Chapter 36
Mig shoved her to a couch, then left her there as he went further into the house.
Sailor sat back on the couch, feeling despondent and lost. She didn’t even really care that she was dying here, not anymore. At least the guilt would go away.
“You look like hell, Rue.”
Sailor sat up and turned to the side door, staring at Geo in shock. He stood there like he wasn’t hurt, not a mark on him anywhere!
“You ain’t been sleepin’ huh?” he went on, coming into the room to stand in front of her, his eyes glittering dangerously.
“You… you’re…”
“I’m what?” he asked, leaning over her and putting his hands on the back of the couch. “What am I, Rue?”
“Alive?” she asked, stunned as she reached to touch him.
He snorted a laugh. “Yeah. I am,” he agreed, smirking. “You tried, though, didn’t ya? You ain’t fuckin’ weak.”
Sailor blinked at him, not understanding.
“You happy ta see me, Rue?” he asked, cocking his head.
“I am…” she answered honestly, surprised.
“Yeah… I kin see that,” he grinned, canting his head sl ightly. “You’s relieved ‘n shit. That shit tore you up, didn’t it? Figured it was. That’s why I let you just sit ‘n think on it.”
“You knew where I was?”
He chuckled then. “You think I didn’t see you put that bag in the office on day 2? I know you had plans. Didn’t know you was gonna try’n kill me,” he chuckled. “Thought you’d run. Got one ‘a them trackers on that bag. Saw you all holed up ‘n waitin’. The facility called, like I fuckin tol’ ‘m to. Soon as you called ta see about gettin’ them out. They give you a line, didn’t they? Not till next week or some shit. Like I tol’ ‘m. I was gonna let you sit the weekend, but I thought on it. Knew you was fucked up about it. Figured I didn’t want you thinkin’ what you was thinkin’, tearin’ yourself up over nothin’. You good?”
“You… aren’t dead?”
He chuckled again, then sat down next to her on the couch, still facing her and cupping her face in his hand. “Nah. I ain’t dead, Rue. You killed the fuckin’ fridge, though,” he teased. “I was on the ground before you got a shot off, you telegraphed that shit, then shut your eyes. I need ta teach you how ta shoot! You kin fuckin’ run, though, can’t ya? You took off outta there before I could even holler at you ta stop. Didn’t fuckin’ wait around for shit,” he laughed.
“Why… why aren’t you mad at me? Why aren’t you punishing me?”
“Oh, you think I ain’t fixin’ to?” he asked with a smirk. “Mig thinks I oughta make ‘n example ‘n shit… but he don’t get it. You ain’t fuckin’ weak.”
She understood it suddenly. His mother had been weak, she hadn’t saved herself or her kids from his abusive dad. He wasn’t mad because she had proved she wasn’t like his mom. She wasn’t weak.
“I got som’in’ for you, Rue,'' he smiled, leaning in and kissing her lips softly. “This time no tryna shoot me while I give it to ya.”
“K,” she whispered in stunned silence as he reached under the coffee table to the little shelf and picked up a long, slender box. The same box.
Opening it for her, she looked down at the wrist lanyard in confusion, blinking at the key on the end of it.
“What is it?” she asked, still confused.
“Key to this house,” he grinned. “Got you a house, Rue. Out here with all the fuckin’ squirrels you could think on feedin’.”
Sailor felt herself grin, but she shook her head. “This place is ridiculous! It’s too big, what’s the point? And too far from your work!”
“I figure I might retire,” he shrugged. “Since I got me a girl who knows how ta make money fall out the fuckin’ internet ‘n shit. Least once she decides to actually start doin’ it and not just makin’ little pictures that look like she’s doin’ it. I figure she’s about fuckin’ ready. That right, Rue? You ready?”
“Yeah,” she whispered, squeezing her backpack, then trying to stifle another smile.
He was okay! She’d missed completely! AND he wasn’t mad! AND he’d gotten her a house? Out in the country? A HUGE house that was just kind of stupidly ridiculous?
“C’mon,” he grinned. “Lemme show you our room,” he told her, pulling her up and through the foyer to the stairs. She had to run to keep up, giggling as he rushed her up.
He pushed into the very first room and Sailor paused for a split second before rushing in and jumping into the bed with her mother. “MOM! You’re here! How are you here?”
“They moved us here this morning? They said we’re living here now! They hired nurses to come out to us?”
“Gramma too?” Sailor asked, awestruck.
“Room across the hall,” Geo told her, coming to her and taking her hand. “C’mon. You kin see her later, I got somethin’ you need ta see.”
Sailor hugged her mom, then let Geo pull her out of the room and up the other side of the hall.
The room he pushed into was enormous, the walls covered in bookshelves and a sizeable three-sided desk in the center. One wall was nothing but windows, all with birdfeeders on them high and low, and squirrel feeders with a little rope bridge coming from the tree.
“Got your setup here,” he told her breathlessly, then immediately pulled her out of the room and opened the door next to it, pulling her in. Picking her up and spinning her, he tossed her onto the huge bed. “Alright now, Rue. We gon’ talk, me ‘n you. Here’s how things is. No more blood for you, you hear me?”
“Yeah?”
“No more checkin’ you or your mouth, yeah?”
“Ok?”
“N’ no more tryna kill me.”
Sailor giggled again, shaking her head, “Ok?”
“You good with that deal? We get along okay with that?”
“Ok,” she breathed, her eyes bright as he leaned over her on the bed.
“You’d agree ta anythin’ right now, long as I yanked them clothes off you and made you mine, huh, Rue? How ‘bout we talk again after I fuck you?”
“Ok,” she agreed quickly, pulling his shirt off for him before pulling him closer.