“No. Why?” I ask.
“You don’t know what you’ll need if you’ve never done it,” he says sagely.
“I mean…I guess?” Bellamy allows, watching as Shiloh grabs two pillows from the bed.
Ugh, now it’s all lopsided and sad.
“We need to get them out of here before Winter cries because you fucked up the bed,” Cassidy accuses them. “I brought them up here because I thought they might be tired.”
A yawn breaks out of me at just the suggestion, and I have to admit that she’s right. Now that the food is settling, I’m finding that I’m exhausted.
“Mmm. I could nap,” I admit sleepily.
“Two more flights to get to the nest,” Shiloh warns as we leave. “The air conditioning in this house is amazing, so you shouldn’t be hot upstairs. If you want to crack a window, go for it. I’m not worried about security with it being so high up. Though, if you want to make it a habit, I will happily find a way to secure it.”
He’s really serious about this. I vaguely remember that Abbott killed everyone in the room, and they discussed how to handle the rest of the building. Shiloh’s insistence to make a murder list also sounds like he plans to follow through.
I’m not scared of this, simply overwhelmed. Maybe it’ll take dangerous people to want to keep us safe.
My thighs are burning as I get to the top of the house, but the tiny stairwell that leads to the attic feels like a hug. I don’t know what it is about small spaces that makes me happy but I can feel Bellamy’s excitement too as we finally walk into the attic.
From the low roof, to the exposed beams, it feels perfect.
“I love it,” I whisper before realizing the words have come out of my mouth.
While the air is a tiny bit stale from being shut up, I don’t mind. There’s also no dust anywhere, which confuses me as I turn toward the stairs. Pack Tremaine crowds there, refusing to come any closer.
“This is your space,” Abbott announces. “We won’t come inside without permission unless there’s an emergency. We have a cleaning lady that comes in every few days. We can make sure she doesn’t come up here anymore if you want.”
“I managed to get a mattress up here before things got really rough this week, but not much else,” Shiloh admits.
“When you wake up, I want you to go shopping,” Abbott says, pulling out a black card.
“You need your phone,” Cassidy admonishes as he moves to pull that out as well. “Take mine.”
“Don’t you need it?” Bellamy asks.
“Nope,” she shrugs. “I’m with everyone who would immediately need me right now. Everyone else has Abbott’s number.”
Bellamy steps closer, the blanket slipping off his shoulder as he walks. I snuggle into the warmth of the comforter at the same time that I mourn how far my stepbrother is from me, loving the way the muted sunshine fills the room with light. There’s some kind of film over the windows that keeps it from getting too bright in here.
It’s genius.
“There’s no code on it to unlock it,” Cassidy says easily. “If you need anything, Abbott’s number is on the phone. There’s a lot of steps to come downstairs. Calling is easier.”
“It feels really weird to build a nest with your money,” Bellamy admits.
“Our money,” Shiloh shrugs. “Cass’ shopping addiction couldn’t even put a dent on Abbott’s card. Make this room what you want it to be.”
Pillows are shifted into Bell’s hands, and it's clear the alphas are ready to leave to nap.
“Um. I have a question,” I say, back to thinking about the gift from Bret that keeps on giving.
I want to know what it is exactly, and how it could possibly fuck with my and Bell’s bodies. There’s power in knowledge. I don’t want to play fast and loose with my health anymore.
Not when people are trying so much to help Bell and I. This nest is a huge investment in our mental health.
“Anything,” Cassidy says easily.
