less anxious. I haven’t seen or heard a hint of Alessio, and despite the tantalizing dread of knowing that can’tst forever, my escape seems to be going pretty well so far. I munch my Oreos, trying to chew quietly.
Then, in the distance, the motor starts. And it doesn’t seem to be staying in one ce. My heart thumps as I realize this can only mean one thing:
My husband has the ATV again.
The good part is, now I know his location on the ind, at least roughly.
The bad part is, it sounds like he’sing right at me. The rumbling just keeps getting louder and louder, until I realize in a sh that I have to move.
I scurry through the bushes, ducking my head, and then, to my terror, Alessio rides right past me on the quad. He turns, and I’m sure that he sees me. I take off running, ditching the backpack so I can move faster.
The motor screams behind me as I start to full-on sprint. I’m going in the opposite direction he was, so I know he must be scrambling to make a U-turn. I just run and run and run, and somehow, the engine doesn’t seem to be getting louder. Heaving for breath, I drop down and crouch behind a big rock.
I can still hear him driving, searching for me. But it’s obvious that he doesn’t know where I am. I remain in my hiding spot, formting a n for my next move.
***
Alessio
Fuck! I just had her! I can’t believe I let her slip away. Where the fuck did she go? Grunting in frustration, I pull the ATV to a stop and check the video feed on the tablet.
All I can see are palm trees swaying gently against the sky. I stare at the image before realizing the obvious truth: she must have gotten rid of the backpack.
There goes my biggest advantage.
I circle the ind one more time, then drive back to the beach house to regroup. Pulling up the quad, I stomp to the front door and pull it open.
Or at least, I try to. It doesn’t open. Shaking my head in confusion, I twist the handle harder.
The door is locked.
I guess I must have locked it from the inside before I left. Shaking my head, I go around to the other door.
Also locked. Okay, shit. In my hurry to leave, I didn’t bring the keys. I’m trying to figure out what I should do, and that’s when I hear a tapping at the window.
A waves at me from inside the beach house, sipping a ss of orange juice. She dangles the keys in front of the ss, grinning.