He chuckled. “Come on. I don’t want you walking longer than needed.”
“Then bridal carry me, bitch.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” he said with a wink, reaching down to collect my feet. “I think I’dloveto witness your former recruits staring at you being carried from place to place. Might help a bit with the ego.”
“If you’re even strong enough to carry my big ass?—”
In one fell swoop, he lifted me with ease. “Might need you to open the door though.” He jerked his head to it, a smug grin lighting his features.
“And how in the blue fuck do you expect me to open the door?”
“With your hand, dumbass.” He stepped closer to it, shifting me slightly as the muscles in his arms tightened. “The longer you take, the less time you’ll get to visit your damsel.”
“Go fuck yourself.” Reaching for the handle, I hissed between clenched teeth, the agony only spreading. Barely slipping my pinky around the frigid metal, I tugged just enough for the latch to click, leaning back against Matthew’s chest as the door swung open. “T-There, fucker.”
He kicked it the rest of the way open. “Proved my point. I’m bringing you back here after we check on Oren. If you can’t even open a fucking door, you sure as hell don’t need to be in a cot.”
His footfalls echoed, each step moving closer to where I hoped Oren would be, the barren walls not helping to identify how far we’d traveled. An endless sea of white as Matt navigated through the hallways, each turn longer than the last.
The door to Oren’s room appeared, and Matt wasted no time as his boot collided with the door twice, sufficing as his knock. Seconds passed by, drawn out by the necessary need to see him.
I was about to reach for the door handle despite the pain in my hand when a click sounded, a pair of casual sweat pants greeting me. Oren was covered in a thin layer of sweat, torso bare as he flicked his gaze down to me. His eyes widened, and with a quick glance over Matt’s shoulder, he ushered us both inside, grabbing my shirt to haul me against him.
Wrapping his arms around me, he breathed in my scent as his shoulders shook, the tension of what occurred lingering in his shoulders and voice. “You… God, you fucking idiot! I thought youdied! Don’t… Don’teverdo that again!” Taking another second before pulling away, his eyes were glossy as he slapped my chest. “No… but seriously… are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m—” Hissing between clenched teeth, I fumbled to push myself from Matt’s arms even though I knew I’d collapse if my feet so much as touched the ground. “Fine…”
“God.” Matt brought me over to the couch, tossing my stubborn ass onto it to lessen the arrogance I was still clinging to. “Talk, but make it quick. I’m taking you back once you’re done.”
“Okay,mother,” I shot at him, groaning as he slapped my shoulder. “Fucking?—”
“Talk.”
Rolling my eyes, I shifted back to Oren. Offering him a smile that I prayed hid my anguish, I stumbled into a gaping wound I wished would stop festering. “W-Why weren’t you there when I woke up?”
Oren took a knee, blowing out a breath before lifting his gaze to mine. Tears filled his eyes as he collected my palms in his. “Icouldn’trisk my father finding out. I wanted nothing more because you… almost died, Thorne. I had to stand there and watch my father devour what little divinity you had remaining.”
“But didn’t, Oren.” Slipping my fingers beneath his chin, I pulled his beautiful cerulean eyes back to meet mine. “I willneverstop fighting for you. Not in the breaths I take. Not in the scars marring my skin. Not in the concept of sacrifice or devoting myself to every essence of your soul. You’re worth it. Every bruise, every laceration inflicted, every fleeting breath… There is none other I wish to dedicate myself, mylifeto, because… God, because… because I fuckinglove you.”
His tears pooled, collecting until they slipped down his cheeks. “I know… I know, but I’m not sure I can handle it. I love you too much to watch my father bleed you dry. How can you dedicate yourself to me when I’m trapped beneath his shadow? A shadow that continues to grow despite our efforts?”
“Because I’m here to pull you from the darkness,” I breathed, swiping my thumb across a fallen drop of his sadness. “Youare worth it all and more, and I fuckingrefuseto listen to you say that you can’t handle it—can’t handleme, us.”
“I can handle you, us, no matter what, but I’m worried about my father. If he leverages you, I will crack, because I fear you’ve entangled yourself into my heart.” He brought my hand to his lips, brushing them over my knuckles. “I wouldn’t avoid you if I had a choice, but it’s my turn to be the protector,yourprotector.”
“You can stand in front of me as much as you wish, but as soon as a bullet heads your direction,Iwill be the one to take it.” Leaning into his touch, I exhaled. “You deserve tolive,Oren, and I want to be the one to give you that life. A life outside of this hell hole. A life where we have a chance together without the fears of anyone infiltrating or leveraging us against one another. And we will get there because we are going to manipulate your father to the point he does not know how to decipher the shifting gradient of truth or falsification.Wewill destroy him.Together.”
“Together.Always.It’s a promise.” He smiled softly, holding my gaze. “For now, you focus on healing, and then I’ll let you chase me until I’m pinned to the ground. Because I am yours, Thorne. Always and forever.Yours.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
OREN
Soldier training sucked ass. And not the good kind either. The kind that made me want to rip my cropped hair from my skull.
My father wanted to eradicate their spirits, tear them down until only bones and muscle remained, creating the perfect soldiers for his missions. And how did he want me to do that? By eradicating their breaks and doubling their training time.
It took everyone over six months to adjust to my expectations. Thorne though? He joined just two weeks ago, and already he was hitting milestonesfarsuperior to the others despite what happened and the training he’d missed out on during the time he’d taken to rest.
