I lean over to whisper, “He said he goes by Halo.”
Her face instantly looks shocked before she lets me go, moving quickly to stand beside Ollie. When Halo sees her up close his face goes white then immediately his eyes go wide and his mouth drops open to a perfect “O.” Shaking his head he walks toward Ollie and Spirit and it looks like his hands are shaking as he raises them toward her.
“Spirit, holy shit, is that you? No fuckin’ way, I saw you die right before my own eyes. They tortured you before they killed you in front of us all, so we would toe their line. My God, how did you survive?”
I walk closer because finally we’re getting some background on Spirit. Everyone seems to be waiting with bated breath for her answer and when she gives it, I almost start to sob.
“Dude, who said I didn’t die in that fucking hellhole? What you see is a body that hasn’t realized it’s no longer for this earth, which makes me a dead woman walking, that’s it.”
TWO
HALO
BENJI
At first I thought either my eyes were playing tricks or worse, my mind was fucked up yet again. Goddamn, Spirit’s alive. I’m in shock because I remember what they did to her. I’ve had plenty of nightmares reliving the smell of burning flesh, the men doing horrific things to her, and Spirit never saying a word or begging for her life. She never screamed or cried either. Somehow gonna need to find a way to connect with her to find out what the hell happened. Though, right now, I need to put some space between these people and myself. I can feel the pressure in the back of my head and down my neck, which means very soon I’m not gonna be good for anything. When the pain hits, I’m usually immobilized, which means I have to find somewhere to sleep it off. Since I have nowhere to go, no meds, and I don’t even know these people, gonna go back to the camp I have in the woods. I’ve been scouting out this Blue Sky Sanctuary best I could. Looks legit, but who the fuck knows what is real and what isn’t anymore. I sure the fuck don’t, which is part of my problem.
“Appreciate your time, Ollie, but before I can commit to anything, need to process everything.”
Ollie eyes me like he can read everything I’m thinking. When he tells one of the guys to get the pack out of his vehicle, I watchthe movement very carefully. Never can tell who you can trust. Spirit is watching, along with the other woman, Storm. When Phantom comes back with a huge pack, he hands it to Ollie, who places it on the ground right in front of him.
“Halo, here’s some supplies for you. When you’re ready, just come up the driveway to the gate. Hit the button on the speaker and give your name, someone will come out to get you. Take all the time you need, brother, I ain’t goin’ nowhere.”
For some reason. I’ve tried to figure Ollie out and I can’t, no matter how hard I try to add one plus one equals two. There is an aura around him that gives me the feeling I can trust him, and I don’t know something else. The two other guys with the long-ass hair seem like they are true to their words too. Then the dark-haired one, think his name is Panther, speaks to me.
“Halo, if you decide not to take Ollie up on his offer to stay at the Blue Sky Sanctuary, I have a stud farm about forty-five minutes away. You have an open invitation to stay with me and the guys. All of us are ex-military and, like you, want—no let me rephrase—need our privacy. I’ve got a bunkhouse and a few tiny homes and RVs on the property. And if you feel like working we can always use two more hands, that’s for sure. If you’re interested just let Spirit or Dottie, I mean Storm, know. Take care of yourself. And don’t worry, we are all trustworthy. No need to drive yourself crazy.”
How did he know what I was thinking? Didn’t say it out loud, I know that. Watching them all turn and start to walk away; I’m shocked that Storm doesn’t follow. She’s watching with me as the group head to their vehicles. When they start back to the entrance, she turns my way and walks a bit closer. I can see she is beyond nervous, but I give her kudos for not running or hiding. Obviously she has something to say to me.
“Halo, if you don’t want to stay I can drive you somewhere, maybe to Panther’s ranch. Or I can see if you might be ableto hang out at the Devil’s Handmaidens ranch. I’m sure Tink wouldn’t mind you staying for a bit. It’s up to you; just thought I’d offer.”
I know by her body language this is not comfortable for her and for some fuckin’ reason I don’t ever want to make this woman feel that way, which is freaking me out. I move farther back and shake my head, though I try to put a small smile on my face, which is probably scary as fuck.
“Thanks, um, do you prefer Storm or Dottie?”
She tilts her head while watching me. I get the odd feeling she didn’t think I caught the slip of her name. Well, I don’t miss anything so don’t know what to say. I wait for her to make a decision and when she does, I’m shocked at her answer.
“Halo, call me whatever you want. Yeah, my name is Dottie and Storm is my club name. What’s your name, if I can ask? Or did your parents give you the name Halo?”
Stunned, I just stare at her. Why would she want my name? I doubt it’s for any evil reasons, got to remember I’m back in the States and most people use a given name, not a call name or nickname. I take a deep breath as I haven’t said my full name in forever.
“My given name is Benjamin Dawson. And you can call me either Halo or Benji. Don’t ever call me Benjamin, please.”
Her eyes instantly tell me she gets it before nodding.
“Benji it is. And you can call me either Dottie or Storm, whatever you prefer.”
She lets out a breath then looks at me like she can’t believe she’s about to ask me this question.
“Have you eaten recently? Are you hungry?”
I shake my head just as my stomach growls loudly. She smirks.
“Our club owns and runs a bar and grill in town. It’s called The Wooden Spirits Bar & Grill. If you want, I can take you to getsomething to eat then drop you wherever you want. No pressure, it’s your choice, Benji.”
For some reason, and I’m not sure why, I want to be around her. Especially after hearing her call me Benji, which no one calls me anymore. To all in my life, I’m Halo. So, between her golden-brown eyes and that dark hair I want my fingers in, I feel drawn to her, though it’s her tattoos that speak to my soul. My God, all I can see is the few on her lower jaw and around her neck, and I want to see how many more she has. The tats don’t fit her innocent-looking face, that’s for damn sure. I can see she’s waiting for my answer. I look down at my backpack and the large pack from Ollie. She must read my mind because she takes a small step closer.
“If you want we can put that in the trunk of my vehicle so it’s safe. Promise, I mean you no harm. I think I’ve been where you are, no not saying I’ve experienced what you have as I’ve never served my country. Just that when my twin and I first met the Devil’s Handmaidens it was kind of weird and scary. So I’m just trying to be a friend if you want one.”
