Chapter 56
Although the wooden floor wasn’t comfortable, after a short while of lying here, we both fell asleep.
I woke just as the sun streamed through the windows, Ayden and Clover still asleep against me. As strong as I’d been to get him cleaned up and inside the cabin, right now I feel like a pile of shit. Like my body had swum through a hurricane, reached land, and then had to survive an earthquake.
My calves are tight, my muscles burn, and on top of that, I have a goddamn migraine.
But this pain is bearable because Ayden is softly snoring against my chest. I’d never heard a more beautiful sound than his breathing—it’s what I live for, and what I’ll die to protect.
I shift to a seated position, taking him with me. Clover grumbles and jumps off, displeased at the disturbance. I slip my arms under Ayden’s legs and shift to my knees, fighting through the protest of every muscle in my body.
Lifting him was far more difficult than last night. I’ve got no more adrenaline left, but somehow I manage to stumble to my feet and take a few steps to the couch. I’m not graceful putting him down, and he groans as he bounces on the cushions.
“Fuck, I’m sorry.”
One of my knees hit the floor as I help adjust him to lie flat. His head turns to look at me, and my heart sinks. He looks worse than he did last night.
His left eye is completely black and blue, his temple matching the bruising color. He’s paler than normal, and I fear a hospital is exactly where he should be. I’m not a doctor, even if I’m certified in first aid.
If I take him in like this, the police will be called, and everything that happened will come to light. My truck is still up on that hill, over two dead bodies.
Two dead cops.
I drag my knuckles across his cheek and give him a weak smile.
He returns it, shifting one hand to find mine. “You didn’t have to…” His pause is broken by a groan of discomfort. “…put me here.”
I take his hand, lifting it to kiss his fingers. There’s nothing to say to that. I need to start caring for him, patching him up… or make the impossible decision to call an ambulance. To possibly have to let him go, because I truly cannot imagine getting away with what I did.
“Let me grab the blanket,” I say instead. Leaning in, I press my lips to his and push myself to my feet. “I’ll get you some water, and then I’m going to give you a full-body assessment.”
“Sounds…” he says while taking a breath. “Like a dream.”
I smile. “Yeah, it—” A knock on the door cuts me off.
Grabbing the thick comforter and draping it over him quickly, my eyes lock on the door like it might tell me who’s outside.
“Keo, don’t.” Before I can move away, Ayden grabs my wrist, hissing discomfort through clenched teeth. “Don’t answer it.”
Another knock follows. It’s gentle, cautious, as if whoever it is, is afraid of disturbing us. That is, until the next one comes—loud, urgent, completely opposite of the first.
It’s the voices that have Ayden removing his hold on me.
“Eve, darling, they could be asleep.”
“I don’t give a fuck. They need to wake up.”
I move swiftly and open the door without hesitation. Standing side by side, dressed in casual clothes, are our neighbors: Evelyn and Levi.
“You look absolutely terrible,” she says. “Where’s Ayden?”
I glance over my shoulder and see him slowly starting to sit up, holding the blanket to his chest, his bruised shoulders exposed.
That seems to be her cue—she brushes past me, barging into our cabin. “And you look like complete shit.”
“Thanks…” he mutters.
A gentle hand presses against my shoulder, and I peer up at Levi. Although I’m far bulkier than he is, he stands a few inches taller than I do. “Are either of you in any life threatening danger right now?”
I shrug and step aside, letting him enter. “I don’t know, honestly…” My gaze drifts to Evelyn, who’s kneeling in front of my sunshine. “I don’t think so, but I haven’t had a chance to examine him fully.”
“Lie down. Let me take a look at you.” She pulls the blanket from his grip.
He glances at me, and I give a small nod. At this point, it’s clear the last thing they want to do is hurt us.
Evelyn adjusts her hijab, quickly knotting it at the nape of her neck, then begins her careful inspection.
Levi slips his hands into his pockets and walks slowly around me, moving through the cabin in silence. None of us speak, but I can hear the sharp groans of pain escaping Ayden.
“We need to call Olivia,” Evelyn says. “Nothing external I can see, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.”
“Alright,” Levi agrees. He turns to me with that same casual smile. “Once we are done here, we will have our on-call medic, Liv, come take a look at both of you.”
What…
“This is really awkward,” he says, a nervous chuckle escaping him. “But you need to understand what happened last night can never be spoken about.”
“What exactly happened… last night?” Ayden asks.
Evelyn tsks. “Something that never should’ve happened. I told this tall asshole we should’ve killed that ex of yours before it ever got to this point.”
My eyes widen in complete shock. When I look at Ayden, he looks just as stunned.
“Keoni,” Levi says. “Before we get into it. Where were you last night? And do you need a cleanup? We didn’t see your truck, and the Charger parked beside Michael’s… it had some suspicious stuff inside.”
I glance at him, now joined by Evelyn. Quickly—and as accurately as I can—I recount being kidnapped by the two officers, along with everything that happened afterward. By the time I finish, I’m sitting beside Ayden, while Levi and Evelyn remain standing in front of the burned-out fireplace.
“Can you tell me exactly where you were?” Levi asks.
I nod and retrace the location for him.
He exhales slowly, then looks down at Evelyn, who has her eyes locked firmly on Ayden.
She’s the one who finally speaks. “We’re contract killers, basically. Usually it’s bad people… sometimes, not so bad.”
“Like… the CIA?” Ayden asks from beside me, one of his arms shakily wrapping around my midsection.
Levi chuckles. “Not quite. But they have hired our organization before. Look, it’s way more complicated than Eve’s making it sound.”
“Were you in Switzerland…” Ayden begins. “Because of a job?”
Levi nods. “Echo Ridge is owned by our employer. The couple before us moved on, and now it’s our home base.”
I’m not entirely sure I’ve taken a breath.
“This community is meant to be quiet,” Evelyn cuts in. “We aren’t meant to draw attention to this place. And here I thought we dodged a bullet by moving in after the fiasco with Cal and Ronan. Now, this? And that goddamn billionaire?”
I can feel Ayden tense, which has me immediately in defense mode. “This isn’t our fucking fault!”
“She’s not blaming you.”
“You sure? It sure as shit sounds like it.”
He sighs. “Yes, it does, but she isn’t. That’s just how she sounds.”
“Fuck you.”
He chuckles, unfazed. “For your safety, I can’t disclose any more than we’ve already shared. We’ve come to really like our neighbors—which, for two people who aren’t supposed to get attached to anything, is a pretty powerful thing.”
It’s in those words, his eyes slowly travel down to his wife, and I see a deep set of longing in them. Like a pain that’s constantly haunting him.
Does that statement apply to them? Are they not meant to get attached?
One look at her, and it’s the complete opposite of Levi. There’s detachment, a complete and utter void of emotion other than irritation.
“I specifically like Cal, and you, Ayden. Ronan is meh. Kind of hard to hate him other than for the fact he won’t let me touch his soon-to-be-wife.
I’m still getting the feelers on Starlight.
They at least can follow instructions…” She looks over at me.
“I’ve got no problem with you. You’re neutral, but you’re growing on me… especially now.”
I don’t need her to specifically say it. I know what she’s implying. A murderer. Just like them.
“For all of these reasons, everything that happened over the course of the last forty-eight hours, didn’t happen. We will clean up all the deaths”—my heart tumbles right into my stomach and I nearly lose it—“deal with any leaked information, and talk with Ronan and Cal.”
“Even…” I turn to look at Ayden, who’s wide eyed and mouth agape. “Even the two Keo…”
“Yes,” Levi says. “Everything and everyone. But you two cannot say anything to anyone about what we’ve told you. Not even the neighbors.”
“Cal?”
“Not even her. Not your therapists. Not doctors. Not your gods. The moment we leave this cabin, it’s never to be mentioned again.”
“W-What about Michael? He—”
“Let us handle it. It’s what we do,” Evelyn cuts off Ayden, but it’s not aggressive. It’s a mix between caring and assertiveness. Sorta like… a mother. “Do you guys understand?”
“Yes.”
“I do, but…” I hesitate to ask but I must know. “What happens if we do? By accident. Entertain my question.”
Levi sighs and shakes his head. “Civilians aren’t meant to know people like us exist. We are supposed to be just another couple, blend into society…
be simple neighbors. Being compromised doesn’t mean anything for you, necessarily.
” He pauses, his intense look never wavering in my direction. “Do I need to specify more?”
“No,” I say through a breath. “No, you don’t.”
It isn’t us that would see consequences, but them… and for everything they’ve done for us, and are still to do, that is the last thing I want to happen.
I nod and shift to wrap my arm around Ayden’s shoulders gently. Paying mind not to put too much pressure on his wounds.
“We will have Olivia here this afternoon. She’s a short girl, wears pink contacts with a matching wig, super sweet and very—”
“—Obnoxious,” Evelyn groans. “But she’s good at what she does, and is discreet.”
“You two going to be alright for now?” he asks.
“Yeah…” I whisper.
“Thank you both,” Ayden says. “Thank you for everything, and I’m sorry for all this.”
Levi waves his hand and shrugs. “All good. What’re neighbors for?”
“Sugar and milk…”
Evelyn rolls her eyes. “You’d do the same for us if you could, I’m sure.”
I’d like to think I would, and I’ve got no question that Ayden would as well.
After our goodbyes, we are left to silence.
“Can we go back to bed?” my sunshine says against my arm. “Since now you don’t have to take care of me?”
I let out a light laugh. “I’ll always be taking care of you in some capacity. Let’s try and get cleaned up before we get into bed.”
“A hot bath, maybe?” He lifts his head.
“That sounds wonderful…” I lean in and press my mouth to his in a fleeting kiss. “Maybe the water will wash away the memory of what happened.”
That gets a soft laugh from him. “Probably not. I’m just glad I’ve got you to share this secret with. It may have driven me madder to not be able to talk about it with anyone.”
I smile against his lips. “No one I’d rather live in crazy-land with than you.”
I kiss him again, and this feels like the beginning of our healing journey. We’ve got a lot to work on, but I know we can get through it together without question.
Soulmates aren’t immune to hard times; we take them on together, because we know the person meant for us is someone worth the fight.