Beyond Terminus (Book Two)

Chapter 54: Hallucination

Daryl's POV

"Better luck next time, huh Daryl?" Aaron calls from his car as we pull up to the gates.

"Yeah," I call back, running my hands over the handles of the bike.

I have to admit, all the sweat and blood I put into restoring this bike has been worth it. This ride today felt amazing, not only because of being back on the familiar vehicle; it also reminds me of the first time I took Hope on a motorcycle ride. She had eyed my old bike with such longing it was almost comical.

The gates slide open as we drive in. I park the bike and scan the horizon for any sign of Hope. To my surprise, she's nowhere to be seen.

I shrug and drive the bike back to the garage. She's probably in the house cleaning or at the clinic. I shut the garage and head to her work building.

I knock on the door, hearing the wild barking of a dog. When the tall doctor opens the door, the Labrador leaps up at me, trying to lick my face.

"Woah there, Lightning," Elliot says, scratching her ears. "Daryl, what a surprise!"

"Hey Doc. Is the nurse in?" I ask, crossing my arms.

"No, actually. I gave her the day off." He leans in a little closer. "She seemed a bit moody, if you ask me."

I shrug. "Baby stuff."

"Exactly." He looks around. "I haven't seen her all day, actually. Good luck finding her."

"Yeah. See ya," I mumble.

"Nice seeing you!" he calls as I walk away.

I jog to our house, opening the door and strolling inside like I own the place, which I sort of do.

Silence. Complete silence.

An uneasy feeling of dread seeps into my stomach. I race up the stairs, my heart starting to pound.

"Hope? Angel?" I call, not seeing her anywhere upstairs. "HOPE!"

There's the sound of a door opening from downstairs and I practically tumble down the stairs as I go down. Rick stands in my entryway, his eyes wide.

"Daryl, you've got to come, now," he says.

"What's happenin'? Have you seen Hope?" I ask, my voice more panicked than I'd like.

"She took Buttons out for a run this morning," Rick says. "One of the guys at the gate told me."

"They let her leave?!" I exclaim.

He flinches. "That's the other thing." His entire body seems to sink with sadness. "Buttons is standing at the gate...with no rider."

That's all I need to hear before I'm barreling out of the house and racing towards the gate as fast as my feet can take me. A few concerned onlookers are already gathered near the gate, including Deanna and her husband, Reggie.

Sure enough, Buttons paces nervously in the empty space around the crowd. An empty saddle is all that sits on his back. I skid to a stop, everyone looking at me. The horse takes notice and trots towards me, neighing softly.

I forgot for a moment that the only people Buttons trusts are Hope and I.

"What...what happened? Where is she?" I demand, knowing that no one knows.

"Calm down, Mr Dixon," Deanna says.

"How can you say that?!" I shout, angry. "My wife is out there!"

"I understand that, but we have to keep a level head," she responds smoothly. "We need to try and figure out where she could've gone."

"We don't have time for that! She could be hurt, or-" I cut myself off, not daring to say that word.