Chapter 25
Elijah
By the time we get all the way across town and through the city traffic, nearly forty minutes have passed, and they’re all asleep. They’ve had a hell of a day. Luckily, they didn’t see how we got here or where we are.
“We’re here. It’s getting late. You guys can shower and pick a bed if you want. Or eat, or just whatever.”
They’re all stretching and looking around. Taking in their surroundings. There’s not much here in the garage that gives this place away.
“You can shower first. We’ll find some food.” Jax speaks softly to Vaughn and rubs her shoulders to comfort her.
“Thanks.” Her smile is tired, but it’s still the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
Inside the house, I lead everyone into the dining room. Their feet shuffle to an abrupt stop behind me. They’re shocked. I can tell without turning around that their jaws are on the floor.
“Hey Ma.” I kiss her on the cheek before moving to Abbi. “Abbi. And my main man.” Normally, I would grab him out of her hands and toss him in the air a few times, but I desperately need a shower before I touch my dude.
“Mama, Abbi, Abel...these are my best friends Jax-” I motion to the dark-haired man “Marshall” I motion to the blond, “and this is my girlfriend, Vaughn.”
“Uhp. Huh? No. I’m not. I’m not his girlfriend. I...” Vaughn is struggling with her words, and she doesn’t know quite how to respond in this situation.
Looking to Abbi, I attempt to explain my girlfriend’s strange behavior. “I believe she’s stuttering under the misunderstanding that you, and I are married. Maybe even that my nephew here, is my son.”
Abigail’s hand flies to her mouth to cover the giggle.
“Oh, Eli. Why would you let her think that? I raised you better than this. You apologize to that girl.”
“In fairness, Mama, I never meant for her to get that impression. My mistake was not telling her about all of you. About...Abel. I...uh...I owe you an apology, too, Mama.” The emotion in my heart is heard in my voice as I confront the hurt I’ve been running from.
“And you, Abbi. If I hadn’t been avoiding all of you, none of this would have happened. ”
My mama holds my face in her small hands as tears stream from her eyes. “You have to understand there’s nothing to forgive. It wasn’t your fault. We just want you back. You running from this means we didn’t just lose Abe. We lost you, too.”
Something like a cough-whimper absconds from my lips. No one can make a man break down as quick as his mama can, and I just barely hold back the tears.
“I’m sorry, Ma. I’m not going to hide from any of you anymore. Still working on the forgiveness and grief stuff.”
Abbi has her lips pinned between her teeth. She’s still stuck on the me and her being married thing.
“It’s really not that funny.”
Now the floodgates open, and Abbi cackles.
“ME and YOU?! MARRIED?!” Her laugh is loud and shrill.
“It’s hysterical. I mean, if we could cut the hair, and cover up the tattoos, and there could be” she gestures to all of me “just less of you overall, I could see the physical attraction part, but no way could I marry someone who” she starts ticking off points on her fingers “rides a motorcycle, sings karaoke, is a terrible singer, cooks better than me, smiles incessantly, awful card p-”
“That’s quite enough, little sister. My girlfriend happens to like all that shit you just said. Don’t you, Vaughn?”
All eyes in the room fix on Vaughn and I’ve never seen her this uncomfortable. I don’t hate it.
“Just...I.” She is visibly SQUIRMING! “The singing could be better.”
Laughter. All over the room. My ego is wounded. I’m metaphorically bleeding all over the floor, and they’re laughing. My family and my best friends. Not Vaughn, though. there’s not even a smile on her perfect face as she looks back at me. She’s still unsure. She still doesn’t know how we got here.
“V.” The laughter in the room quiets when everyone senses the tension between us.
“This is my mama, Ruth. This is my sister, Abbi. Technically, she’s my sister-in-law, but she’s my sister in every way that matters to me.
And this guy right here is my nephew, Abel.
My brother’s son.” This is a lot to take in, so I pause, allowing Vaughn to absorb it all.
“My twin brother, Abel was killed...on a mission. We are...were...well...I still am. Eh...I don’t know.
Still figuring it all out, I guess. Anyway, there was a kid with a bomb strapped to his chest. I hesitated and, because of that, my brother only had time to shield my body with his own before the blast. He died to protect me.
Most of our unit died and,” I have to clear my throat of the pain that just talking about him brings.
It’s now that I look around the room and see that tears are streaming down everyone’s faces.
Some of them hit my shirt, so I reach up to wipe them away, but.
..how can their tears wet my shirt? These are mine.
Swiping my face, I realize there are just as many tears on my face.
More, even. I’m crying. I haven’t let myself feel this. Haven’t let myself cry.
Laughing a little at the realization that my twin brother died to protect me, and I haven’t had the decency to cry for him yet. Man, he was right. I really am a shit.
Addressing Vaughn with what I hope is a pleading expression, I take two slow steps toward her before dropping to my knees and basically crawling the rest of the way until I hold her hands in mine.
“Vaughn, I want to tell you everything. All of it. But first...I realized something earlier today. When I thought that you’d never speak to me again over my not real wife and family.
” She’s listening. Her expression is wary, but she’s listening.
“I love you. I THINK I started falling the moment I saw you. I think I took another cliff dive when you shoved your hand down my throat, and I know that I’ve fallen a little more each day since. ”
Her expression changes at this declaration. It’s not softer, it’s ...confused. Is she surprised that I love her?
“What? You look confused.”
Vaughns eyes scan the room apprehensively. “No. Well, yeah. It’s just that...I know.”
“You know?”
“Yeah. I’ve known for a while that you love me.
It’s just...I was waiting for you to figure it out and then I met your wife.
..eh, well, your sister, and I thought that you were going through some stuff, and I was part of that and.
..I don’t know. Things got messed up, but I thought when you showed up to get me and started killing everybody-”
“Damn it, Eli! Who?! Who have you killed now?!
My eyes scrunched shut the moment Vaughn started talking about...the incident. I mean it’s no secret that something bad happened. Just looking at the condition of the four of us there’s no hiding that.
“Bad guys, Ma. Promise. They took Vaughn. I had to go get her back. And they had the twins, too!”
“What twins?”
Vaughn and I both point to Jax and Marshall. Abbi and Mama cock their heads to the side as if to examine the truthfulness of my statement.
“Well, not biological twins, but...you’ll understand when they start talking.”
“So these men...they kidnapped your girlfriend and your best friends?”
“Yeah, Ma. Promise.”
“My word! Did you get all of them?”
“Every one.”
“Good boy. That’s my baby.” The last part is said to our guests with a measure of pride in her voice. Navy wife. Navy mom.
Turning my attention back to Vaughn, I see that she’s stricken. “Do you kill a lot of people?”
“No. Not a lot. Some. Definitely not a lot. What qualifies as a lot, exactly?”
Vaughn’s eyes widen, and I scramble to get back on track.
“Okay, so I want to tell you everything. I’m going to. I swear. I just...I’m on my knees here, and I just need to know...can you give me another shot?”
“You want to start over?”
“No. No, I don’t. I don’t regret any of the days I’ve spent with you. All I’m asking for is more. More days. More nights. More meals. More chapters of your story and the chance to tell you all the chapters of mine.”
This is the face I’ve been hoping for. Vaughns lips tip up into a smile, and her beautiful, big brown eyes fill with unshed tears.
“I think we can do that.”