Chapter 41 Reyes
Reyes
Home never looked so fucking good.
We’re exhausted—too tired even to bicker, which is saying something for this crew.
Xeni’s injuries have given him a headache that refuses to go away, and Ronan explains that after the adrenaline rush of his shift passes, it leaves him heavy-limbed and in need of sleep.
Of course, the stubborn ass hasn’t slept a wink.
Neither has Nyx, despite how deep his breaths come as he lies against me.
We made the drive in record time, pushing the vehicle to go faster than normal and only stopping when it was an absolute necessity.
Sunset is stealing the blue from the sky as we make it back to the village.
Everyone is standing there waiting, with Elas and Lillith providing a protective barrier in front of the others.
We climb out of the van, and their expressions turn from apprehensive to concerned.
Boomerang weaves between their legs, pawing at Nyx's foot as his fingers rake into her fur.
I drop to my knees, and her bright brown eyes land on mine.
"Good girl," I whisper with a shaky smile, and she dips her head like she might understand just how grateful I am. August rushes forward, ready to go into emergency mode, while Cameron flings himself into Ronan’s arms with a whine.
“Dear gods, are you alright?” August’s eyes dart between our filthy crew before settling on Xeni.
Ronan pulls his face out of Cameron’s hair long enough to tip his head towards me and says, “This isn’t our blood.” He nods toward Xeni with a grunt. “That, however, is his blood.”
Xeni insists he’s fine, but August isn’t hearing it and forces him to kneel so he can examine his stitches, muttering about infection and scars.
Elas watches them for a moment, his jealousy so potent it nearly forms a cloud around him.
August catches his eye in a silent conversation, and Elas relents and walks to grip Ronan’s shoulder.
“What happened? Did they attack?” His dark eyes move to the second van sitting behind ours.
They haven’t exited their vehicle yet, but I can’t blame them for that. The wall of muscle that greeted us must be a terrifying sight to those who have been so beaten down.
Ronan puts Cameron on the ground, although he’s still clinging to his side, and claps Elas on the arm. “It’s a long story, but no. We ran into a military patrol that turned… ugly. We’re fine.”
“Yeah, you look fine,” Elas mutters, and Ronan chuckles. “The others?”
“They’re doing as well as can be expected. Matuk has some pretty serious injuries, but he’ll recover. The rest are weak. Hungry. They haven’t had a reliable food source since they escaped.”
“I’ll throw together a quick meal,” Taryn says with a squeeze to Lillith’s arm, and Ronan nods his thanks as she jogs to the storage building.
“Let’s get them out of that van before someone faints,” Ronan says, and we walk towards the newcomers.
Audra sits in the driver’s seat, her flaming red hair barely visible over the steering wheel.
She pops open the door and hops to the ground as she assesses everyone.
Her pointed chin juts out, and her arms cross, standing her ground even though she’s a solid two feet shorter than half our group.
A dimple pits her cheek as she chews on her lip. “You’re a bunch of big ones, aren’t ya?” she finally asks.
“I like her,” Lillith says as she chuckles, and the mood instantly brightens.
The rest of their crew exit the van with a wariness born of caution, and they look dead on their feet.
Dark rings form half moons under their eyes, and their clothes are filthy, while sunken cheeks speak to their lack of nutrition.
Ronan moves towards the passenger side to help Matuk, but is swatted out of the way. “Go rest, busybody,” Elas snaps at his best friend, then turns to face Matuk. The giant green monster meets his eyes, then dips his head in shame.
“Forgive me,” he whispers, and Elas’s expression softens.
“None of us do well when we’re backed into corners,” Elas says, and Matuk gulps before he lifts his eyes. “Come on, let's get you comfortable.”
Ronan leads the rest of the group towards our common area.
Everyone’s eyes dart around, taking in our little piece of paradise in this ugly world.
“Taryn is putting together a meal for everyone. We’ll assemble the cots in one of the empty houses for tonight.
It’s not the prettiest, but it’ll protect you from the weather.
Tomorrow after we’ve rested, we’ll discuss specifics. ”
“Thank you,” Matuk says, and the others nod their thanks as well.
“We have some spare clothes. Not enough to give everyone a full wardrobe, but enough for at least one extra set. The stream that runs through the woods is clean, and you can use it to bathe. Soap and towels are stored out there.”
Sprocket eyes the solar panels, her fingers pinching her chin. “Do those work?” she asks, and her voice is deeper than I expected with her small size.
“One of them,” Cameron says as he steps forward and offers his hand. “I’m Cameron, Ronan’s mate. I did what I could, but the others are beyond my capabilities.”
“Maybe I can give you a hand with that,” Sprocket says, and Cameron smiles.
“I think we’d all appreciate that.”
Elas helps Matuk lower onto one of the flat rocks that form the circle where we eat. Samuel follows, holding Daiwyn’s hand, and guides her to sit as well. Everyone else finds a spot to settle as August pours cups of water and passes them out.
Taryn returns with a few loaves of bread and a jar of strawberry jam, along with a basket full of eggs and a few fresh peppers and onions.
Lillith starts a fire to heat the large skillet above the flame, and Taryn slices and distributes bread while we wait for the meal to cook.
Everyone takes their food with sincere thanks, and when Taryn reaches Daiwyn, the Anunian woman bursts into tears.
Samuel tucks her into his side, and Taryn crouches in front of her. “It’s alright,” Taryn murmurs. “We understand what you’re going through right now. You’re safe here.”
“Safe?” Daiwyn whispers, and Taryn nods with a broken smile.
“In time, you’ll accept it. Until you do, just know you’re among friends.” She leaves the mates together to eat, and Samuel flashes her a heartbreakingly tender smile in thanks.
Once the skillet is hot, Taryn tosses in the vegetables, then follows with the whipped eggs once they’re ready. The sun has set and darkness has settled by the time the meal is finished, and the firelight dances over the exhausted faces of this new alliance.
Ronan eyes the vehicles and tries to stand, but Elas grabs his shoulder and shoves him back to sitting.
“You’ve done enough, old friend. Let us handle it, yeah?
” Ronan grumbles, but nods as Elas and August collect the cots and set them up inside one of the vacant homes.
Nyx’s weight is heavy against my arm, and I know he’s exhausted.
We excuse ourselves to his cottage, where we shower and stumble to the bedroom.
I don’t think anything has ever been so comfortable and welcoming as this bed and these blankets as we curl up together, and in minutes, we’re both sound asleep.
The soft patter of feet pulls me from my slumber, and after I fill my chest with a deep inhale, I reach beside me to find cold sheets. “Nyx?” I mumble, and he walks into the room as I roll to face the door.
“You were not supposed to be awake yet,” he complains, and I huff a laugh as I sit up and rub my eyes.
When they’re cleared, I find him standing there wearing my shirt that he fell asleep in last night.
His hair is loose and mussed from sleep, but he’s nervous.
There’s a tray in his hands, and he shuffles between his bare feet.
“What’s all this?”
“A surprise. You always take care of me, and I want to take care of you, too.” I open my mouth to argue that he already does, that spoiling him is my greatest joy, but he put in a lot of work, and I won’t take that away from him.
“What’d you bring me?” I ask instead, and his eyes light up as they lift to mine.
“Breakfast.” I glance at the tray and my grin nearly splits my face in half. Strawberries and apples are haphazardly chopped into varying sizes, and beside them is a thick piece of bread, but instead of a clean slice, it looks like someone could’ve used their hands to pull it apart.
Next to the plate is a cluster of dandelions—soil-covered roots and all—and a shiny white rock that probably came from our spot in the creek.
It’s fucking perfect.
“What’s the occasion?” I ask as he sets the tray beside me.
Without it to hold, he wrings his hands as he circles to his side of the bed and climbs on carefully so he doesn’t jostle his work.
I take a bite of a strawberry and then offer one to him.
He opens his mouth for me to feed it to him, and as he chews, his fingers move to his shirt hem and rub the fabric.
“Nyx? You only do that when you’re nervous. What’s wrong?”
He doesn’t answer at first, only stares at the blankets underneath us. Finally, he says, “The new people.”
I sit up straighter, my breakfast forgotten as I focus on him. “What about them?”
Nyx’s eyes meet mine and go wide at my defensiveness. “No, no, nothing bad. Eat.”
“This feels like a bribe,” I mutter.
“What is this bribe?”
I chew on one of the smaller apple chunks, but he shakes his head when I offer a piece to him. “A bribe is when you give someone gifts because you want something from them and are trying to put them in a good mood.”
“Oh,” he says, then considers it and nods. “Yes. This is a bribe.” I chuckle as I take a big bite of my chunky bread, waiting for him to gather his thoughts. “They will need space, and I thought…”
“You thought?” I hedge when he doesn’t continue.
“Maybe some of them could have… y-your house?”
My heart falters before it kicks into double time, trying to hide my enthusiasm before I’m sure what he’s asking. “My house? Won’t I need it?”
“You never… stay there anymore. You belong here. With me.”
“Yeah, I do, don’t I?” I ask quietly as he nods so enthusiastically his hair bounces, like he needs to convince me.
“And I know you are a whore—”
I choke on my sip of water, nearly spewing it from my nostrils as he wrinkles his nose at me. “I’m sorry,” I rasp through a cough. “What?”
“Cameron says you are a whore.”
“Why would Cameron call me that?”
“Because you keep all the things in your house. Boxes of things he says you don’t need.”
“Well, fuck Cameron for being a gossipy little hen,” I mutter, before speaking with a distinct enunciation. “A hoarder.”
“Is this not what I said?” His exasperation makes me laugh. So fucking cute.
“Not quite, precious. But I don’t have that many things…
it’s just that I was alone, and having stuff to keep me busy made it easier.
And yeah, sure I… collect a few things…” He bats his eyes at my rambling, and I take a deep breath.
“That isn’t important right now. Um, back to what we were talking about…
what were you trying to ask me?” His gaze drops to the mattress as his cheeks darken, but I grip his chin and lift him to face me again.
“I want to hear it,” I whisper. “Please?”
“You can live with me. Here. I know it is small, but we can find places for your things. Or if you want, they can h-have my house and we can take yours.”
“No, you’re comfortable here. I would never take that away from you.” He breathes a relieved sigh, and I move the tray to the dresser before curling back onto the bed and dragging him against me, running my fingers through his hair. “You really want me with you?”
“I want,” he says immediately, “always. I want.”
“Then you’ll have,” I promise as I run my palm up and down his arm. “Those things aren’t important, Nyx. Stuff, trinkets… they’re souvenirs from a time when I didn’t have anybody, and now I do. I have you, and you have me, and that’s all I need in this world.”
“You will stay with me?” Giant sage eyes stare into mine, trusting, and so fucking beautiful.
“I’ll always stay with you, Nyx. You’re mine. Forever.”