“Of course, but no one saw anything in the chaos, and then all they could focus on was the pain. The only people I need to answer to weren’t present, and Lucian should be able to take care of them anyway.”
“You told Uncle Lucian?” Ethan sounded shocked.
All of us snapped our heads up to look at Tyler, even Alec. It was a little disconcerting to know another person had learned our secret so soon after realizing why it was so important to keep it hidden.
Tyler nodded, fixing us each with a meaningful look but holding Alec’s gaze the longest. “He already knew. He was giving us space, waiting for us to come to him when we were ready.”
“Shit,” Josh cursed softly.
“I trust him.” Tyler shrugged.
They all murmured their agreement. They weren’t worried about Lucian Zacarias betraying us; they were just surprised Tyler had told him.
It had been good to get some more information, but I’d spent the whole conversation keeping an eye on the time. I had to make sure I made it to the hospital before visiting hours were over.
I stood from my seat. “I need to see Zara and Dot. Can we continue this later?”
Ethan and Josh got up at the same time.
“Of course,” Tyler said with a yawn. “I really need to get some sleep anyway. The boys will take you.”
“While the men do the important things,” Alec cut in, speaking for the first time since I’d entered the room.
“What is up your ass, man?” Ethan frowned. “You’re even more surly than usual.”
Josh just leaned in the doorway, watching everything as he usually did, not looking even slightly put off by his manhood being questioned.
Alec scoffed and tried to go back to ignoring us all, but if he was going to drop passive aggressive comments like that, I wasn’t going to just let it go.
I leaned my palms on the table and spoke directly at him. “You may not think that other people are important, but some of us are actually capable of normal human connections. And you may not want anything from me”—I threw his words back at him—“but there are others who do.”
He fixed me with an angry glare, but I didn’t wait for him to respond, turning around and walking toward the door. The boys followed, as I knew they would.
Tyler called after us, “Kid, if anyone so much as looks at her funny, you fry them to a crisp and get the hell out of there.”
“Goes without saying, Gabe,” Ethan called back, overtaking me and leading the way into the garage.
Josh kept pace with me. “What was that about? And don’t try to tell me it was nothing. You don’t usually let him bait you like that.”
I didn’t say anything, hoping he would drop it, but he gently grabbed my hand so I couldn’t run away. I mentally checked that my Light was under control, but it was out of habit more than anything. I’d expelled all I had to get Alec recharged—now was the safest time for them to touch me, and they weren’t being shy about it.
“Something happened between you two in Tyler’s study.”
So much for him dropping it. Of course he’d figured out something more was up, but even Josh wasn’t omniscient. He knew something big had happened, but he didn’t know what.
“Josh, I don’t want to talk about it. Please.” It was bad enough that Tyler had seen the aftermath. I didn’t need Josh and Ethan knowing how a member of my own Bond had hurt me in the most humiliating way.
I fixed him with a firm look, trying to pull my hand out of his, but he held on and pulled me back to his side. He watched me with concern in his eyes for a moment. Then he kissed me gently, sighing against my lips.
Twenty-Eight
The drive to the hospital was quiet. They’d tried again to ask me what was going on with Alec as soon as we were on the road, but I shut it down, crossing my arms stubbornly and staring out the window.
It was hard to stay even a little mad at them though. Especially when they were touching me. They seemed to instinctively know there wasn’t as much danger from my Light. Josh wrapped his hand around mine, prying it away from my chest, and Ethan leaned on the back of my seat, running his fingers through my hair.
As we reached the hospital though, they dropped it, and I was glad they did. I needed to focus on Zara and Dot. My personal shit wasn’t going to get in the way of me being there for my friends.
We were a little surprised when the receptionist told us they were in the same room. I cringed, hoping they weren’t making this whole situation worse on themselves by bickering, as they usually did.
Josh thanked her and took the lead down the hall. Now that we were in public, he was making sure to keep his hands off me. The events of the last twenty-four hours had been sobering—we had to be more careful. Ethan wrapped his arm around my waist, and I returned the side hug as we followed Josh into the elevators.
On the third floor, we walked together down the corridor, my guys flanking me like silent sentinels, but before we reached the door, I paused, wringing my hands.
Ethan draped an arm over my shoulder, but it was Josh who spoke from my other side.
“You got this, Eve.”
He knew I was nervous. I had been keen to get to my friends to make sure they were OK, but now that I was actually here, I had no idea what I was supposed to do. I had no experience with having friends, let alone comforting them during a difficult time.
“Just be there,” Ethan added.
I nodded and took a breath, squaring my shoulders. I could do this. If I could deal with Alec, I could deal with this.
With one final reminder to myself to put that asshole out of my mind, I raised my arm to knock on the door, but it swung open in front of me.
Dot and Charlie’s mom stepped through it. Her face was streaked with tears, the mascara running down her cheeks, and her messy hair looked as if she’d run her hands through it a million times. Shoulders hunched, she looked up at me—or rather, through me—and blinked a few times.
“I’m getting coffee,” she said in a detached voice.
“Mrs. Vanderford?” I placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
She seemed to snap out of it, shaking her head lightly, some amount of clarity returning to her eyes.
“Oh, Eve.” She drew me into a tight hug. “I’m glad you’re here. They could both use a friend right now.” Her voice broke on the last word, but she pulled away, making a visible effort to compose herself.
“I wouldn’t be anywhere else. I just can’t believe . . . Charlie . . .” My own voice was breaking as I struggled to find the words.
“How are you, Olivia?” Josh asked, saving me from having to find a way to finish.
“Is there anything we can do?” Ethan piped in.
“You’re doing plenty by just being here,” she replied in her shaky voice. “And we’re holding up as well as can be expected. Lucian has already been in touch. He’s furious, and he’s promised to throw the full force of Melior Group at this. Knowing that something is already being done about it is helping. Henry is on the phone with him in the waiting room around the corner. I was just on my way to get us some coffee.”
“Uncle Lucian won’t rest until we find him, Aunt Olivia.” Ethan stepped forward and wrapped his aunt up in one of his massive hugs.
“I know, sweetie.” She sniffled. “I’ll let you go see the girls. They shouldn’t be alone.”
She squeezed Josh’s hand as she went past, her heels clicking on the gray floor.
I turned back to the door, taking a deep breath and wiping my eyes before pushing inside.
There were two beds in the sterile room, pushed up against the right wall, but I was surprised to find one of them empty. Zara and Dot were both in the bed closest to the window. Zara was lying under the covers, tubes sticking out of her arms, and Dot was sitting next to her, her knees pulled up.
They both looked in my direction, and I tried my best to hide my shocked expression. Not that I needed to.
As soon as she saw me, Dot flew
off the bed and ran into my arms. We hugged tightly, just standing there, trying to find comfort in the embrace. Her delicate shoulders bobbed up and down softly as she cried. I’d been around her plenty of times without her massive heels on and knew just how short she was, but standing in the hospital room hugging her, she truly felt tiny in my arms—more fragile than I’d ever imagined my confident friend could be.
She pulled away slightly without letting go, and I saw she wasn’t wearing any makeup either. Another first. Her bare face was splotchy and covered in tears.
“Charlie—” she croaked.
“I know,” I cut in, saving her having to repeat it. “I’m so sorry, Dot. I can’t even imagine.”
Her face got a faraway look, and I guided her by the shoulders back to Zara’s bed.
Zara watched us, silent tears soaking her pillow. With one last squeeze, I released Dot and slowly climbed onto the bed. I enfolded Zara in a much gentler hug, wary of hurting her, but she wrapped her arms around my neck tightly, and my own tears finally overflowed.
We held each other and cried for Beth—our beautiful friend who hadn’t deserved this. An innocent, sweet girl who’d been dragged into a conflict that had nothing to do with her. She’d been there only because she was brave and wanted to warn people, and she’d ended up as collateral damage. Just another Dime that got in the way.
I pulled away and wiped my tears with the sleeve of Josh’s hoodie.
“We’re going to find out who did this,” I said quietly, but the steel in my voice surprised even me.
Zara sighed and looked down. She didn’t believe me, but she had no energy for a sarcastic reply.
Dot reclaimed her spot next to Zara, and I ended up sitting in the middle with my legs tucked under me, facing them. They were both staring into space, lost in thoughts of loved ones ripped away from them. I knew all too well how that felt.
“I’m a Vital,” I blurted, and they both looked at me, a little confused.
I was trying to distract them, but I was also sick of secrets. If today had taught me anything, it was that life was precious and could be taken away at any moment. I’d lived my whole life lonely. Now I had two friends sitting in front of me, and I wanted them to know me. All of me.
“I know you guys already know that,” I went on. Dot had figured it out ages ago, and Zara had put it together when I’d transferred Light to Tyler earlier that day. “But it feels good to say it. Do you want to know who’s in my Bond?”
“Ethan,” they both replied at the same time, but Zara added, “And Tyler Gabriel.”
Dot looked at her in shock. “No, it’s Josh as well as Ethan.” Her eyes darted between Zara and me in confusion, the conviction in Zara’s voice tripping her up.
“No,” Zara replied. “It’s Tyler and Ethan.”
“You’re both right,” I piped in, stopping an argument before it started.
Zara gasped, lifting the hand not hooked up to an IV to cover her mouth in shock. “Ethan, Tyler, and Josh?”
I nodded, pressing my lips together and bugging my eyes out.
“Holy shit,” Dot breathed. “Three Variants? That’s so rare.”
Sheepishly I raised my hand, holding up four fingers.
“Four?!” They spoke at the same time again, and I briefly wondered how they could be so hostile to each other. They were much more similar than they thought.
I nodded as they stared at me, mouths hanging slightly open. Having three Variants in a Bond was rare; four was almost unheard of.
“No, please, take your time in telling us who the fourth is. It’s not like we’re on the edge of our seats or anything.” Zara managed to cock an eyebrow, and I smiled, glad to see some of her spunk back. I’d made the right decision in telling them, even if it made them forget for only a few minutes.
Dot gasped dramatically before I could speak. “In the square that day. You didn’t get a headache.”
She’d figured it out. I smiled at her and nodded. “Alec.”
“As in Zacarias?” Zara asked for confirmation. “Kid’s cousin. Brooding. Always wears black and scowls at people. Master of Pain. That Alec?”
“That’s the one.”
“Shut the fuck up. I don’t believe you.”
“I do,” Dot cut in. “His power didn’t affect her. I saw it with my own eyes. I can’t believe I didn’t put two and two together! Such an idiot! It’s so obvious.”
“Uh, no.” Zara crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s not. I’ve been living with this lying bitch for the last few months, and I had no clue she was even a Vital until today. It’s like you’ve been living a double life.”
“I’m so sorry for lying to you.” I looked at her uneasily, feeling guilty. “It was not easy. And I felt like you could see straight through me every time I did. I was so awkward!”
She shrugged it off. “It’s OK. I get why you’re all keeping it on the down low. Especially considering . . .” She glanced over at Dot.
Dot began to cry again, her shoulders quivering, and I wrapped her hand in mine. Zara surprised me by grabbing her other hand.
Before I had a chance to say anything, though, Josh and Ethan walked in and announced that visiting hours were over. A stern-looking nurse was kicking people out, and they wanted to be gone before she set her sights on us.
Dot and Zara stared at them, my revelations heavy in their gazes. The guys shared a look.
Ethan crossed his muscled arms over his chest and frowned. “What?”
Instead of answering him, Zara looked at me. “You’re going to have your hands full, girl. I don’t know if I’m worried about your reputation or just jealous.”
“Eew.” Dot whacked her, but very gently. “You know I’m related to two of them, right?”
“What the hell are they talking about?” Ethan demanded, but instead of answering him, Dot climbed off the bed and gave him a hug. Ethan hugged his cousin gently, his big frame making her appear even smaller in his arms.
Josh made his way over to Zara’s bed and spoke quietly to her. I heard them talking about her parents—they’d been in Canada at the time of the attack but had started heading to Bradford Hills as soon as they heard their daughter was in the hospital.
After a few moments, the boys swapped. Josh gave Dot a comforting hug while Ethan surprised me by propping himself on the edge of Zara’s bed and leaning down to gently embrace her as well.
They’d had their differences in the past, but none of that petty shit mattered anymore. Not when Charlie was missing. Not when Beth was dead.
The stern nurse bustled in not long after and insisted we clear out, also ordering Dot back into her own bed. I gave the girls another tight hug each and, with a promise to come back the next day, left with my guys.
As soon as we were in the car, Josh turned to me. “You told them?”
“Told who what?” Ethan asked from the back seat.
“Whom,” Josh corrected, keeping his eyes on me.
“Man, screw you and your grammatical shit,” Ethan griped but with humor in his voice. “Tell me!”
I bit my bottom lip, worried I was in trouble for spilling our secret. It was done now, though, and I couldn’t find it in me to feel bad. I’d shared something real about myself with my friends. Friends whom I cared enough about to feel their pain over what had happened to them today. Friends who cared enough about me to want to know this about me.
So I just nodded at him and turned away, strapping myself in.
“Eve told Zara and Dot about us. Our Bond,” Josh filled Ethan in as he pulled out of the parking spot.
Ethan whistled from the back seat but didn’t say anything.
“They already knew most of it anyway. Dot’s known for ages, and Zara saw me with you and Ty today. I only filled in the gaps.” I shrugged. “I trust them.”
“It’s OK. We were never going to be able to keep it secret forever.” Josh reached over the center console to hold my hand as he drove.
“Yeah, I w
ant everyone to know you’re mine anyway.” Ethan stuck his head in between our seats to give me a wink and a flash of his dimples. Of course, we all knew we needed to keep our Bond secret from “everyone” for as long as possible, but I still appreciated the sentiment.
“Ours,” Josh corrected him for the second time in five minutes. “And everyone already thinks you’re dating.”
“Bro, it’s not the same.”
As they bickered lightheartedly over the semantics, I settled back into the seat and smiled to myself. I’d just come from seeing two people I could truly call my friends. I was a Vital with four guys in my Bond—four people I’d apparently known from birth.
It had been a bumpy couple of months, but I’d somehow found myself surrounded by people who cared about me, who knew me. I was beginning to learn what it felt like to have a family.
I belonged.
For the first time in my life, I was realizing that feeling as though you belong somewhere has nothing to do with geography. It didn’t matter how many times my mother and I had moved, or that I’d never felt sentimental attachment to a family home. Belonging has nothing to do with that and everything to do with the people who make you feel as though you belong with them.
I had found my people.
Everything was still fucked up. Beth was dead. Charlie was missing. There was scary new tech that could out me as a Vital. There was a terrifying web of manipulation and ulterior motives, players I didn’t have a scrap of knowledge about pulling strings behind stages I didn’t even know existed.
And don’t get me started on the most frustrating, worrisome, annoying asshole problem of all—Alec.
Yes, everything was a mess, but I had found where I belonged, and I refused to not be pleased about it.
Epilogue
The room was sparse but clean, the walls white, the two metal cots bolted to the floor. There was a toilet and a small sink in one corner.
Three times per day, two black-clad men pushed a trolley down the hallway and one of them slid a tray of bland food through a slot in the door.
Variant Lost (The Evelyn Maynard Trilogy Book 1) Page 33
