“Remember how I told you that I had that resurfacing memory of Ellie covered in blood. Well, apparently Aiden was there that day and killed some people who were on to me and Ellie being Everfords.”
“Shit,” he drags out the word. “Did she tell you why she decided to let her sister raise you?”
Nodding, I spend the next handful of minutes telling him everything Ellie told me. By the time I’m done, I’m dozing off.
“Sorry I’m so sleepy,” I murmur with my eyes closed. “Give me like one minute, and then I’ll go back to my bed.”
“Don’t worry about that. Just go to sleep. I’ll make sure you stay safe,” he promises, slipping an arm over my waist.
I mean to tell him thanks. I mean to tell him a lot of things.
But I feel his lips brush against my forehead, and then seconds later, I’m drifting off to dreamland.
CHAPTER 29
NOAH
My mother is relentlessly callingme as River, Sylas, and I sit at the airport, waiting for our flight to board. As my phone rings again, I reach into my pocket and silence it without glancing at it.
“Maybe you should just talk to her,” River suggests. He’s slouched in the seat with his legs in front of him and his arms folded. He keeps nervously peering around at the people wandering by, dragging their worn suitcases with them.
We’re at the northside airport, because it has less security than the Royal City airport. Also, James would be more likely to search for us there, and we want to stay as inconspicuous as possible. That’s where I come in. My hacking skills helped us book tickets under aliases. I was also able to get us fake passports. To be honest, I think that’s the only reason I’m allowed to go with Sylas and River, so they can utilize my skills at keeping a low profile.
It's fine by me. I don’t want to stay in this city with my mother, who threw her life away to be with a man whose fixation with power and wealth has made him pure evil. As for my real father, while I’ve done horrible things to protect his secrets, I’m tired of it.
I’m tired of it.
I’m tired of everything.
“If I answer her, she could hear the background noise and figure out where we are,” I tell River as I rest my head back on the back of the chair and stare up at the water. “Besides, my bet is your dad is having her call me.”
“You think she’d do that for him?”
“I think you know she’d do that for him.”
He doesn’t respond, but his silence is my confirmation.
“These bathrooms here are almost as bad as that bucket,” Sylas says as he returns from the restroom and takes a seat across from us.
It’s been about ten hours since we rescued him, and while he’s showered, changed, shaved, and eaten, his thinness is an indicator of the hell he’s been through.
“Yeah, it’s crazy this is how Maddy grew up, when she didn’t have to.” River takes a subtle jab at him.
Sylas tugs at the sleeves of his shirt. “I didn’t know about Maddy’s existence until a few months ago, and I was planning on getting her out of northside, but then Grey found out about her and locked me up.”
River crosses his legs at his ankles. “Why did it take so long for you to find out about her?”
“Ellie never told me she was pregnant,” he says sadly. “We had broken up by then because I was a coward and thought my family duties were more important than being with the woman I love. At this point, Ellie also knew that she was an Everford, so she didn’t tell anyone. She may have told me if I hadn’t broken up with her, but because I did, she didn’t trust me.” His shoulders slump. “I was an idiot back then. I wouldn’t have trusted me either.”
“But we can trust you now?’ River speculatively questions, pulling his legs in as someone walks by.
He nods. “Maddy is my daughter. I’ll protect her with my life.” He carries River’s gaze challengingly. “Can we trust you, though? You’re James Averson’s son.”
“I think the fact that I saved you lets you know you can.” River meets his challenge. “Plus, my mother is helping you guys. And trust me when I say, I will always side with my mother over my father. I hate that man with every fiber in my body.” His voice simmers with the truth.
The two of them stare each other down for long enough that it starts to grate on my nerves. We should be keeping an eye out, not arguing with each other.
“I’m going to go walk around and make sure no one looks suspiciously like an Averson bodyguard monitoring us,” I declare as I shove to my feet and walk away.
