Awry

26

Tristan threw items into his worn duffel bag at warp speed. He didn’t have a plan, but he knew he had to leave.

He had to remove himself from Scarlet’s presence immediately.

Gabriel was right.

Tristan hated that Gabriel was right.

Zipping up the contents of his bag, he threw the strap over his shoulder, grabbed a jacket, and headed upstairs.

Everyone was in the kitchen, panicking and plotting. Feeling for Scarlet, he sensed that she had calmed down a bit, which eased his fear slightly.

Not much, though.

In the next room, Gabriel sounded stressed out and Heather was completely hysterical.

Tristan had to leave before he made things worse.

He’d just stepped out the front door when Nate’s voice came from behind him. “Where are you going?’

Tristan paused. “Away.”

Nate raised an eyebrow.

Tristan swallowed. “Scarlet’s getting worse. I have to go.”

“So, what? You’re just going to ditch us?”

“Yep.”

Nate took a step forward. “Dude—“

Tristan didn’t look back as he shut the door behind him and disappeared into the night.