MARLOW #2
Ever since my suicide attempt, he's been checking in on me regularly, asking about everything. He carries a deep sense of guilt for not realizing how serious things had gotten. Usually I keep my replies polite and brief, but this time his message catches my attention.
"Blue and I are staying at his cabin in Rainbow Spring for the first time. The renovation wrapped up last week, so we came out for the weekend. I know that facility is only a few miles from town. Want to stop by?"
A small shiver runs through me.
Could this be an opportunity?
I feel an almost desperate need to learn more about Fenn, and who could be a better person to ask than his former employer—Blue Lowen, my brother-in-law?
Without saying a word to anyone, ignoring Rupert's glance, I leave the cafeteria and head back to my room to check my inhalant therapy schedule.
Walking over to the small screen mounted in the corner, I pull up the times we're required to attend treatments.
I'm supposed to stick to a strict routine, and leaving the facility during inhalation sessions isn't recommended.
Still, there's a gap between noon and two o'clock.
Maybe I can make it there and back. The decision comes quickly. I text Gabriel that I'll come by, get changed, and leave the facility.
Surprisingly, it's incredibly easy.
I walk to the elevator, ride it to the ground level, and pass through reception without saying a word to the beta sitting behind the desk. The first people who actually stop me are the older alpha guards at the security booth near the exit.
They don't make a fuss either.
I don't even tell them where I'm going. I just mention that I'll be back in about two hours.
They log my departure in their electronic records, and that's the end of it.
Since the rental company still hasn't picked up my car, I'm free to use it. I get behind the wheel and head toward Rainbow Spring along a beautiful forest road.
The drive winds through endless woods, climbing gentle hills and dipping into shallow lowlands. Eventually the road rises to a higher ridge, and from the top I catch sight of a small picturesque valley surrounded by forests, patches of farmland, and colorful houses tucked among gardens.
It looks gorgeous.
The town itself isn't very large. I doubt more than a few hundred people live there, but everything looks carefully maintained and thoughtfully designed.
I drive down a cobblestone road lined with decorative cast-iron streetlamps and enter the tiny town center.
Around the small central square sit a café, the mayor's office, grocery stores, clothing shops, all clustered together in one convenient spot, probably for the benefit of tourists.
A beautiful plaza surrounds a lit fountain, and elegant flowerbeds fill every corner. Everything here is neat, vibrant, and inviting.
I find myself looking around with genuine appreciation before a sigh slips out.
I could live somewhere like this, raise kids here. Far away from the noise and pressure of a big city, surrounded by forests, fresh air, and nature.
As far as I know, the town is famous for its huge number of rental cabins scattered throughout the surrounding woods, each offering views of the rolling green hills stretching across the landscape.
Blue owns a sizeable piece of forest here himself and built a vacation home beside a small woodland lake.
I reach it by following a road that curves dramatically along a hillside.
It opens onto a wide forest clearing with a log house standing at its center.
Anyone expecting a rustic cabin would be mistaken, though.
The timber is combined with steel and massive walls of glass, making it obvious that the place is ultramodern.
A tall fence surrounds the property.
And they have guards here too.
Two bored-looking local alphas sit inside a small wooden guardhouse by the gate.
When they see me, neither says a word. One simply waves me through.
Apparently, Blue and Gabriel already told them to expect a visitor.
I park on the wide stone driveway and step out.
For a moment I just stand there studying the house before quietly sighing again. I really like it.
Circling around the left side, I walk far enough to get a better view of the small lake about twenty yards down the slope. Not bad at all.
Following a white stone path, I approach the front entrance. Before I even reach the large glass doors, I spot Gabriel inside, already heading toward me with a bright smile.
My brother got lucky. His fated mate turned out to be a billionaire, which basically means he's set for life.
Fortunately, Blue is a good guy; I've always liked him.
I give Gabriel a warm hug, and a moment later, Blue Lowen appears at the top of the stairs.
He's an unusually short, slender omega with a somewhat intimidating expression.
I know better, though. It's only a facade. He has a huge heart.
He's wearing a snow-white silk shirt stretched slightly across his stomach.
Second trimester already.
A wave of emotions hits me.
My eyes drift to the gentle curve of his belly, and I feel a small stab of envy.
As if noticing my gaze, Blue lowers a hand to his belly, and I follow the movement with my eyes. A new life is growing inside him; my nephew will be born in a few months.
Pregnancy suits Blue. His complexion is rosy, and he’s surrounded by a glow of subtle, almost golden energy.
Maybe someday that'll be me? Carrying a new life inside, a small person I will give all my love to—
Stop, Marlow! I quickly shake it off because I don’t want to get depressed right at the start of the visit.
I don't offer Blue a handshake because I know he dislikes them. Instead, he gestures broadly for me to come inside.
The living room is enormous, with a gorgeous view of the green hillside and the lake below.
We settle onto a comfortable sofa, and Gabriel spends a few minutes catching me up on family news and recent events in his and Blue's lives.
He also mentions, with a rather telling look, that Dad keeps asking him if he’s heard anything from me.
Apparently, Dad doesn’t feel comfortable bringing it up with me directly and has been trying to get updates through Gabriel instead.
I cringe at that. I’ve been deliberately avoiding texting him, because all his worries and warnings would just come pouring out, and I’m at a point where they might actually get to me and seriously throw me off, especially with the Rupert situation.
I stay silent and just give my brother an awkward look. But Gabriel seems just as curious as Dad, so he eventually starts digging into it too. "So how's the facility? Settling in okay? Have you met that other guy yet, you know, the one you're matched with?"
Well, I can tell he's dying to know.
I take a breath.
"Yeah. He seems okay. He's a dental technician," I add as if that's somehow important, even though I can't honestly make myself care much about the profession.
"Well, healthcare's always something," Gabriel mutters, sounding like he has no idea how else to respond.
But that's clearly not what he's most interested in. He's just too embarrassed to ask the real question directly. I decide not to make things easier for him.
Instead, I get straight to the point.
"I had a chance to meet the mysterious person behind the program," I say, turning toward Blue, whose eyebrows immediately lift.
"Let me guess. Fenn Drax."
His tone turns slightly sour. Well, they have a bit of a history together, for sure, and it’s not exactly smooth.
"That's right. I suspect he regrets walking away from your AA version of the program, because they're treating him like an animal over at Welrun. I saw an orderly hit him in the face with a baton. He has wounds all over him; he has clearly been abused."
I start with the biggest bombshell I can think of. I know that'll get their attention, and that's exactly what I want.
"Holy shit," Gabriel mutters.
Blue slowly shakes his head in disapproval.
"Well, our offer didn't include two million dollars, so I'm sure it was a lot less tempting." His tone is matter-of-fact.
I hesitate. I don't want this entire visit to revolve around Fenn, but… that's exactly where it's headed, and I’m fine with that.
"It's hard to find much real information about him online," I say, my voice a bit uncertain, because how am I supposed to explain why I'm interested in him in the first place?
"In smaller outlets, there is a lot of gossip and sensationalized reporting.
In the national news, there's only information about what happened on Calsing Island, and none of it paints him in a very flattering light.
But what about him as a person? What's his story?
How did he end up on Calsing Island to begin with? That's what I'm curious about."
Gabriel raises an eyebrow and studies my face. It’s obvious he has no idea where my sudden interest in such a controversial figure comes from.
Blue tilts his head slightly. His unusual sapphire eyes lock onto mine.
"What I know about his past came from Mr. Gomez, the new director of the facility where Fenn Drax worked."
I stare at him so intensely that he must realize I'm practically dying to hear the rest. Blue slightly narrows his eyes.
"Drax's story is pretty tragic. It started in Finland, near the Russian border.
A tourist passing through a tiny village hidden deep in the forests came across a shocking sight.
Three boys, maybe ten or eleven years old, had been tied to a post and left there, slowly dying from untreated wounds.
The tourist was horrified and called the authorities.
The villagers claimed the children were demons and needed to be killed, just like their parents had been.
The police took the boys to a hospital instead, and they received medical treatment there. "
"Fuck," Gabriel mutters. "I had no idea. That sounds horrible."
I stay silent, barely keeping my emotions under control.