Chapter 7
Moe
––––––––
By closing time, the tension in Moe's body intensified until he believed he was losing his mind. He needed to get out of here. He needed space and quiet. But Jillian filled up every corner of his life.
He couldn't leave her alone. Not in Everstill. Not with the men watching her like she was a miracle. Or a threat. Or both.
So, he took her for a ride.
And like when he kidnapped her, he put her in front of him on the seat. She gripped the metal bar like it was the only thing keeping her alive. She asked where they were going, but he turned on the engine, drowning out everything except the pounding in his head.
The few roads within Everstill were like a track, winding him through town, on the back road, past the houses, around the field, staying close to the trees, and back up through Main Street.
He'd ridden the same loop enough times over the years that he could do it with his eyes closed, knowing when to lean and when to slow.
Those he passed paid him no attention. They were used to him riding.
At one time, he and Finn used to ride together. It was always more relaxing when he could time his rides with someone else. It was something he enjoyed before living in Everstill, but he couldn't remember the details.
He rode until the sun dipped low and dusk crept across the sky, shadowing the town. Only then did he slow, guiding the bike down the main street. The air was still. Too still. Finn used to comment all the time that Everstill always felt as if it were holding its breath.
He stopped in the middle of the road and killed the engine. Jillian tensed immediately, her shoulders rising toward her ears.
"Get off," he said.
She slid off the bike. Moe followed her, scanning the street and the sides of the road. He knew where the barrier was. Even if he couldn't see it, the air pressure thickened and caused a faint hum under his skin.
He grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward.
She stumbled after him, confusion flickering across her face. "What are you doing?"
"Testing something."
He stopped at the invisible line, the place where the world ended, and Everstill began. He tightened his grip on her wrist. "Reach out."
She stared at him, wide-eyed. "What?"
"Your hand," he said, voice low. "Reach out."
She didn't move.
He leaned closer, his tone sharpening. "Do it."
Her breath hitched. Slowly, hesitantly, she lifted her arm. Her hand smacked into a solid invisible wall.
She gasped and jerked back, but Moe held her steady. Her fingers pressed against the unyielding barrier she couldn't see. The barrier that pushed back.
He let go of her wrist. "Now you know. You can't escape."
She frowned. He moved away from her. She needed to believe there was no way out. Just like he believed for the longest time. The same way the others believed, even now that they'd watched him come back with Jillian and Finn leave with Kallie.
Jillian stepped forward again, both hands out now, patting the air like she was searching for a door. Panic crept into her movements, sharp and frantic. She slid her palms along the invisible wall, her breath coming faster, her eyes darting left and right.
"There has to be a way out." She pressed harder, her fingers trembling. "It's not real. It can't be real."
Moe expected confusion. But the raw panic in her eyes hit him harder than he wanted to admit.
She turned toward him, her face pale, her chest rising and falling too fast. "Where did you bring me?" she whispered. "What is this place?"
"It doesn't matter," he muttered.
Jillian's hands slid frantically across the invisible wall, her breath coming in uneven bursts.
She pressed her palms flat, then her fingertips, then her fists, searching for a seam, a crack, anything.
Moe watched her chest rise and fall, watched her eyes go wide and glassy, watched the moment she realized she was trapped.
She turned toward him, her voice barely a whisper. "I need to go home."
He shook his head.
"I need to leave," she demanded, louder this time. "Please, I need to go home."
He grabbed her wrist before she could hit the barrier again. "Enough."
She jerked back, but he held her firmly. A sob escaped her as she tried to turn away from him. He didn't want to see the panic and sadness on her face. Didn't want to feel the heaviness in his chest that came with it.
He dragged her away from the barrier, down the street, back toward the motorcycle. She stumbled after him, her steps uneven, her voice breaking. "Let me go. Please. Stop touching me."
He hauled her onto the bike, swung his leg over, and started the engine. She didn't fight him this time. She sat rigid and trembling, her eyes unfocused, staring into a hollow distance like the world had dropped out from under her feet.
He rode back through the main street, the sky dimming into deep blue as dusk settled over Everstill. The town looked peaceful. Calm. Like nothing had happened. Like nothing ever happened here.
Copper stood outside the restaurant, arms crossed, watching them approach. His eyes narrowed when he saw Jillian's face. When Moe stopped the bike, Copper stepped forward.
"What did you do?" Copper asked quietly.
"I did what had to be done."
Copper's gaze flicked to Jillian, then back to him, and disappointment settled in the older man's expression.
"You can't force answers out of the veil," Copper said. "And you sure as hell can't force them out of her."
Moe's jaw tightened. "I needed to know."
"And now she knows too." Copper shook his head. "All you've done is cause pain."
Moe toed the kickstand and lifted Jillian off the Harley. Copper reached out as if he might steady her, but she flinched away from him too. Possessiveness roared up inside him. He would be the only one to touch her.
"Take her home," Copper said. "And stop pushing. Everstill doesn't open for fear."
Moe grabbed Jillian's wrist again and walked her down the street. She didn't fight him. She didn't speak. She just followed, silent and trembling.
When they reached the house, he opened the door and guided her inside. The moment he let go of her, she spun on him.
"What is this place?" she demanded, her voice shaking. "Why can't I leave? What did you do to me?"
The answers to her question were impossible to find. He'd tried to understand the dynamics behind Everstill and how they were trapped here. But there was no one around to give him answers. He had to find them out himself, and with her help, maybe he could get them both out of here.
"Answer me," she cried.
Only recently, he had an idea about how he could come and go, and that involved her. But it was too soon. He had to wait until the timing was right and the veil opened.
He had no idea how long it would take.
Her face crumpled. "I want to go home."
He looked away. "You can't."
She let out a half-sob, half-wail of fury and shoved past him. She stormed out the front door, her footsteps pounding down the porch steps.
For the first time, Moe let her go. She couldn't escape. Maybe she needed to find out how she was safer with him than without him.
He stood in the doorway, watching her run down the empty street, her small figure swallowed by the fading light. The weather was calm. The air still. The sun almost gone.
There was nowhere she could go.
And she would learn that soon enough.