Chapter Fifty
Allie
“Girls, come get some warm drinks after your game so you don’t freeze your little toes off out here!” Shelly calls from inside the Hideout.
“Yes, Ma’am!” Lainey, Logan, Harper, and I all say the same time.
I play my next card and watch as Lainey smirks as she lays down a draw four for Logan.
“Oh, you little brat. You’re lucky you’re cute!” Logan says as she picks up her cards.
Harper giggles and Logan’s head snaps to her. “Don’t be laughing. I’ve got something coming for you!”
“What does H have coming to her? I want to be a witness to you knocking her down a peg or two,” Noah exclaims as he walks up from his Jeep, holding a case of water.
We all ignore him and go back to our game just as Conrad comes outside. “About time you got here, your mom needs help in the kitchen.”
Noah scoffs, “The girls have been here for hours. Why can’t they help? I helped Mom all day yesterday!”
“The girls are relaxing. They have to deal with you and your brother’s crazy asses all day. They deserve a moment of peace.”
All us girls laugh as Noah tucks his head and walks inside.
I will admit, when Landon and Logan practically begged me to come to Thanksgiving, I had no idea it was going to be like this. Granted, this isn’t the first time I am meeting any of these people, but a family holiday is always intimidating. Especially in a group of very strong-minded individuals who are all extremely protective and love each other so dearly. Add in the fact that everyone here knows what Landon and I went through the past year.
We finish our game with Lainey winning and all sit back to take in the flurries of snow falling while fire crackles in the pit next to us.
“This place really is amazing,” Logan says.
Harper laughs, “Yeah, and to think just a few hundred yards underground is a torture chamber.”
We all look at her. “H! What the hell?!” Logan exclaims.
“What!? It’s true! Everyone here knows about it!”
“I didn’t.” Lainey and I say at the same time.
Harper’s face falls and Logan glares at her for a moment before turning her attention to Lainey and I. “Sorry guys. We all know what the boys do and I’m surprised Noah and Landon haven’t told you—”
A door opens behind us. “Landon hasn’t said what?”
Turning around, I see all the Hayes brothers and Leo walking outside, hands full of blankets and drinks.
Landon’s eyes lock with mine as he closes the distance between us and covers me in the blanket before handing me a mug full of steaming coffee.
I expect him to pull up a chair, but instead he sits down in front of me, resting his back against my legs.
Leaning forward, I tap the top of his head, and he tilts back.
“Thank you,” I whisper, and place a gentle kiss on his forehead.
He mouths welcome, and we turn our attention back to the rest of the group.
Logan is now sitting in Grayson’s lap, which is a shocker to no one. Being back in Logan’s life, which now involves Grayson, I quickly learned that if that man is near, he must be touching her. She mentioned it started as a coping mechanism for him, but has turned into a habit. That man is a giant teddy bear and I love seeing how simple their love is.
Now on the complete opposite spectrum are Wes and Harper. I know for certain they are not together, but the way that man watches her is bone chilling. Wes is terrifying and doesn’t say much, but when he does, it is direct and usually void of any emotion. But for some reason, anytime Harper is near, he isn’t far behind. Like now, he isn’t sitting in the same seat as her, but he did pull up a chair close enough to have her locked in a heated, whispered conversation.
Logan and I must be noticing the same thing because we lock eyes, our brows both furrowed in confusion.
“Are they?” I mouth.
Logan shrugs and looks back to Grayson, who is looking on, just as confused.
We don’t have much time to think about it before Noah speaks up. “Anyone want to tell me why Lainey is saying I am keeping secrets from her?”
We all look to him and see Lainey, Leo, and Noah all cuddled up under a giant blanket, sipping from their mugs. Lainey is about to speak when Landon interrupts her. “Yeah, I agree with Lo. I want to know why I am possibly going to get in trouble because of something I didn’t tell my girlfriend.”
Butterflies fill my stomach at Landon’s proclamation and I can’t help the big smile that spreads across my face.
Logan sighs, “H mentioned the Playhouse and Lainey and Al don’t know the story of Wes’s layer of doom.”
Landon nods and turns to look back at me. “You know how the Hideout is the place we all come to have a common ground while also being a place for us to store supplies for missions?”
I nod.
Adjusting his beanie, he continues, “Well, it is also a place where we hold meetings for Reslience. You know how each team has roles? The ones that hold the same as Wes and Noah need a place to carry out the extermination task. So the Playhouse is the place where that is executed. We keep it locked up and only members of this division of Relisilence have access. Plus Logan.”
Wow. I knew it was a little twisted sometimes, but I guess I never thought of the logistical side to the execution piece of the job.
I should be terrified, but I’m not. Landon has never held back on giving me information or answering any questions when it comes to Reslience. I can’t help but to let my mind wander to what it must look down there.
Luckily for me, Leo speaks up. “So, is it like a dirty basement or padded room? I just want to get a good image of what to picture the next time Noah comes to me because he accidentally let a knife slip while he was going all ninja on some dumbass.”
We all laugh, and Landon taps my leg, momentarily taking my attention away from the group. His brows furrow, and I see the concern on his face. I know he is trying to ask if we are okay, so I lean forward and he meets me in the middle for a soft kiss. When he pulls back, he gives me a small smile before turning back around and resting against my legs.
To my surprise, Wes is the one to speak up. “It is a sterile environment that houses tools to deliver slow or fast punishment. A large metal door keeps the prisoners in and cameras line the entire room so we can watch them suffer. Depending on the person, we might leave them hanging from chains for days and it would be rather boring sitting down there for that long, so connect the cameras to our phones or any TV in the house. I just installed a speaker last week to add a new element.”
We all stare at Wes in disbelief.
This man is…different.
An odd silence settles between all of us until Harper shakes her head. “Nice delivery. Now everyone knows you really are a sociopath with a good conscience.”
Wes’s head snaps to her and he gives her a glare that sends shivers down my spine. Anyone else would run scared or look away, but Harper just rolls her eyes and takes a sip from her wineglass.
Small talk fills the air, Noah throws in silly little comments that have us all laughing our asses off until Shelly calls everyone in to eat Thanksgiving Dinner.