Chapter 13. #3
The girl from the grocery store, and the test in the forest. Now that I get a closer look, she looks like she could be around 18.
She’d looked younger to me before, but I’ve never been good at assigning ages to people anyway.
Her eyes are wide now that she’s been caught and she shuffles back two steps to put some distance between us, holding the small black box with the pink bow.
My brows furrow, “I thought Aster let you go.”
“He took us in.” She gives me a shy smile. “Allowed us to stay. I help with the cleaning, and my brother works on his tech team. He’s good at those things.”
“Huh.” I can’t help the frown on my lips. “I’m sorry.”
She shakes her head, “We wanted to stay. This is… better for us.”
‘Better’… My frown deepens but I wipe it away with a shake of my head.
“What’s your name?” I ask.
“Evelyn,” her smile widens, “But everyone calls me Evie.”
My body tenses up immediately.
I’m instantly reminded of Everett; the Adler Squad called him Evie then. Still, I force my muscles to relax and my gaze softens. The girl before me now has nothing to do with him. She’s an innocent in the world of the living.
In comparison, Everett’s a dead man rotting in hell.
“Well, Evie. If anyone gives you problems you come to me,” I promise and she nods.
“And make sure to protect yourself,” I pull one of my daggers from my pants pocket. “It’s not safe to wander around this kind of house, even if you’re one of Aster’s.”
She takes the dagger with shining eyes before handing me the fresh new box of strawberries and disappearing down the hall.
She’s beautiful. More beautiful than I’d noticed the first time, which only leaves me feeling antsy.
This kind of house isn’t safe for her, even if she is under Aster’s protection.
I don’t trust everyone in this house to be gentlemen, I have to make a note to talk about it with Reuben later.
By the end of the fourth week, I feel like I can cut a deal with Reuben and convince him I can handle missions. Strictly speaking, I can speed up the recovery process at any time. But I still have to stay within the limits if I want people to see me as normal.
“Do you know where I can find Reuben?” I ask the guard at the bottom of the stairs, leading to the first floor. One of the new faces.
“He should be at the second exit,” the guard says with furrowed brows. “I think he’s preparing to head out on a mission, though. You might be able to catch him.”
Perfect. If I tag along and stay out of the way, there’s a chance I can convince him I’ve recovered enough. The sun has only just risen, so if I don’t catch him now, I may not get him again until the end of the day.
“Thanks.” It’s funny how easy it is to navigate through the house now.
The morning air is freezing but not unbearable.
I jog to the inner gate, waving at the guards by the entrance, before following the wall to the west, away from the lake.
If the main entrance was the only in and out from the property, the Taiga family would find themselves boxed in during emergencies.
The side gate is reserved specifically for high members of the family, like Reuben and the team, but it’s not used often, to stay unnoticeable to the public.
Maybe this new mission requires some level of secrecy. If so, I’m intrigued to know why.
By the time I reach the gate, I see Reuben and the team, packing into a familiar jeep with Wesley at the wheel.
But the moment I step forward to greet them, my eyes sweep over a fifth member.
A tall man with built muscle, wearing a dark blue suit.
From my position, I can make out a charming grin, pretty brown eyes and streaks of white in long brown hair, pulled into a ponytail.
The rest of the team is in similar blue suits, with Reuben wearing a deep red that hugs his body tightly.
He looks sharp today, with a silver watch on his right hand and a single piercing in his upper ear, with a silver chain.
The tiredness is gone from his face and his hair is pulled back so that his bangs fall above his eyes.
I’d say they looked professional… that is if they weren’t scowling from ear to ear. Only the new guy appears unfazed and relaxed.
“What’s going on?” I ask the two guards in the booth beside the gate and the first guy doesn’t look at me before he speaks.
“Reuben’s first mission with the new recruit.”
I blink. The new recruit. From the whispers in the halls and the hushed conversations after everyone thought I’d left the room.
“The Don apparently didn’t like the last guy,” the guard continues. “He got thrown overboard in the chaos and Reuben had to go save him.”
I want to say that’s not what happened, but I can’t.
“This is the replacement. He’s pretty decent from what I’ve heard. Military navy—” he snaps his mouth shut the moment he finally realizes who he’s speaking with, but it’s too late.
My replacement.
My thoughts are so quiet, I can practically hear my pulse beneath my skin.
The house sentries hadn’t been speaking nonsense.
Reuben didn’t like that I’d signed out of the hospital early.
I barely saw the team now because they were always busy.
They’re using the side entrance.
I’m suspended for a long time before the team climbs into the vehicle, and before I can think against it, I’ve moved behind the booth to stay out of sight as they pass by.
When the sound of the vehicle is long gone, I’m still suspended.
‘Replaced.’
The word bounces around in my empty mind, but strangely, I don’t feel anything. No anger, or frustration, or sadness. Just… nothing.
So I go back the way I came. Without a word. Without a sound. I walk the way back to the main gate. Past the house. Towards the east warehouse.
And I haul crates until sunset. Without a break. Without food.
I’ve never needed a break anyway. And I can go without food for a day or two before anyone thinks I’m inhuman.
The other labourers try to speak to me, but I’m unable to give a response. And when I’ve run out of work and the sun begins to set, I take on a different errand, and head into the forest to cut a few trees for kindling.
It’s nothing important to be done, but it never is really.
By the time I finally take myself up to bed, it’s the early hours of the morning.
I have a good wash, change into new clothes for the day, and then I’m back down at the warehouse again.
I take a nap until sunrise, take one or two bites of the snack supplies, and then I’m at it again.
Unceasing. Without speaking. Without taking a break.
Until the men are forcibly pulling me away, forcing food into my hand and making me sit. Supervising me while I eat.
I’m able to avoid Reuben for two days like that until he seeks me out, looking positively livid.
I don’t look at him. There’s only the sound of the axe cutting through the wood between us.
“Christian, don’t do this.”
Chop.
“What am I doing?”
“You promised you’d take it easy so you can recover.”
Chop.
“I’m recovering well. There’s no need to worry.”
He comes closer to grip the shoulder of the axe with a sharp look. “Your fractures are acting up because you pushed yourself too much.”
It’s true that I’ve ignored the throb in my stomach for the last few hours, and annoyance filters into my expression, “I really don’t like when you do that.”
“Who’s going to stop you from ruining yourself if not me?” Reuben’s glare sharpens, but he looks away and backs down almost immediately with a sigh. “The guards told me you saw us at the gate.”
“I did.” I pull the axe out of his grip and turn away to pick up a new woodblock. “How was the mission?”
“Fine. Christian, I didn’t—”
Chop.
Reuben’s jaw twitches.
“The Don doesn’t like your history.”
My ‘history’.
It could only mean the deaths of the Adler Squad.
“Sounds like something you knew from the start.”
“Yes, but he’s not thinking straight because I jumped in to save you.”
“It’s looking more and more like you shouldn’t have.”
Reuben grabs my inner elbow and pushes me back so forcefully, the axe falls out of my hand, and my back hits a tree roughly.
“Don’t.” His low voice is a final warning and my protest dies in my throat when I see the anger in his eyes. “Ever.”
“I already told you once before.” His eyes are burning with heat again. “You're one of mine.”
Somehow my pulse feels louder than it should be, and my heart squeezes tightly in my chest.
“Father’s given me some… idiot veteran,” he continues. “But when you recover there’s going to be a match between you to see who gets the spot on the team.”
Another test.
“The whole team hates him. So the best thing you can do for us is not make this worse. Recover quickly so you can kick this guy’s ass and send him home.”
Reuben’s body is close to mine, but even though we barely touch, the space between us feels electric and alive.
“Don’t be upset over this,” he says quietly. It doesn’t sound like an order, but a request.
When did you start being so soft on me, Reuben Taiga?
“You’d be able to tell if I was upset, wouldn’t you?” I reply and I shake my head once. “I’m not upset.”
There’s a frown between his brows as he holds my chin in his fingers to tilt my head up, his palm cupping my throat.
“No… you’re not upset.” It looks like even he can’t tell what I’m feeling, and there’s a worry in his eyes because of it.
His eyes darken as they fall to my lips, and his grip around my throat tightens just a fraction as he gives me a hard stare.
“No more work today.” This time I can tell it’s an order. “Go home. Call Lucia or something and let her distract you.”
I swallow lightly against his hand and his eyes are drawn to the movement. “Yes sir.”
His grip tightens in response and there’s that expression again, the one that makes me stop breathing. When he releases me, I’m becoming more and more certain that this isn’t normal. Whatever it is between us that creates these tingling sensations beneath my skin.
I can only hope it doesn’t get in the way of what I’m trying to achieve here.