“Helena isn’t focusing on you just yet,” Rachel explained.“But she and her team have already killed two people since they arrived in town.I briefly looked into them, and just like you, they worked for the Organization in the past.”
“That’s not surprising.We already know they’re cleaning up their mess.”
“They are.I don’t know when they’re going to come after you, but I know they will.Maybe you and Cyril should leave town.”
“What would that solve?Helena isn’t going to stop coming after me just because I’m not home when she gets here.She’s going to follow me wherever I go.I might as well confront her here.”
Rachel sighed.“Fine.I knew you were going to say that, but I really hoped you wouldn’t.”She hesitated.“I’ve looked into all of this.The people who work for the Organization are almost never good people, Vale.Considering the kind of jobs the Organization takes, they can’t be.I have a hard time imagining you working for them.”
“It’s something I’ll always regret doing, but I felt I didn’t have a choice at the time.I’m not sure I had one even now.Anyway, what’s done is done, and there’s no changing the past.”
“Whatever you did for them, it doesn’t matter to me.I know you now, and you’re my friend.”
Vale was relieved, but at the same time, he wished that Cyril felt the same way.He understood why he didn’t.Cyril was a gentle soul.He wasn’t used to violence and killing people, even though he dealt with death every day.What he did was completely different.Vale killed people, while Cyril gave them their lives back, albeit temporarily.It was how they’d met, and Vale wouldn’t have it any other way because he loved Cyril the way he was.He just hated the situation they were in.
“Same goes for me,” Russell said, sounding way too serious.“Whatever happened, I don’t care.You’re my friend, and I’m going to help you.”
“Thank you both,” Vale said, hoping they couldn’t hear the emotion in his voice.“But no matter what they ordered me to do, I always tried to do the right thing.I helped many of the people I was tasked to kill to hide from the Organization over the few years I worked for them.”
“How’s Cyril taking all of this?”Rachel asked.
“Not great.He’s having a hard time accepting that I worked for these people.I don’t blame him.”
“He understands, though, right?”
“He’s trying to.We talked last night, but I don’t know what he’s thinking.”
“You’ll be fine.The two of you are meant to be together, so I’m not worried.”
Vale wished he could say the same, but he had no idea what would happen to him and Cyril once all of this was over.He didn’t know if Cyril would still want to be with him or if he’d want to break up.Cyril was discovering things that Vale had hidden from him that painted Vale in a not-so-great light.Vale wouldn’t blame him if he wanted out.If that was the case, Vale would leave Cyril alone.He wouldn’t leave town, though.He wanted to protect his boyfriend, no matter what.Cyril didn’t need to know that he was there.
Yes, it would be kind of creepy, but Vale didn’t care.Cyril had already been in danger often enough since they’d met.If there was anything Vale could do to ensure he didn’t get hurt, he’d do it.
That included Cyril’s nightmares.Vale didn’t have a clue what to do about them, but he knew someone who could look into it.“Rachel, I need a favor.”
She didn’t hesitate.“What is it?”
“I know you’re busy, but I was wondering if you could look into necromancers’ powers.”
“I can do that, but can I ask why?You live with a necromancer.Surely, you can ask him any question you have.”
“I could, but he doesn’t know what’s happening, either.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Russell commented.
“I don’t know what it is.Cyril has never been through anything like this, and he’s confused.”
“What’s happening to him?”
Vale took a few minutes to explain what was going on with Cyril’s ability.He was sure that this new change had to do with Cyril hitting his head, but that didn’t help.It didn’t tell Vale how to help Cyril through the nightmares or if there was anything they could do to stop him from having to live through them.
Vale hated feeling powerless, and that was how he felt at the moment.He had to wait for Rachel to find out more about Cyril’s ability, and he couldn’t hunt down Helena and her team because they were too dangerous and he still didn’t know enough about them.The only thing he could do was wait, which was the one thing he didn’t do well with.
“We’re here for you,” Rachel said before hanging up.
Russell wasn’t far behind, and once the conversation was over, Vale lowered his phone and stared at the screen until it turned dark.
They’d believed him.They hadn’t asked for more information than he’d willingly given them.They’d taken his word as truth, unlike Cyril.Vale didn’t blame Cyril for not trusting him or not believing him, but it still hurt.It hurt that he had to prove that he wasn’t a monster.
