Caleb had been gone for three days.
Fiona had canceled the war games on the first day, and Ashleigh had spent the entire day in the treehouse, just missing him. It was strange.
She had missed him before. She had rushed to Summer when she thought he was hurt. But this was different. It was as if the hollowness left behind by the suppressant was spreading.
Knowing he was out there, but she couldn’t feel him anymore was draining her of her energy.
Ashleigh forced herself to leave the treehouse. It was comforting to be surrounded by his scent, but it was only draining her more to focus on it.
On the second day, the war games resumed. Only this time, it was a very different experience. Through the challenge, she was kicked, stomped, punched, bitten, and thrown by countless wolves. And though the course was reset ten times, she did not even get close to Fiona once.
Ashleigh spent that night icing her sore muscles and wishing she could feel Caleb’s presence.
