Everything’s out in the open, well almost, and everyone’s behaving relatively well. It’s time to move forward. I’m terrified of what that means, but it feels so good to finally have a purpose and a direction.
“Okay,” I say, “so we have a pretty rough outline of what we’re going to do, but it will take a lot of work to turn all this into something we can actually use. So here are everyone’s assignments. Lance, Milo, and Mr. Walters, you’re going to work with Braden on finding an escape route out of the compound. Braden, keep working on finding out who the Guardians are going to take next. Let me know the second you figure anything out. Milo, me and you are going to focus on getting a handle on our Spiritualism and Concealment so you can help me with the Ciphers. I want you to be able to perform an Inquest as soon as possible.
“Casey, you’ll need to go with us to the spirit world, too. I want you to be able to help me train the Ciphers before we release them. Mr. Walters, I also want you to specifically look into whether it’s possible to perform an Inquest on more than one person at once. Celia and Mrs. Hanover, you two are going to work on figuring out what on earth we’re going to do with all the Ciphers after we rescue them. Celia you’re also in charge of dealing with the Cipher families for the time being. Don’t post anything sensitive, but see if any of them really can help with housing and transport as quietly and offline as possible.”
“Wait,” Celia says, “why do we need to find a place to keep the Ciphers? Can’t they just go home once you get them out of the spirit world?”
I shake my head. “No, not right away at least. They’ll be targets for the Guardians if they all go home. We need to keep them hidden until they’re all fully trained and ready to defend themselves if the Guardians do come after them.”
“But their families are going to want to see them. They already want to see them. They ask every day when we’re going to get them out,” Celia argues.
“I know, but unless they want their newly-rescued family member killed before they get to see them again, the Ciphers need to stay under our protection.” I take a deep breath, knowing Celia’s reaction to this news is very mild compared to what the Cipher families are going to throw at me. “Tell them we’ll make sure they can see the Ciphers, contact them in some way. We’ll work out something, but we can’t have Ciphers fanning out all over the globe completely unprotected. I know it’s hard, but this is how it has to be right now.”
Thankfully, everyone else agrees with me. Mrs. Hanover promises to help explain everything to the Ciphers and work out a way they can visit or communicate. I hand the project over to her, feeling a little guilty to be passing it off. I never did like being in charge of much of anything. My mom always complained that my extracurricular activities were so lacking. Oh well, it’s not like I’m going to be trying to impress anyone on college applications at this point.
I glance around the room once the conversation about the Cipher families dies down. Nobody else objects to their assignments, so I let my exhaustion overtake me. “Well, unless somebody objects, why don’t we all take a break for the rest of the night?”
“I second that. I really need some sleep tonight,” Lance says. Milo’s sour mood returns full force. Before Milo can say anything, Lance stands up, thanks Mrs. Hanover for letting us commandeer her den yet again, and takes his leave. Mr. Walters and Casey follow soon after. Milo’s mom ushers Celia up to bed and excuses herself to the kitchen for some tea. Despite most of the group leaving, the room still feels very crowded with Milo and Braden sitting across from each other. Saying I feel awkward sitting between the young man I love, and Braden, someone I can’t explain how I feel about, is a gross understatement.
When Braden finally stands, I hold my breath. Will he slip up, now, as he’s forced to say goodbye? Leaving me in the hands of someone else doesn’t seem to be his strongest suit. He barely even glances at me. He turns instead to Milo.
“I know you don’t like me,” Braden says, “and I doubt you ever will, but I hope you know that I am committed to helping Libby free the Ciphers.”
Milo doesn’t look at all convinced. “Why are you helping us? A couple weeks ago you had no problem trying to capture me and haul me off to your compound.”
I have to stifle a groan. Please think before you speak, Braden.
“It was Libby,” he says.
My eyes close as I contemplate running away. Fast.
“What do you mean by that?” Milo asks.
Braden has to fight to keep the smile off his face. “The second I met Libby, I knew she could never purposely harm anyone unless she was defending her own life or someone else’s. Destroyer, or not, she’s going to try and make the world better, not worse. And after the last few weeks spent learning more about why Libby’s doing all this, I can’t keep hunting Ciphers and locking them away.”
Milo considers this and eventually nods. “Fine, but the first hint of you betraying us and I will make sure you never get the chance to follow through.”
Despite his doubts last night, Braden nods. “Of course.”
“But just to make sure, you need to remedy one thing for me,” Milo says. “Libby mentioned that you promised not to tell your captain about all this, but that’s not enough. I want your promise right now that you won’t speak a word of this to anyone outside our group without the group’s permission.”
For the first time tonight, Braden bristles. His fingers snap to his emblem, the words cutting the air with their razor edge. The promise is made exactly as Milo demanded. Milo’s steel expression never falters, and I have to admit a chunk of worry is lifted from my mind at Braden’s words as well. Then, apparently done with Milo, Braden turns back to me.
“I need to speak to you outside.”
Chapter 1
7
Intertwined
It’s a miracle in itself that Milo doesn’t forcibly stop me from going outside with Braden. He doesn’t give in easily. Braden waits outside as Milo reminds me that Braden still isn’t worthy of trust. I don’t fully agree, but arguing with him is difficult because I know this night has been hard enough for him already. I don’t know what Braden wants, but I convince Milo to let me go by promising to relay whatever Braden tells me and remind him that he can watch us from the window. He doesn’t see why Braden won’t talk to me inside. In the end, I think it’s his desire to get Braden away from him that makes him give in.
If he had any clue about Braden’s feelings for me, his reaction would have been drastically different. This whole night would have been a catastrophe. That is one secret I will keep from Milo until I die, if at all possible. I give him a quick but heartfelt kiss that he doesn’t fully return, and then go after Braden.
Cold blasts me as soon as I step outside. I wrap my arms around myself and groan when I see Braden waiting several feet away from the relative shelter of the front porch. Still sensitive to the cold, I start shivering. The calm Braden has held all night almost shatters. He stops himself from pulling me to his chest, but only barely. The memory of his soul-deep warmth is so tempting. Suddenly, I agree with Milo about what a stupid idea coming out here was.
In an attempt to distract us both, I ask, “How’s your face?”
“Fine. She didn’t hit me that hard.” He shakes his head. The clenched jaw I saw inside returns. Distraction failed.
“That,” Braden says, jamming his finger back at the house, at Milo, “had better not happen again.”
“What? Meeting with everyone to plan?”
“No, your boyfriend forcing me to make Guardian promises about everything. He doesn’t trust me at all.”
I stare at Braden, dumbfounded. “No kidding. What did you expect him to do, fall all over you for suddenly wanting to redeem yourself? You tried to arrest him. Your men almost killed him!”
“No,” Braden says, “but I expected him to give me the benefit of the doubt after giving you the schematics and helping you break your block. I’m risking my life to help you!”
His jaw tightens as his fingers flash across his chest, an unconscious desire to feel the scars still healing there. “Doesn’t he at least trust you, Libby?”
“I …” His question pokes at me. “To be honest, after tonight, I don’t know how much Milo trusts me. He controlled himself around you, but he was really, really angry at me the whole time. He still is.”
“Even so, he trusted you enough to even let me in the door.”
“I don’t think that had anything to do with trusting me. It had more to do with getting a better chance at killing Guardians.”
That gives Braden a moment’s pause. “At least some of it had to do with him trusting you. Hatred like Milo’s runs too deep. You vouched for me, but he still demanded I promise not to reveal any of this to anyone without permission. Does he even realize how much he’s limited me? How am I supposed to find out anything about the disappearing Ciphers?”
“Were you really planning on telling anyone what you’re looking for? I should have made you make the same promise to me last night! I was stupid not to. Milo was only following up on my mistake. No you can’t tell anyone else about any of this! Who were you really planning on going to for help, anyway? Your friends? Do you actually expect them to help you?” I ask. He seemed so sure inside, but does he really know what he’s in for? “I’m sorry, but if you really want to join me you’re going to have to accept the fact that everyone else in your life is going to turn against you. The minute you throw in with me is the minute you lose everyone in your life but me.”
“You’re the only one I want, anyway,” he says quietly.
My sigh brings a puff of mist that seems to linger in the cold. “Braden, I’m serious about this. If you really want to join me in rescuing the Ciphers, it can’t be for the wrong reasons. You’ll be giving up everything. You have to believe in what you’re doing or you’ll regret it. You’ll hate me for taking everything away from you.”
Despite knowing Milo is hovering at the window in full view of us, Braden steps closer to me. I want to step back, but Milo might see it as a sign of distress and feel the need to rescue me. I hold my ground and my breath.
“Libby, I’ve already given up almost every friend or contact I had in the Guardians. I’m an outcast because of what happened at the theater. Even with Milo’s new diktats, I never should have let you leave with him. I had orders to bring him in and I disobeyed them,” he says.
I’m standing between him and Milo, so there’s no way Milo can see him take my hand and press it between both of his. I want to stop him from touching me but I can’t. I feel lightheaded and am forced to take another breath. It only comes in shivering pulses that draw Braden’s warmth and scent even deeper into my body. The tipsy feeling is getting worse.
“I’ve already given up everything for you, Libby.”
“What … what about your family?” I ask, desperate to buffer his breathtaking honesty and presence with some kind of distraction.
“I don’t have any family.”
“None? What about your grandfather?”
He shakes his head. “My grandpa had multiple sclerosis. He was too frail to take care of me. He passed a few years after his heart attack. The only time we could really be together was in the spirit world.”
“What about your parents? You have to have somebody,” I say. There must be at least one person in his life he isn’t willing to give up.
“My mother died of cancer six months after I was born. My dad raised me and my older brother on his own until the three of us were hit by a drunk driver. I was only ten years old, but my Strength was already pretty strong. It was the only thing that saved me. My dad and brother weren’t so lucky.”
My heart breaks for his loss, and my hope for escape from him shatters. “Where did you go?” I ask.
“Foster care. It wasn’t bad. I was lucky, but I never really bonded with any of them. You’re the first person I’ve met that I’ve felt any kind of connection with in twelve years, Libby.”
“It’s not enough,” I argue. I’m finally in control again enough to gain some distance, slipping my hand out of his as I do.
Braden frowns but doesn’t try to move closer. “As impossible as it is for me to turn away from you at this point, I finally understand why you’re doing this, why you’re freeing the Ciphers. I’ve spent the last four years putting them there, but I thought I was protecting them. I knew the other option was letting the Guardians kill them outright. When you first told me what you were planning, I thought you were only going to hurt them even more. I’ve spent all day debating whether your plan is worth the risk. Every time I try to tell myself it isn’t, I feel the hope I felt in the Ciphers last night. And the anger. They don’t belong there. The Guardians shouldn’t be allowed to steal lives the way we’ve been doing. It has to end.”
“It will.”
One of his bare hands briefly brushes against mine as he brings it up in front of him. Blessed warmth spreads through my body at even that small touch. “Libby, what I’m really telling you is that I’m ready to give you my Oath, and for the right reason.” He pauses and smiles. “Although, I thought my first reason was already pretty good.”
My insides scramble into a sickening knot. His fingers move to push back his sleeve. Panic snaps my hand to his wrist. My Strength outweighs his in raw power, if not finesse, and his fingers stop moving. He looks at me questioningly and tries to pull my hand back. Out of the corner of my eye I see Milo move away from the window. I drop Braden’s hand and take a step back, praying Milo will take it as a hint that I’m in no danger and will stay in the house. I never should have agreed to come out here.
“No, Braden, please don’t do this,” I beg in a panic.
The hurt in his eyes tears at my soul. “Why not? You said when …”
“I know what I said. Just, please don’t.”
“I don’t understand. I want to join your team. Don’t you want me?” he asks.
“No,” I say quickly, terrified Milo will come out and overhear even a second of this conversation, “I mean, yes, I want you on the team. I want you helping us, but … I don’t want you in any other way, not like you want.”
My honesty cuts him deeply, but it doesn’t make him back down. “I’m not asking for that, Libby, not yet. I want you, yes, but what I’m asking right now is just for you to accept me as your Guardian. You said you’d never be able to trust me fully until I gave you my Oath. It will be more of what happened tonight, forcing me to make promises about every little thing, wondering if you’ve covered all the loopholes.”
My moment of doubt earlier tonight drills guilt into me. Milo’s shadow settles in the entryway window.
“Libby, let me give you my Oath. Let me give you my protection even if you won’t let me give you anything else,” Braden says.
“You can’t have one without the other, Braden, not between us.”
I watch his reaction carefully. I watch Milo’s shadow as well. I didn’t want to explain this to Braden yet, but I don’t feel as if I have any other choice. I can’t physically stop him from giving me his Oath. Confusion knits his brows together for a moment before understanding dawns. The hand that was trying to get to his Guardian emblem a few minutes ago drops back down to his side. He shifts his stance to block Milo’s view, whether on purpose or not, and lets the back of his hand rest against mine.
Braden’s eyes close as he meditates on the electric hum of our bare flesh coming into contact. “I didn’t even consider what our being being Spiritual Companions would have on the Oath.”
“You already know about that?” I ask weakly.
“Looked it up as soon as I got home last night.”
I’ve been dreading him finding out about this, but suddenly I realize there might be an upside to his knowing. So long as he didn’t have too much time to read up on the subject. I’ll hope for that. I’ve got to try something.
Wrapping my arms around my shivering body, I give it my best shot. “If you know what a Spiritual Companion is, then you have to know that how you feel about me isn’t real. Maybe you like me, but it’s just this weird connection that’s tricking you into thinking it’s anything more than that.”
His laughter ripples through the cold night air. “Nice try,” he says. “I read everything I could get my hands on about Spiritual Companions, and just because I don’t have Perception doesn’t mean I don’t know anything about it. You can’t fabricate emotions out of nothing, Libby. You know that.”
He left me at four in the morning! What kind of crazy person spends his predawn hours looking up stuff on the internet instead of sleeping? Is it really too much to ask for one small break? I have to convince him. “Even so, Braden, it’s not …”
“It’s not what? Real? My feelings aren’t as deep as I think they are?” he asks.
“No. They aren’t.” My firm words have the wrong effect on him. His body tightens in coiled frustration.
“You’re going to need me, Libby!”
“Would you keep your voice down?” I hiss. My eyes snap over to Milo who has yet to reach for the door, but given how long I’ve been out here I’m sure he’s on the verge of stepping out to make sure I come back in alive and well. Braden’s eyes flick over to Milo as well. I expect concern, a sudden realization that this isn’t the best time. All he does is look back at me more determined than ever.
“At some point you are going to need my power to survive all of this. You know that’s true! You’re putting everything at risk because you won’t just let me give you my Oath,” he accuses. His hands clench into fists as his frustration mounts, no doubt in an effort to keep them from grabbing me and shaking me until I agree with him. The ache in his voice begs me to give in. “Would it really be that bad, anyway? You know you feel something for me. Is the idea of being with me that repulsive to you? Don’t you understand how happy I can make you?”
Secret of Betrayal: Book Two of The Destroyer Trilogy Page 17
