She barks louder, and Atticus chuckles at her. The sound rumbles in my chest, loosening some of the knots there.
He grabs a bottle of water from the short fridge on the back wall, kicks off his boots, and slips into a pair of runners by the door. Then his shirt is off because, of course, he simply can't run with a fucking shirt on, and then they're off. Sprinting into the night.
"That was nice of you."
I jump at Seven's nearness, finding the guards I dropped and putting them back up. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Mmhm."
Elijah didn't come out.
Even when Atticus made his favorite—Italian cold cuts—for dinner. I brought him one, andsnuck him one of the bags of chips Atticus bought for me to go with it, but he was already in bed. I wasn't sure if he was asleep or not, but with the lights out and the shape of him unmoving beneath the covers, I got the message.
He wanted to be alone.
"Is he always like that after a visit with Julian?" I ask Seven after spitting my toothpaste in the sink of his en suite bathroom. He follows suit, scrubbing his tongue before scooping water from the faucet to gargle and rinse.
"Only when they end badly," he replies, swiping the back of his hand over his mouth.
I can't help noticing how much taller andwiderhe is than I am in the mirror. Shirtless, he looks like a tatted giant behindme. He catches me looking and smirks, wrapping his arms loosely around my shoulders. He settles his chin on my head.
"How often does that happen?"
"More and more lately," he answers honestly, his smirk fading.
"Should I go and crawl in with him?"
It's a bit awkward asking, but something about leaving him to grieve through this alone doesn't seem right.
Seven considers it, but ultimately shakes his head. "I don't think so, Ro."
I part my lips to protest, but he's quicker.
"And I am not just saying that because I miss having you in my bed."
He twists me around in his arms so I can look up at him instead of at his reflection. "Eli likes to deal with these things alone. I think…I think he was already pretty fucked up about things getting started with the plan. None of us expected Ambrose to reply and set up a meeting so fast."
I nod, and he sighs.
"It probably made it all hit a bit harder this time. Maybe give him until morning?"
She nods, but I can see her wheels turning. Aurora doesn’t like leaving people alone with their pain. It’s one of the things I love most about her.
It’s also going to get her into trouble someday.
15
3AM
AURORA
It's not morning yet when I wake up. It's hard to tell in Seven's cave of a bedroom, but I think I heard something. I blink into the darkness and hear Ellie make a soft whining sound from where she lies on her fluffy pink bed in the corner of Seven's room, beneath the jawbone flowers.
Whatever woke me, she heard it, too.
I'm careful not to wake Seven as I squint into the dark and slip from beneath his arm. I strain to hear, my heart starting to thud harder in my chest.
"Did you hear something, Ellie?" I whisper, and she gets up to pad over to where I'm sitting on the edge of the bed, nudging me with her cold nose. "What is it?"
