Thicker Than Blood (Thicker Than Blood #1)(85)
Biting down on my bottom lip, I resisted the urge to go to him. I wanted to comfort him, to show him the same sort of support he’d shown me, but I could tell by his body language and his tone of voice that this was a private moment, that I wasn’t welcome within it. So, I remained where I was and just listened.
“My dad…he went sorta nuts after that. Everything combined, the shit on the news, the looting, the whole f*cking town was panicked, and my dad…without my mom…he just lost it. He started blaming me for crap that wasn’t my fault, always yelling at me. He got sick, you know, from not sleeping, not eating, and from being constantly worried about her.
“It was about a week after she’d gone missing when the infection showed up. Everyone was packing up and leaving, and I was trying to get him to do the same. But he wouldn’t leave, he kept saying he had to wait there for her, to be there when she came back. I tried to force him, for his own f*cking good, but he was a big guy, even bigger than me. We ended up fighting…”
He let out a humorless laugh. “Last time I saw my dad was when I punched him in the face, called him a fool, told him he was stupid for waiting, that mom was already dead. Then I left.”
My hand flew to my chest, over my rapidly beating heart, and I swallowed hard. He sounded so young right now, like the nineteen-year-old boy he’d been when everything changed. Gone was the quiet, gruff-spoken man. This was a brokenhearted teenager.
“I ran out of gas eventually. Got lucky, though, ended up getting picked up by a military caravan. They were just handing out guns to anyone, hoping that the more people they armed, the better chance we had.”
He turned, facing me with tears in his eyes. “I never went back, Lei. I never saw him again. But I have to f*cking believe that he knew I didn’t mean what I said, that he knew I loved him.”
A choking noise bubbled up in my throat as more tears poured down my cheeks. Unable to refrain from touching him for one more second, I ran forward, slamming my body into his and wrapping my arms around his waist.
“He knew it,” I whispered through my tears. “He knew you loved him, I promise you.”
Looking down at me, Alex cupped my cheek and tilted my face. Then he bowed his head to mine and kissed me.
? ? ?
Evelyn
“It doesn’t matter how much you pace, time won’t go any quicker,” Dori said, her voice soft and kind. “And stop worrying, everyone will be fine.”
Her words should have been soothing, but considering that she’d just tried to convince me to work as a whore by telling me I was already one, her words were anything but. Instead they were annoying and obnoxious, like nails raking shrilly across a blackboard.
Shooting a glance in her direction, I glared at her, but refrained from unleashing the bucket load of profanities that were on the tip of my tongue.
We needed to leave here; I could see that now. This place, these people, the way they lived, it was vile and corrupt, just as bad as Fredericksville had been, if not worse. The only thing that was different was that this place wore their corruption like a badge of honor, whereas Fredericksville hid theirs behind closed doors.
Eventually this place would ruin us. It would change us, harden us to the point where we’d only be concerned with ourselves. It would pry Alex and Leisel apart, Leisel and me apart, all by forcing us to become something we weren’t. I refused to let that happen; I might have been broken but I was still worth something. At the very least, I was worth more than a grilled rat.
A creak sounded from behind me and I turned, watching as Dori’s bedroom door began to open. My stomach sank as soon as I saw his profile, large and overbearing, the width of him taking up every inch of the doorway.
I stepped back, deeper into the shadows, willing the ground to open up and swallow me whole. He was the very last person I wanted to see, let alone be locked in a dark room with, especially since changing my mind about our little arrangement. Dori’s perception of me only convinced me that I wouldn’t be trading anything with this man, especially not my body.
“Out.” His voice was rough and gravelly, deep and oppressive, brooking no argument.
Dori responded instantly, wheeling herself across the room without question. As the door closed behind her with an audible click, my stomachache only worsened. This wasn’t what I’d wanted. This was never what I’d wanted.
“The rotters?” I asked, my words breathless and quivering.
“Almost here,” he answered, his black eyes focused on mine.
I could hardly see him, but I could sense the air shift around me as he stepped forward, his large body passing by, his arm brushing against mine and causing me to shiver. The curtains were suddenly yanked open and light flooded the room. It was a welcome feeling, the warm sun on my chilled skin.
He approached me, and when his strong hands fell on my shoulders, I willed myself to remain where I was, to not run screaming out into the hallway and alert the infected to our whereabouts.
Bending down, he pressed a hard kiss on the side of my neck, his coarse beard grating roughly against my skin.
“E,” I whispered, shivering again as fear drenched me. “I…I’ve changed my mind. I don’t want to trade with you anymore.”
My fear gave way, breaching the hardened walls I had built while talking with Dori. She was right; E was dangerous, and suddenly my fight seemed futile.