Everlyn Chapter 22
I lay in one of the beds in the clubhouse.
After the questioning of Ducky, there had been a debate—well, two of them.
The first was where I would stay. Raider and Zephyr were emphatic that it was too dangerous for Allegra or me, since she likely had been noted as connected to the club, to be in our homes alone.
And the club couldn’t spare guards at the moment.
They had to be prepared for another attack and to go after Wick.
I understood that, even if I hated it. I wanted to get away and think.
Knowing I couldn’t be reckless, no matter how mad I was at Zephyr, but unable to stand being in his house, in the bed we’d shared so many times, I gave in and agreed to stay in one of the bedrooms in the clubhouse.
Allegra was given one next to it on the other side of the shared bathroom.
The second debate was one Zephyr had. He was torn.
I saw it. He wanted to go with the group to visit Wick.
However, he also wanted to remain here and talk to me.
I ended the debate for him. I told him that I wasn’t ready to talk to him about anything.
That I needed to rest and recover. And I told him that pushing me to talk now wouldn’t be wise.
Zephyr had reluctantly backed off. When he left with the group going after Wick, my heart pounded even though he was immortal. Or was he? Was Ducky right, and was there a way to weaken the bonds of the curse and actually kill one of them? What if it were Zephyr?
As much as I was infuriated with him, I still loved him. I didn’t want him or any of the other Prowlers dead. It took everything in me not to kiss him goodbye and tell him to be careful when he came to tell me he was leaving. I saw the hurt in his gaze.
As he turned to leave, he whispered, “I love you, Evie.”
I didn’t say it back, but I felt it in my heart.
After he left, I was alone and cried. That had been three hours ago.
The drive to Blakely was three hours. They should be there by now.
I wondered what was happening. Would they call Raider when it was done?
How soon would we know if everyone survived and what they learned?
Raider had stayed behind at the insistence of his club. They pointed out that if it was a setup and the curse thing was true, they couldn’t allow Aksel to have the ultimate prize—Raider. Aksel hated Raider more than the others because Raider had led the revolt.
The ones who went besides Zephyr were Pirate, Invader, Plunderer, Barbarian, Berserker, and Thor. The rest remained here protecting the compound, me, and Allegra.
During those three hours, I hadn’t slept. Though I was bone-tired, I couldn’t. And despite my injury, my breathing and pain felt better than they had before they left. Weird. Slayer had promised to keep checking in on me while Zephyr was gone.
My mind had gone in circles over the secret Zephyr hid from me. Being a doctor was a big deal. It wasn’t something you forgot to mention. Why hide it? Why hadn’t he shared that with me? What else was he hiding from me? Those were the crux of it.
I couldn’t share my life and myself fully with a man who hid things from me.
Without full trust, a relationship would end in resentment and hate.
As much as I loved him, if that was my future, I had to walk away, despite how it would tear me apart.
My pillow soaked up a ton of tears. I made sure to cry into it so no one heard me.
There was a soft knock at my door, the one to the hallway. I didn’t say anything. Maybe whoever it was would leave if I pretended to be asleep.
“Everlyn, it’s Slayer and Spoiler. We know you’re awake. Please let us in. We need to talk,” Slayer said firmly but not unkindly.
I knew I was being a coward by hiding. That wasn’t me, so I hastily wiped my face with my hand to remove stray tears. There was nothing I could do about the redness of my eyes and nose. I sat up, so I was reclining upright.
“Come in,” I called out. The door wasn’t locked.
The door opened enough to let them in, then was shut. Both wore solemn expressions. They came to the bed.
“How are you feeling? Do you need anything? A drink? Food?” Spoiler asked. Before I could reply, Slayer added to it.
“Do you need more pain medication? It’s been hours. Zephyr told me which to give you. Don’t suffer to prove a point.”
“Thank you, but I have water, and I’m not hungry. As for pain medication, I’m not trying to prove a point. The pain isn’t that bad. I don’t need it. You said you needed to talk to me. Go for it.” I gestured to two chairs against the wall.
Before either of them said more or sat, there was another knock, this time from the closed bathroom door.
“Allegra, come in,” I called out.
A moment later, my best friend was in the room. She didn’t appear surprised to see the other two women. That told me this was coordinated. Allegra came over and perched on the foot of my bed while the others moved the chairs closer to us.
“Ever, we’re not here to gang up on you.
I want you to know that. And we understand how upset you are that Zephyr didn’t tell you about his medical degree.
We don’t blame you for being mad. But I was speaking with Slayer and Spoiler, and they told me something I think you need to hear.
It might help you to understand why he did it.
“I know that you love him. But I also know what you can’t handle in a relationship.
You need communication, commitment, and absolute trust. You’ve been let down too many times to accept less.
I don’t blame you. I want the same from a relationship and hope one day I can find it and love,” Allegra said to me, blowing open the doors to the core conversation.
“She’s right. He was a moron for not telling you, but it wasn’t malicious. Zephyr isn’t hiding a bunch of secrets from you. He loves you. He’s guilty of wanting to protect himself and others,” Spoiler stated.
“Why does he have to protect himself from the woman he claims to love and wants to spend the rest of his life with? Who does he need to protect? If he truly loves me, there should be no secrets,” I snapped.
“He does love you. His heart is breaking right now. He knows he messed up, and he’s terrified of losing you because of it,” Slayer said.
“How do you know that? Did he tell you that?” I asked.
She shook her head. “No, he didn’t tell me that, but I know him. We’ve lived together for nine hundred years. We’ve spent countless hours together. I know how he thinks and what he feels,” Slayer replied.
Something unbidden crept into my mind. She sounded so sure and so connected to him. Before I could think better of it, I blurted it out. “Have the two of you been involved? Is that how you know him so well? Were you lovers? Are you still?” I fired off.
The thought of that, and the accompanying embarrassment that I might have been such a na?ve idiot, had me tossing back the covers and wiggling to the edge of the bed to stand.
I heard protests from all three, telling me to calm down and to stay in bed. I ignored them and stood. My legs were a bit shaky, so I gripped the headboard until I steadied myself. Allegra had risen and came toward me with her hands out. I waved her off. The Prowlers had stood.
“I think we should end this conversation. I don’t need to hear excuses for him. If he needs to send his…whatever to fight for him, that tells me everything. Allegra, I’m leaving. You can stay or come with me. It’s up to you. I can protect myself.”
I took two steps toward the closet where one of my outfits from Zephyr’s place had been brought and stored, along with a pair of my shoes and my purse.
“You can’t go home!” she cried out.
“I’m not. I’ll go to Jeremiah’s retreat. No one will look for me there.”
I had the closet door open when Slayer replied to my accusation.
“I have never been anything more than his friend and sister. The same is true of Spoiler. We love him, but as a sibling. We’ve never been involved with any of the club members.
I know him like you know Allegra. She’s your sister.
She knows you the same way. If my words gave you another impression, I’m sorry. ”
I looked at her, but I said nothing as I took out my stuff. Seeing I wasn’t stopping, Slayer added one more thing.
“Zephyr was protecting what he sees as his failure, and my heart,” she said quietly.
That made me freeze.
“What failure? What does your heart have to do with it?” I asked.
“Please sit. This will take a bit, and you standing won’t be comfortable,” Spoiler said.
Reluctantly, I put back my things and moved back to the bed. I retook my propped-up position. I gestured to them.
“Allegra has been brought up to speed on our secret and how that happened. It seemed only fair that she knew it. She’s a part of this club now.
Anyway, going back to that fateful night.
All of us were traumatized by it. We’d seen and done things we never thought would happen.
Watching what Aksel and his followers did sickened, shamed, and enraged us all.
“Some hadn’t come to America alone. There were couples and family members who were a part of it.
Thankfully, no children, but there had been spouses, children, and other family members left behind at home.
That night effectively ended those relationships.
None of them could initially escape Aksel to return home and resume their old lives.
Their families assumed everyone died and carried on with their lives.
Decades later, when some of us escaped, it was too late to return.
Spouses and other family members were dead, children were grown and aging.
They forgot about their lost loved ones.