Keeping Secrets (An Anonymous Novella)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Ethan.

            Chloe burst from the bathroom at a run, completely ignoring Jackson's surprised shout after her. No doubt he'd broke into a sprint the second he saw her, in fact she could hear the tapping of his shoes against the ground behind her.

            "Lizzie!"

            People. There were people everywhere. She bobbed and weaved through the ones she could, and gently but forcefully pushed through the ones she couldn't. "Excuse me. Excuse me."

            For a moment she thanked the Lord above that her dress wasn't one of those impossibly tight, hard to walk in dresses. She couldn't imagine having to rip the dress in order to run.

            "Anonymous!"

            "Oh my God."

            "Hey!"

            "Sorry." She muttered under her breath. She really wasn't though. Ethan was a hundred times more important than the people around her and they would just have to deal.

            "Lizzie!" Jackson snagged at her arm, yanking her back. "Stop!"

            Her shoulder screamed at her in protest. Without thinking, she clawed at Jackson's hand on her bicep. "Jackson, let go!" The panic had started a second wave, painfully scratching its way up her throat.

            "What the hell is going on?"

            "Ethan." She told him, yanking at his fingers, her voice shrill to her ears. "I have to get Ethan."

            Jackson peered down at her, the crease in his forehead slowly disappearing as he found something in her expression. His whole body tightened and within seconds he'd gone straight into protective warrior mode. "Is he in danger?" The fierceness with which he asked the question only made the fear in her stomach solidify more.

            Chloe stepped forward. If Jackson wasn't going to let go, she'd take him with her. She jerked her head toward the door, looking for any sign of Ethan near the entrance. He wasn't in the building though. He was outside. How would she get to him in time if Jackson wasn't going to—?

            "Elizabeth!" Jackson grabbed her shoulders in an impossibly tight grip and shook her once hard. "Is he in danger?" He barked the question.

            She swallowed. For some reason her heartbeat, normally quiet as a mouse, wouldn't stop pounding loudly in her ear. She nodded.

            The two of them burst into motion at the same time. She pushed herself to stay shoulder to shoulder with Jackson.

            Jackson spoke into his watch. "I've got a code Blue. Need immediate lockdown. I repeat, code Blue. Possible threat to Sparks."

            The two of them had just reached the clear glass doors to the outside. From her position she could clearly see Ethan standing near the edge of the red carpet. Hardly any of the people present for the pre-show had stuck around, but still a decent row of two or three people loitered next to the roped off area. They screamed Ethan's name and still had the same amount of excitement they did at the beginning of the event. Only now, they looked confused as the royal guard swarmed their prince.

            "I've got Stardust with me." Jackson said into his watch.

            Almost as if he sensed her, Ethan turned and, giving her a smile despite his obvious surprise, waved.