by Coralee June
I considered my options for a moment while they all held their breath. I felt unqualified to share an opinion, but ultimately, I went with my gut.
“For,” I choked out in a whimper. “But as a strictly defensive measure only,” I quickly added while avoiding Mavericks tense frame. I knew that my vote was disappointing to him, and I could only hope that he wouldn’t push me away.
His hand slipped out of mine. It felt like someone ripping tape off my battered heart. I wanted to run to him and comfort him. I knew his demons were a medley of nightmarish virtues, but I also knew that something would need to happen to defend us against Emperor Lackley. Nevertheless, his departure left me feeling hollow and guilty.
“Well, I guess it’s settled then. I take no joy in causing you pain, brother,” Cyler said to Maverick’s retreating form.
Chapter Seventeen
The next morning, Cyler and Patrick made plans to travel to Ethros at nightfall. A small part of me felt nervous about their trade deal. I couldn’t help but feel a nagging sense of unease about it all, regardless of my firm opinion that Dormas was in desperate need of protection. I packed their meals and lingered in both of their rooms while they prepared, soaking up as much time as possible with them.
Cyler was distracted, probably by Maverick’s frustration. Patrick, however, sensed my uncertainty and abandoned packing to sing more nursery rhymes and cuddle me on his bed.
“We’re going to be fine, Ash. We’ve been developing good rapport with Ethros for months now.”
“Then why can’t I come with you?” I asked in a whiny voice that sounded foreign to me. I spent a lifetime in solitude, when did I become so needy?
“Because, someone needs to stay here to keep Huxley from killing anyone, Maverick from sulking in his office, and Jules from cornering Jacob,” Patrick said with a chuckle that didn’t quite feel authentic enough for the severity of our situation.
“Just be sure to hurry home. I don’t think I can handle Huxley’s sour attitude without you to buffer it for much more than a week,” I said dramatically.
Patrick laughed and moved me so that I was laying on his chest. I felt the rise and fall of each of his breaths and wondered when touching him became such a norm for me. “I promise to come back as soon as I can,” he said while nuzzling into my hair. He breathed in my scent, and I felt goosebumps pucker up everywhere his breath touched.
“You guys are the only family I have,” I replied.
That night, I hugged both Cyler and Patrick for far longer than socially acceptable. Everyone but Maverick came to see them off, and I fully planned on chastising him for it later, once he was no longer locked in his office avoiding me, of course.
The train mocked me within the confines of the station, and that familiar feeling of dread made my knees shake. Despite our last successful mission in it, I still felt it was bad luck and severely hated that I wouldn’t be traveling with them. Now it wasn’t just Cyler I had to worry about, it was Patrick, too.
Cyler boldly kissed my cheek so close to my lips that I felt a sliver of a promise between us, as well as a craving for more. Patrick held me tightly against him and kissed the sensitive skin on my neck just below my earlobe, causing quivers to erupt within me. He then sent me a smoldering look that reminded me of our afternoon together. I knew that I would be daydreaming for the days to come about how our bodies were snug and intertwined while we snuggled.
I peered at Patrick and Huxley’s goodbye with interest. I wanted to dig deeper into their relationship and see how they handled this dangerous mission. But in a highly anticlimactic move, they simply bumped fists and did an awkward one-handed hug. This was followed by a “see you later” from Patrick. Ugh, men.
During my walk back to the Black Manor, I considered storming up to the Clinic and demanding that Maverick work things out with me, but Jacob kept a firm and wordless grip on my hand, preventing me from making any rash decisions.
“Let’s not head home just yet. I wanted to show you something,” Jacob said while pulling me towards the trees. My dismal mood immediately brightened at the prospect of spending alone time with Jacob.
“You showing her the spot?” Kemper asked with a grin. The moonlight danced along his blond hair and cast dark shadows along the lines of his face.
“Yeah, you want to come?” Jacob asked unconvincingly.
“Absolutely! It’s about time she got a proper initiation. Hux, come on. You’ve got to come with us,” Kemper said, clamping his hand upon Huxley’s stiff shoulder.
I put my hand behind my neck and looked at their three faces. Jacob looked resigned but still happy, Kemper had pure excitement coursing through his features, and Huxley was timid, a word I never thought I’d use to describe him. This ‘spot’ was important to them.
“Come on, Huxley, you can keep an eye on us,” I joked.
He rolled his eyes in such a delicious way that my breath hitched. “Fine. But we can’t be out too late, I’ve got plans with Mia.”
With that revelation, my stomach sank—no—plummeted. Why did it affect me so that he was spending time with Mia?
“You make it sound so much more scandalous than it actually is,” Jacob said to Huxley while giving my hand a gentle squeeze, as if he could sense that I was disheartened. “You’ve got guard duty at the same time as her,” Jacob explained.
“On the completely opposite side of the Providence,” Kemper added. I hated that their explanations made me feel immensely better.
We made our way to the secretive ‘spot’. I spent the majority of our walk trying to pry information about it out of them, but all three only provided vague answers and boyish chuckles. As we walked further away from the town, the wildness of the woods made excitement and anticipation course through me. Although I felt safe near Jacob, Kemper, and Huxley, the eeriness of the dark still made me eager to get to our destination.
After tripping over my third stray vine, Jacob gave me a mischievous look before hauling me over his shoulder. I yelped in surprise and felt his hot hands on my thighs, causing my mauve skirt to ride up. “We’re about five minutes away, can’t have you tripping and scraping that perfect skin of yours before we get there,” he said with a laugh.
It was a torturous five minutes. Every step he made, pushed his hand up further, and I loved the feel of it. It made me anxious and tingly all over, and I counted the seconds until he put me back down.
“We’re here,” he said in a breathless voice while sliding me down his long body and onto the floor of the woods. I placed both my hands against his chest and peered up at him. The moonlight barely illuminated his face, but I saw the flash of his white teeth as he bit his lip.
“Come on, you two,” Huxley voice scolded from the dark. I followed the direction of his voice with outstretched hands until I was in a clearing. Leaves crunched under my boots, and the moonlight illuminated the space completely, allowing me to see Kemper, Jacob, and Huxley clearly, as well as our surroundings.
In the clearing, I noticed that when I looked up, I could see the bright bulbs twinkling against the night sky. Without the light pollution, the stars were easily seen and illuminated the blue-black sky in scattered brilliance.
“Wow,” I whispered in awe. It was absolutely beautiful.
Jacob migrated over to a trunk that sat at the base of a tree then unfolded a blanket from it and placed it on the ground. He then grabbed my hand and guided me onto the blanket.
“The green is the toxic carbon dioxide released from the trees in the Deadlands. It’s very dangerous, but from down here it looks beautiful,” Kemper explained while pointing up at the sky. I watched as the green haze danced in the dark.
“When we were boys, before we all lived together, we’d sneak away from home and meet here,” Kemper explained while I got comfortable. Once I was situated, Jacob laid down on my right, and Kemper on my left. Huxley sat cross-legged at my feet, but I felt the warm touch of his hand rest against my ankle. The feather-light brush of hi
s skin against mine was so soft, I wouldn’t have noticed him if it weren’t for the intense electricity that bounced between us.
“Our parents all knew where we were. We weren’t nearly as good at sneaking around as we are now,” Jacob said with a chuckle.
“How’d you find it?” I asked. I wondered if the grove was as beautiful during the day as it was at night.
“Wanna tell that story, Hux?” Kemper asked. He looped his pinkie through mine and squeezed. I loved the little touches he gave me and squeezed him back.
“Patrick and I didn’t always get along, especially when we were really young. We were always fighting over something stupid, and our mother was always tanning our asses, with our Father’s belt, over it. One night, we got into a big fight. I don’t even know what it was about, but I remember Patrick crying and running away,” Huxley explained, scooting closer to me.
“Normally, when he runs off, he’d show back up in a couple of hours, and we’d be back to annoying the hell out of each other.” Huxley’s coarse fingers began lightly tracing designs upon my leg, causing me to shiver despite the warm weather. “But this time, he didn’t show back up.” Jacob then gripped my hand and the feeling of touching all three of them, sent my heart into overdrive.
“I didn’t want our parents to know we were fighting, so I got the others, and we went looking for him,” Huxley said with a sigh.
“Cyler was learning how to track, so after hours of worrying and following his lead, we ended up finding him here,” Kemper added. I tried to imagine what each of them looked like as young boys and smiled. It made sense that Cyler would take charge. Even then, he was their leader.
“We weren’t expecting to find Patrick in the middle of a standoff with a big motherfucking bear!” Jacob said loudly, causing me to jump. Where there bears out here? Oh no, no, no! I started to sit up, determined to get out of that dark and terrifying grove as quickly as possible.
“Oh, calm down. There hasn’t been a bear spotted in these woods for years, not since that night. They mostly stick to the Deadlands,” Huxley assured me in what I think he intended to be a calm tone.
“Cyler, being the idiot that he is, started to run at the bear while screaming and clapping his hands,” Huxley said. The image made me snort loudly, causing the guys to chuckle, too.
“And because we all blindly followed everything Cyler did, we all started charging the bear while screaming, too,” Kemper added.
“The bear ran off, probably confused as hell as to what just happened, but we felt like gods,” Jacob said with a smile.
“We’re better together, that’s for sure,” Kemper said, with a seriousness to his tone that reverberated around us. I wanted to dissect his statement and apply it to my current situation with them all but disallowed my mind to tread those waters.
“Aside from us, you’re the only one that we’ve ever brought here,” Huxley whispered, as though he was scared at the implications of my presence here. His fingers stopped lazily tracing along my ankle, and I missed the comfort he provided, even though it still confused me. His whiplash of affections reminded me of a time that I allowed myself to be used, and I was determined to figure out what side of the line between hate and like I was on with him.
“Well, I won’t tell anyone. It can be our little secret,” I began. “But I guess this means, you’re gonna have to admit that you don’t hate me anymore, Hux,” I said in what I hoped came across as a joke.
Jacob and Kemper stilled beside me, and I wondered if what I said was wrong. If I overstepped a boundary or triggered an insecurity within Huxley somehow.
“We both know I haven’t hated you for a while now, Ash.” That was all Huxley said. I felt Jacob and Kemper relax suddenly. It seemed that they, too, felt invested in Huxley’s feelings towards me. His opinion mattered, and they wanted this to work. Whatever this was.
Chapter Eighteen
The next two days I kept busy working at the General Store and cleaning Black Manor. Any idle moment was spent consumed with worry for Cyler and Patrick or obsessing over my more-than-friendly relationship with the guys.
On the third day, I woke up in Huxley’s bed. He had guard shift last night, and it was the first time I felt comfortable enough in my friendship with him to invade his personal space. His brown bedding smelled like evergreen and spice, and I caught myself breathing in the scent multiple times throughout the night.
I enjoyed a lazy morning. The Bakery was closed during the weekend, so I spent my time keeping busy and not worrying about Cyler and Patrick by making donuts and carrot cake; two items I hoped to add to the Bakery’s menu very soon.
After that, I went to my old room to paint. It was still recovering from Jules’ tantrum. Even though most of my supplies were ruined by her, I still managed to find a canvas and some paint that wasn’t completely destroyed. After clearing a spot and texting Cyler a reminder that we really needed to get the room cleaned so I could stop bed hopping, I started to paint the grove from last night.
The dark sky etched in my mind’s eye and the importance of that special place burned into my memory. I wanted to bring a bit of the grove back to the Black Manor. I let the calm and familiarity of the place guide my brushstrokes. I painted the grass floor and the moonlight illuminating the space.
While painting, I heard a commotion erupt in the kitchen. I abandoned my project to investigate, praying that Jules wasn’t back and causing havoc. In the kitchen, I saw Jacob pacing the floor, while Tallis sat at the head of our table with a pensive expression. Maverick had his arms crossed over his chest and was shaking his head.
“How the fuck did this even happen?!” Hux growled out.
“I’m not sure, their Tablets are offline, and I lost their GPS signal sometime late last night. I assumed they had poor signal, but now, I think something’s happened,” Maverick said with a choke.
“Wh-what’s going on?” I stuttered.
“Cyler and Patrick are . . . missing,” Kemper said in a soft tone while thrusting his fists into his slacks and rocking on his toes. He looked nervous and scared. I reflexively grabbed my chest as pain rocked through me. I collapsed under the worry and found the nearest seat to break down in. Patrick and Cyler were in danger.
“They went missing early this morning. I was periodically checking their signal, and when I noticed that they went completely off the grid, I ran a few more scans, but . . . they’re gone,” Maverick said with slumped shoulders. I looked around the room in disbelief.
“How could they just disappear? This isn’t possible,” I asked, praying that this was all just one big joke.
“People don’t disappear, Agrio.” Tallis said in a morbid tone while picking at a scab on his stark white knuckle.
I realized with certainty that he was right. Most likely, Cyler and Patrick were abducted. I couldn’t help but assume the worst. They were either hurt, or dead.
“We have to do something,” I said while standing up on shaky legs. Maverick looked at me with profound sadness, and my heart broke.
“I’ll go get Mia,” Jacob said while lacing his shoes. “We need to come up with a plan.”
“Maverick, you work on finding out where they are. Check every damn radio wave out there if you have to. Tallis, go with Jacob. Kemper, stay here. We need to prepare to leave by nightfall.”
“Where are we going?” I asked with newfound determination.
“You aren’t going anywhere. We are paying Emperor Lackley a little visit,” Huxley said, and everyone stared at him for a moment, seemingly in shock by his newfound authority. “Come on. Let’s move,” he ordered. Everyone scattered into different directions, and before I could orient myself, the kitchen was empty.
“Come on,” Huxley ordered, while grabbing my hand and pulling me upstairs to his room.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
Huxley huffed while kicking open his door and moving me towards the wingback chair in the corner of his room. He found a black leather bag t
hen started calmly loading it with various supplies.
Once he was satisfied that he had everything he needed, he sat on his bed. The plush comforter was a stark difference to his rigid posture and grim demeanor. I stood and began pacing the floor. With each step and tick of the clock I wondered if Cyler and Patrick were still alive. If they were being tortured. If Josiah was behind this.
“Will you stop doing that? I’m trying to think.” Huxley growled while massaging his temples.
I ignored him.
“Shouldn’t Jacob be back by now? I should check on him. Maybe he got stopped somewhere,” I thought out loud while continuing to pace.
I felt an anxious energy that propelled me to keep moving. Keep talking. Anything to keep myself from thinking. Since the moment I heard of their disappearance, my mind had become a continuous loop of worry.
“Yes, yes. I—I think I’ll go check on Jacob. He could have gotten lost. Or maybe he got hurt on his way to the Scavenger camp. That’s it. I can’t sit here. I’ll go find him. That’s what I’ll—”
“Ash! Sit your pretty ass down and stop talking. I’m trying to come up with a plan that doesn’t involve us dying, and your stupid rambling is going to drive me crazy.” I watched as Huxley gripped his knees and stared at me with a look of utter frustration. His hair was wild and matched the lightning that danced across his green, piercing, eyes.
“Well, I’m just so sorry that I can’t be as emotionless as you!” I screamed, needing to release some of my worry, fears, and frustration onto someone.
Huxley stood and stalked his way over to me, and I flinched at his aggressive movements. Once in front of me, his familiar scent filled me. My nose was just inches from his defined chest, and if I wasn’t so mad at him right now, I might have sought the comfort of his arms. I needed to be held. To be reassured. But I surely didn’t need Huxley. I needed Cyler and Patrick to be home, safe and sound.
“I love them, Huxley. I can’t lose them,” I sobbed while my resolved crumbled, and all my fears began suffocating me. I felt my anxiety and inner turmoil begin to snake itself around my throat like icy vines.
