When Family Became a Place I Couldn’t Return To novel Chapter 437

Nelly and Brody had been walking through the woods for what felt like forever, and the farther they went, the colder her back felt. The forest was so dark, she couldn’t even see her own hand in front of her face. Every step made the grass crunch beneath her shoes, the sound sharp and unnerving, and her heart was pounding in her chest.

“What’s wrong? Are you scared?” Brody’s voice suddenly cut through the silence, making Nelly jump. She let out a startled yelp, then glared at him. “Do you have to be so loud?” She hissed, her voice shaky. In a place this quiet, even the smallest sound could send your heart racing.

Brody, who’d been walking just behind her, moved up to her side and slipped his hand into hers. His touch was gentle, nothing like his usual cocky attitude. “Relax, I’m here. Seriously, if you’re uncomfortable, I can take you back to the car to wait.”

His voice was so soft and reassuring that Nelly almost believed him. The way he sounded right now made her feel safer than she wanted to admit. Still, she kept her tone cool. “Don’t think you can take advantage of the situation. That comforting-women stuff doesn’t work on me.”

Even though she sounded tough, she didn’t pull her hand away. The truth was, she was spooked. And she was still wearing his jacket, which only made her feel more awkward. She told herself, you can’t turn on someone who’s helping you.

Brody just shrugged. “I’m not trying anything. I’m just worried about you.”

He didn’t say anything else, but suddenly his attention shifted to a noise off to the side. Nelly heard it too, something rustling in the bushes. Her pulse sped up. She unconsciously inched closer to him, grabbing onto his arm with both hands.

Brody patted her arm, trying to calm her down. “It’s fine. Let’s go check it out.”

Nelly swallowed hard and called out softly for the missing girl, but there was no answer. With her flashlight in one hand, she and Brody crept closer to the bushes. The beam lit up the ground in front of her—and then, out of nowhere, a thick snake shot up and lunged straight at her.

Brody reacted instantly. He shoved Nelly out of the way and blocked the snake with his arm. Then, with his other hand, he drove a knife straight through the snake’s head.

Nelly screamed, almost losing her balance, but forced herself to snap out of it and rushed to Brody’s side. She quickly saw two deep, bleeding puncture wounds on his arm. He’d been bitten.

“Oh my god, are you okay? This is bad… what if it’s poisonous?” Her first instinct was to try to suck the venom out, but Brody stopped her.

“It’s fine. It might not even be poisonous. It just hurts a little.” He was frowning, pulling his arm away from her, clearly worried she’d ignore him and do something reckless.

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