Chapter Twenty
Axton
I paced in front of her apartment door and changed my mind probably five times since I left the house. What the hell was I doing? I didn’t know her, and I didn’t owe her anything. We watched a few movies together and had a few laughs. So what? That didn’t mean I was solely responsible for her safety and comfort, did it? Fuck! I was so torn up about it, but why? What did I care that I could almost feel her fear? So much so that I’d knock that fucking door down if I didn’t stop feeling it.
She was like a brand-new person with almost no life experience. She was only twenty-three, eight years younger than me. That was too young, but maybe it was more of a big brother thing with her. Then I thought about that body and nope, definitely not a big brother thing. Then I paused and realized there were cameras. Shit! I turned and flipped off the camera. Fuck you, Creed. What the hell was I going to say when that nosy fucker saw that video?
“ Yeah, so remember when I said I didn’t like the innocent types? Well, I think I may have just been running from what scared me, and I’m interested in Belle.” Yeah right, he would laugh his ass off at me and never let me forget it. That asshole needed to mind his own business. All that bullshit about me being too serious, and not nice enough to Morgan and Wrenly, might have been to protect myself. Maybe that’s because I knew what it felt like to lose every fucking thing that ever meant anything to me, and I never wanted to live in poverty again. If Creed’s Lake failed, I’d lose everything I was holding on to for comfort and to have something that felt secure. Maybe I finally needed to feel safe for once. I lived my whole damn life for other people, and I did something for myself when I took a gamble with Creed almost eight years ago. It was all I had and proof that I triumphed over that fucking mountainside. Now, two women that reminded me of Natalie were threatening it. Morgan with her spending and non-profits, taking focus off our most vulnerable women, which were ones kidnapped from their own countries. Children taken into slavery took priority over domestic cases, because we couldn’t feed or take care of the people we needed to be helping if we were throwing money out the window. Wrenly was okay as a fellow operative, but she chose domestic cases over the cases that helped create Creed’s Lake. Now they had me falling into their ways by giving me a domestic case that made me want to care for someone. Belle was unlike anyone I ever knew.
Screw it, I knew if I turned to leave, I would just end up right back there in front of her door. I knocked but there was no answer. “Are you kidding me, Koty?” So much for him being on alert.
“Dammit.” I put my palm on the scanner and heard the door unlock. Maybe I was just being crazy, they were safe now, and Belle was probably fine. The apartment was dark, other than the lights from the Christmas Wonderland Morgan created, and they were both probably sleeping. I headed down the hall and one bedroom door was open, so I peeked inside and saw a small frame in a bed. Too small to be Belle. Damn those Christmas lights were bright.
I stepped in front of the next door, but almost tore it down when I heard small cries. My heart raced and I couldn’t get that door open fast enough. The door flew open, and I was surprised not to hear a scream before I turned on the light. “Michael.” I heard her soft voice, but she wasn’t in her bed, instead she was on the floor in the corner. “I knew it was you.”
“Belle, I’m so sorry.” I raced over to her, and she reached up for me. She was shaking, but quickly melted into my arms.
“I didn’t think you were coming.” She hiccupped from crying so hard. “I was so scared.”
I pressed my lips into her hair and kissed her head. “I’m here now.” Her body began to relax, and her shivers calmed some.
“Are you cold?” I held her body and noticed whatever she was wearing was satin and soft, close to as soft as I imagined her skin would feel.
“No.” She sniffled.
“It couldn’t get dark enough. If Jeremy came, he could see me. I couldn’t go into the closet because the door wouldn’t open, there wasn’t a knob.”
I kissed her head again and chuckled. “It slides open, they call it a barn door. You slide it with the handle instead of pulling on a doorknob.”
“I think my papa is gone and it just hit me. I’ll never see him again.”
I hugged her tighter. “He’s at peace now, Belle. Cherish the good memories, it’s all you can do now. He knew you loved him and now he knows the truth about the world and just wants you to be happy.” Unlike my own father.
“I know I’m safe now. I always feel safe with you.” She was holding on to me for dear life.
“Let’s wake Koty and pack a few of your things. It’s up to Koty what he wants to do, but you’re coming home with me.” I kissed her head again and she relaxed so much that I had to hold on to her a little tighter.
“Are you sure?” She cried.
“Yeah, I couldn’t relax either, my gut told me you needed me, so that’s why I came. I can’t imagine not being close to you too soon after everything that has happened. Pack enough for tomorrow and I’ll have the prospects fetch the rest of it in the morning.” Thank God I followed my gut. She needed me and I wasn’t there for her, just like with Natalie.
“Thank you.” She sniffled then kissed right above my ear and I turned my head just in time for her lips to brush my cheek. I placed a kiss on the corner of her mouth then rested my forehead against hers as I held her.
“It might take time, but soon you’ll feel safe here and even walk around freely and enjoy your freedom. Even if Jeremy is right outside the gates, he will not reach you. You are free, Belle.”
I had my eyes shut but I knew her chest was rising and falling with each heavy breath. The attraction with her was unreal, and I don’t think I ever felt the magnitude of our attraction with anyone else. Not even Natalie. She had no idea how hard I was fighting not to kiss her. It was like a spark of life being held just out of the reach of the desperate and dying man. I squeezed my eyes shut, dammit I could feel myself growing weak. “We better be going. I’ll wake Koty while you pack your things.
“Okay.”
It took me a few moments to rip myself away from her, but when I did, her nightgown caught my attention. Holy shit…nipples against satin. I swallowed hard before I left the room.
“Wake up, sunshine.” I turned the lights on in Koty’s bedroom and he jumped out of bed with wild eyes and a knife in his hand. “Chill out, Vin Diesel, it's just me.”
His body relaxed. “Is something wrong?”
“Nope, just taking your sister to stay with me. She’s been in her room scared to death and crying all night. It’s up to you if you come with us or stay here.”
“You’re just taking her? I’m her brother, and I’ll make the decisions.” He snapped at me.
“I thought you escaped with her, so she had a better life and freedom to make her own decisions? Your sister wants this, Koty.”
He sighed. “You’re right, but that doesn’t mean it’s appropriate.”
I didn’t have the time or patience. “Are you coming or not?”
He groaned. “I don’t think I have a choice. What kind of brother with an innocent little sister just lets her run off and live with a man in sin?”
I patted his shoulder. “Amen brother. I happen to have one of those myself. My sister plans to save herself for marriage, so you're damn right I’ll hold her to it. I keep a pretty close eye on Kayla.” I felt like an asshole. I was about to devour his sisters’ lips before I walked into his bedroom. “By the way, you have an appointment at the clinic in the morning, but the Originals would like to have a few words with you. We’ve been doing some research, and we think we might need you to confirm a few things, and we may need to pick your brain with a few questions we have.”
“Sure, anything I can do to help, I’ll do. I’ve done some thinking, and I can’t protect my brothers any longer. John Henry betrayed my father and Belle.” He spoke in almost a whisper, almost like he was scared to admit it out loud.
“That’s the right decision and it’ll be worth it in the end for everyone. Just think of the young girls you will be sparing from that life. Let’s get ready and get Belle settled in over at my place.”
I went to help Belle, and she had things sorted so I grabbed the bags. “You’ll be fine, it’s cold out but you have a nice down coat and the side by side will be warm.” She was trying to figure out what to change into, but like usual I loved to torture myself and told her not to change.
I glanced at Belle a few times as we drove to my house. For as rigid as her upbringing was, she didn’t hold back much with me. She was timid around others, and she warmed up to Bolton, but with me it was like she knew me for an eternity. She didn’t even look concerned as we made our way home after crying most of the night. She seemed to enjoy looking at the houses with Christmas lights. Once at my place, I explained lockdown and that we were on it just as a safety since they just arrived. I didn’t bring up anything Magnus saw because Belle was already scared half to death. I then showed Koty to his room on the first floor, and he just wanted to get back to sleep. I then took Belle upstairs to the spare bedroom closest to mine. “Your home is beautiful, Michael.”
“Thanks. The Originals vote on everything, and Creed suggested we build log homes to make it feel more rustic and homier. Not everyone agreed because of the price of upkeep, but he got the majority vote.” I set the bags down on the bed. “He also wanted all the Original’s homes to be family homes with no less than three bedrooms.”
“It is very charming, and I can’t thank you enough for everything you’re doing and have already done.” She took her coat off and I walked over to the closet to get a hanger.
“Just so you know.” I slid the barn door to the closet open and she blushed.
“That’s much easier than I tried to make it.” She giggled.
I took her coat and put it on the hanger before hanging it up. “You have your own bathroom.” I pointed at the other barn door then walked over toward the last door. “My bedroom is over there on the other side of the loft, but if you open this door there’s a second level balcony that wraps from one end of the house to the other. So, there’s two ways to access my room.”
“If it were warmer I’d likely enjoy sitting out there.” She said.
I was looking at that satin robe wishing she would take it off. “I can show you around downstairs. There’s some important features you should be aware of. I’ll have yours and Koty’s security clearance changed so that you can set my security system and be able to lock and unlock the doors.” She followed me downstairs. “It’s a simple kitchen. Fridge, dishwasher, gas stove. The pantry is here.” I slid the door open. “I don’t have much but I’ll stop by the commissary on my way home from work tomorrow. If you need anything in particular, just let me know. We can also order food from the mess hall. Care for a cold bottle of water?”
“Sure.” She was leaning against the counter, and I grabbed two bottles from the fridge and handed one to her. She was looking around then looked at me. “For living somewhere so festive you don’t have anything like that here.”
I also leaned against the counter. “We didn’t celebrate Christmas much when I was growing up. I tried to make it nice for my sister, but we didn’t have much.”
“Where did you grow up?” She twisted the lid from her water.
“West Virginia, in the most poverty-stricken part of the state. We didn’t have much, and it was really just Kayla and I growing up.”
“Are your parents still living?” She asked.
I scratched my beard. “Yeah, my dad wasn’t a part of my life, but my mom lives close by with my sister. You’ll meet her and Kayla at some point. Mom works at a small café and bakery in Clarity, which is about thirty minutes from here, and Kayla is an attorney. She’s working under a few more experienced attorneys and still learning. You would really like Kayla, I think the two of you might have a lot in common.” They were both very innocent when it came to men.
She smiled. “I had what I considered friends back home, but I only associated with them during our Bible study. We didn’t gather and participate in any other kind of activities. I had a few when I went to elementary school. We played on the playground, and it was fun, but I was pulled out once I learned the bare minimum of what a woman would need to know. I could read and do basic math, but papa made an exception for me. I was able to homeschool through a program offered in Utah. He even saved some money to buy me a computer. My papa may have gotten a few things wrong, but he loved me. Obviously, he wasn’t the kind of father to chase me down and tickle me, he was a very old man when he was still fathering children, but when I was little I would sit on his lap, and he would read me some stories from the Bible. He liked to hold my hand and go for walks until he couldn’t do it anymore. He was good to Koty as well, but much harder on him at the same time. Koty never had much faith in my papa. Do you know where your dad is now?”
I almost snorted. “Yeah, he is in prison, actually, and he will never be released.”
“Do you visit him?” She asked.
I sighed. “I’m the one that put him there.”
She gasped.
“My dad is a very bad man, and he mistreated his family. He went to jail for abusing us, then did something terrible in prison and was sentenced to life with no chance of parole. I don’t care to ever see him again, but Kayla has made a few visits. I think it was more out of curiosity than anything. The world is a much safer place with him behind bars.”
“I’m sorry, Michael.” She generally looked concerned.
“I did better without him than if he was around, so I guess I got lucky. I was eight when he went away, and I didn’t need his influence to rise above my circumstances. If anything, he would have held me back.”
“Any other family?” She asked.
“I have grandparents in Charleston, two uncles, and a few cousins. They’re good people and they tried to be around for us, but things were rough. I never wanted anything to do with my dad’s family, they were as bad as him. Unfortunately, my dad was one of thirteen kids. I was related to most of the people who lived on that mountainside.”
Her brows lifted. “Does your grandmother have sister wives? That’s a lot of children.”
“No, they just didn’t understand birth control.”
“Oh, birth control. We have that practice as well.” She blushed a little.
“That practice? You mean condoms?”
She spoke but wouldn’t look at me as she did. “No, I mean natural birth control. We followed my ancestors’ laws. That kind of manmade foreign object placed inside a woman is a sin and very unhealthy. I saw something in a bathroom at my college once, and it was a machine selling them. I asked my older sister what it was, and she told my papa. I was very embarrassed when he explained the sin and the definition of natural birth control. Relations between a man and his wife are only for the purpose of breeding. That’s one reason why men have so many wives. If he didn’t want to produce a child with a certain wife, he would go to one’s that he did want to produce one with. Women don’t have the same needs as men, and sometimes a woman needed a break between children. It’s not a recreational activity, it’s a duty for both men and women.”
Was she saying they avoided getting enjoyment out of sex? “I disagree, condoms are very healthy and necessary. One of the most important inventions ever. There are diseases and they help protect people, and they don’t make people sick.” Unless you were Patrick and got with a woman that suddenly became allergic, but I wouldn’t bring that up. “It’s also not just for…breeding.” That was a weird thing to feel I had to add.
She ignored my comment, and I loved the way she blushed. “Do you still speak to your grandparents?” She asked.
“I do, my grandpa is a dedicated Steelers fan, and he calls after he watches their games to complain. It’s football, and some people are diehard fans. I tell him I’m a Bengals fan just to get him worked up, but I’m actually more of a hockey guy. Magnus and Creed taught me between missions while we were in the service, and I got hooked. I’m actually a pretty good goalie. My grandma calls once a week to make sure I haven’t forgotten my manners and see if I’m eating healthy. Sometimes she calls because she read a news story about something that caught her attention. Just last week she wanted to warn me about using my bank card at gas pumps. I was surprised she just now caught on to that, but I played along and thanked her for letting me know.” The week before that she called to remind me that I was thirty-one and wasn’t married and had no children. Like that was something I’d forget somehow. I sure as hell wouldn’t tell Belle that, either.
“How old are you?” She took a seat at the kitchen island.
“I was thirty-one last month.”
She smiled. “That’s the perfect age. You’re still young but stable, because you have more than a decade of a career behind you.”
“You also have a career.” I pointed out.
“Not really. I never earned a paycheck, and I only taught basic things like reading and arithmetic. None of my students would ever graduate high school or go on to college. I also created a Bible study, but everything we spoke about had to be approved by the elders. We weren’t free to interpret the bible or dive into philosophy. I would love to say I’d make a good teacher now, but I believe I may be too na?ve for this more modern world. It was unlawful for women to gather in groups., but my papa was a progressive bishop and made a law that women could gather for prayer and Bible study as long as it was supervised by an elder.”
Un…fucking…believable. They could only gather while supervised? The man was a dick. “I’ll talk to Creed. Morgan will be going on maternity leave soon, and we do have elementary aged kids that could use a substitute. Right now, it’ll be Melissa and Heidi filling in, but they could use someone with the experience. Did you ever teach at a private or public school?” I asked.
“I student taught at the school I attended until fifth grade, but that’s all.”
I could tell it was something that saddened her greatly. “Would you be interested in helping out? You’ll be here a long time, Belle. Maybe you can eventually help with the adult education program as well. It might be a good way for you to learn more about the real world. You could teach them and also learn from them. Morgan can probably help you with your teaching license as well.”
I had to shut my eyes when I saw the way she looked at me. I wished like hell it didn’t remind me of the way Natalie looked at me when her baby brother ran out of formula and I rode my bike all the way to town, spent my last fifteen dollars to buy it, then rode my bike the twelve miles back home. I was thirteen years old with the weight of the world on my shoulders. It also reminded me of the time her asshole brother was tripping on acid and cut her hair when she was sleeping. She was sobbing uncontrollable tears until I braided her hair like I did Kayla’s and nobody could tell. I did that every morning before school until it grew out enough that we could cut it straight. I always tried so hard to solve her problems, but I guess that wasn’t enough for her. It took me a very long time to come to terms with the fact that I would never have been enough for her. I never would have been enough to save her either.
“That might actually be nice, thank you.”
“Well, I have more to show you.” I walked over to my control panel, and she walked over to stand next to me. “Did Heidi show you the emergency features at the apartments?”
She nodded. “There was another elevator that we could only access with our badges, and she said to do that if I heard any sirens.”
“Good, but mine is a bit different. You scan your badge then hit this red button if you have an emergency. We have a command center that aids us when we are in certain situations. Like when we had Creed and Magnus on the line when those bikers and trucks were a threat. There’s a whole crew of people working around the clock. They’ll speak to you through a speaker here and then can hear you when you tell them the problem. It’s only for an emergency, like there’s a fire or you’re very badly injured and can’t get to the medical center on your own.”
“That’s convenient.” She said.
“It has another feature. If something happens and you can’t get to this panel, just yell out a code. It’s 42427 then my name, and that’s my designated code. It’s a smart product and it’ll dial the emergency line for you, and you won’t have to hit any buttons. Then, like at the apartment building, you hit this flashing green light. I hit the button, and the cabinet lifted, exposing the elevator and she gasped in amazement. “You’ll step inside, hit the flashing green light on the side and it’ll take you to a safety bunker. A new security feature we added a few months ago will make you scan your badge here.” I pointed to the left side. “Remember, green for opening it, yellow at the bottom. It’ll open the doors and allow you out. Unless the sirens went off which pauses the need to use the yellow scanner, an alarm will sound. It’ll notify the command center that someone is coming, and they can check it out.” I hit the green button to shut it. “That elevator goes deeper than my basement, so it’ll take a little longer than you might expect. Any questions?”
She nodded. “So, I should not use this if the alarms are not going off, but if there’s an intruder, then definitely use it?”
I smiled then winked. “Smart girl, I’m glad you caught what I didn’t say. But you should know the chances of an intruder is extremely low. Those guards and that gate is not all that stands between us and the outside world. There is a wall, but it’s just our first line of defense. We have several other things that even someone trained like me couldn’t bypass. Jeremy works with nobody that could penetrate our barriers.” I pointed up. “We even have control of the airspace above us. We work with the kind of people that makes that possible.” We sometimes had government officials on the premises, and also high value foreign allies at times when we’ve had a contract to extricate them from dangerous situations and get them to safety.
She smiled. “That makes me feel a lot better.”
“Alright, so let’s move on. The dining room is obvious, just like the living room. We can go downstairs.” She followed me downstairs. “My place is nothing like Creed’s, but I do have a bar, a pool table, air hockey, and a movie room.” I showed her the bar and games, then took her to the movie room. I had to chuckle because she reminded me of Addie when she made a little squeal noise.
“Wow!” Her eyes lit up when she looked at me. “Would this be like going to a theater?”
I chuckled. “Sort of, it has the surround sound and that’s neat, but the screen is much smaller. The seats are massage chairs, so you can really get comfortable down here.” I walked to the closet and opened it. “There’s blankets in here and there’s a popcorn machine over there.” I pointed at it. “The laundry room is right this way.” She followed me and as we walked by it, I pointed to the bathroom. “That’s the whole house, except what’s outside. I do have a dock there at the lake, a patio kitchen I like to use in the summer if some of the guys stop by and we grill steaks, and there’s a hot tub I use year-round.”
“I love your home, Michael.” She was all smiles.
Throughout the entire tour, and especially during our conversation in the kitchen, my eyes kept landing on her chest. That damn robe was the only thing between my eyes and her gown that kept me from seeing those damn nipples brush across that satin. I wasn’t sure why, but ever since she had that blouse on earlier that day, those nipples were constantly on my mind. I imagined she had the most perfect set of teardrop tits.
“Thank you, but it’s your house as well, now. I would like you to feel at home. Do you mind if I ask you a question?” I asked.
“Sure.”
I scratched my beard. I had a reason to ask the question, it was something I wondered quite often. “How would you describe your life back home? Were you happy?”
She gave me a soft smile. “Happy isn’t the term I would use, but I also wasn’t sad. I knew my parents loved me, but they had expectations. It’s the only life I ever knew. I had a warm and safe bed at night, food, and love. But I also had discipline, and a very active curiosity. I guess you could say I was known to eavesdrop, but unfortunately, the men didn’t speak much about the things Koty tried telling me. I never knew anything about my parents’ finances or anyone else’s in the church. I would hear of young people trying to escape, but my papa was strictly against violence.”
“Did you ever have fun?” I didn’t know why that was important.
“Sure, my papa got me a puppy when I was little, and we played a lot. I have friends at school when I was young, and papa sometimes made me laugh.” She smiled fondly. “One time my puppy tried to chew up his false teeth, that was hilarious because he looked like he had people teeth. Not even papa could stay mad, and we laughed so hard it hurt. But I’ve never laughed as hard as I have while watching that television. I like how it feels to have those freedoms and not have to worry that my laughter may be seen as inappropriate. The world is nothing like I ever imagined, which I feel bad about those happy moments of laughter when my mind drifts back to home. I’m sure mama is scared going to a new husband, and I don’t want my papa to suffer in his afterlife. I hope he realized how wrong he was about a great deal of things, and asked for forgiveness. I know he’s gone, and that makes me sad, but he was in a lot of pain in the end.”
I understood what she was saying. “How much faith did you have that this soldier of God was coming for you?”
“I had hope, but at my age I should have been married for a decade now. I guess…” She paused and looked down at her hands, which she was wringing. “Let’s just say your birthmark isn’t what makes me feel safe with you. It’s a feeling that comes when you’re near.”
That was awkward.
“I do have to work tomorrow. I hope you’ll be alright while I’m gone?” I needed to change the subject before she went into feelings and all that, which was something I struggled with my entire life.
“I do, I think. Heidi was very kind, and she really helped us a lot. I have some materials to study, and I think that will occupy some of my time, but it sounds like we have a busy day tomorrow. Koty and I have a doctor’s appointment in the morning, then Heidi is taking me to the salon. She and I feel I should try to acclimate to this modern world, and she wants to teach me about the latest fashion. I feel as if the more plain I look, the more I’ll stand out.”
Belle could never look plain and could wear a garbage bag and still be the most stunning person in the room.
“After that I’ll work on all the bags of clothing Morgan gave me. That will probably take most of the day.”
I noticed she kept glancing at the air hockey game.