At my nod of understanding, he gestures to the other members of the Collective who have gathered around Kiefer’s sketch pad by the edge of the river. They’ve been working through some sort of calculation for a while now. My father sighs as he takes in the wild gesticulating and blustering that’s going on. With a quiet groan, he jerks his thumb toward them. “I’m going to see if they need my help before I head back inside. Would you mind taking a break and going to see what’s holding Evren up? I sent him to bring a couple jugs of water out here a little while ago.”
I glance at Arrow and Hayze, who are hard at work before nodding. “Yeah. I’ll be back shortly. If I can’t find him, I’ll bring it myself.”
With a quick wave to let the others know where I’m going, I head into the woods. Making my way along the well-worn path back to the main compound,I move at a good clip as I drag in lungfuls of the cool, musty air. The scent is a complex mix between damp soil and decaying vegetation, as well as something else I can’t quite pinpoint. An animal nearby, maybe.
I’m lost in my thoughts when a bitter sob echoing through the trees stops me in my tracks. In the fraction of a second it takes me to recognize the source, fear slices into the very fabric of my soul. Crashing through the trees, I run, not paying any mind to the wicked branches scraping my skin raw or the burning fire that has ignited in my chest. All I know is this—I have to get to Delilah.
Anxiety slicks over me in a cold sweat, and my breath is ragged as I force my legs to pump faster. Leaping over a moss-covered log, the end of the forest path comes into view where light filters through the leaves. Almost there.
I’m coming, Delilah.
As I burst into the open field, my heart stops, then kicks hard to restart.Rage.It dumps into my system, circulating through every artery and vein, seeping into muscle and bone.
A nightmare plays out before my eyes. Delilah struggles against her bonds, and both Gannon and Dragan have pressed close. Their greedy hands are all over her, lips where they shouldn’t be. I blink, taking in more of the scene before me as I charge toward them.What happened here?Evren is sprawled on the ground, and as he goes to get up, Gannon lifts a foot, kicking him square in the chest like he would anannoying dog. Watching the action from where he’s pawing at Delilah’s breast, my brother throws his head back and laughs.
Desperately trying to escape their touch, Delilah writhes. Agony digs under my skin as her panicked eyes open wide, her face a mask of terror. This woman fully comprehends both how much trouble she’s in and how little she can do to stop their advances.
Her disgusted fury settles inside me like the gloom of darkest night, like a murky shadow, like the gnawing pit in my stomach. BecauseI’mthe one who strapped her to that tree. And even though this would have happened whether it was me to tie her up or not, the fact is, itwasmewho ultimately took away her ability to defend herself.Faster. Move fucking faster.
The bellow that spews from me is like the roar of an animal. They hardly have time to look up before I’m on them. The wild swings of my fists become uncontrollable as I pummel and strike and do damage until Dragan and Gannon stare up at me from the flat of their backs.
For several long seconds, I stand over them, my chest heaving with every harsh drag of air I draw into my lungs. They pant, gape-mouthed, their eyes wide, blood leaking from noses and split chins.
“Cross. What the fuck has gotten into you?” Dragan groggily gasps out as Gannon’s beady eyes track every shuddering inhale I make. Getting to his feet without a word, Evren sidles closer to Delilah. Waiting. Watching.
I turn, eyes blazing to answer my brother. “What’s gotten intome?”I growl, knowing I gotta think fast, flip this to make sure they understand my show of temper is nothing more than me being pissed off that they aren’t following the Collective’s teachings. “Wedon’ttouch the women without permission,” I grind out. “What wereyouthinking? This is not the Hunting. Just because she’s tempting as fuck”—I force a smirk—“does not mean you can do what you want.” It pains me to continue on, because I know she’ll hate me for this. “She may be our next sacred vessel… as of this morning.”
All three mouths fall open, eyes flicking from me to Delilah. She exhales, focusing on the grass at her feet.
Pressing a few fingers to his chin where I clocked him, Dragan glances down at the shiny red coating them. “Are you her self-appointed guardian now?” His lips twist, and he laughs.
Gannon’s eyes narrow. “You’ve always thought you were something special being one of the firstborns.” He exchanges a look with Dragan that’s more than a little concerning.
Fully cognizant of how Delilah watches the heated conversation with curious eyes, I verbally slap at Gannon, anyway. “Andyou’vealways been pathetically jealous ever since Malakai arrived.” Laughing, I shake my head as the barb lands. His lip curls, and I hold my breath to see if having the truth shoved in his face will cause more trouble.
With a roll of my eyes, I level my gaze on my brother now. “I’d have thought you’d be a little more cautious with your father back in the compound.” I work my jaw to the side before pointing toward the building. “Go back to doing whatever the hell you were sent to do. Both of you. Get the fuck out of here before I decide the Collective needs to know what you were up to.” Grumbling, they cast disgruntled looks my way, muttering something to each other as they take off.
Once they’re out of range, I shift my attention to Delilah. She’s shaking like a leaf, but whether it’s from the intensity of what just happened or something else, I don’t have a fucking clue. She meets my eyes, and the glossiness of the unshed tears residing in them reaches inside me and rips at something way down deep.
My heart is still hammering behind my rib cage, unrelenting in its pace, bruising with each thunderous beat. I heave out a breath in an attempt at calming myself. From the corner of my eye, I watch as Evren rubs his palm over his sternum, grimacing, his eyes flicking toward Delilah before they skirt away again. I frown, needing to go to Delilah, but not liking the way he’s massaging a spot dead center on his chest, the redness of his cheek, or the mess of dried grass and bits of leaves in his hair. Everything in me wants to just send him through the woods to my father so I can focus on Delilah, but I’d never forgive myself if he were seriously injured and I could have caught it.
A kick to the chest will certainly cause bruising,but I know from my studies that it could cause other issues like bruised or broken ribs, collapsed lungs, or even a disruption to the heart’s rhythm. Striding quickly to him, I grip his head between my hands before peering into his eyes. “Are you okay, Ev?” He looks fine, mostly just irritated that I’m hovering. I narrow my eyes. “Tell me what they did,” I grunt as I run my hand over his cheek before eyeing the bruising on his chest.
“Come on, Cross,” he whines, trying to evade both my question and probing hands. “I’m fine, really.” Groaning, he mutters, “I’ve gottago.Your father sent me for water.”
I close my eyes for a second. “I know. I’ll do it in a little bit. You need to head inside. Find Sixteen and tell her she needs to watch you until Nolan gets back. You’re probably gonna be fine but tell her if she notices you foaming at the mouth or acting weird at all to come find me.” He gives me an odd look, so I grab at his shoulder, squeezing. “I’m joking, Ev.” I’m only comfortable letting him go because Sixteen has proven that she has enough medical knowledge that she won’t hesitate if something were to happen. Staring Evren in the eye, I press my lips together. “Go.”
“Fine,” he huffs, then eyes Delilah as some sort of silent communication bounces between them that I can’t quite figure out. The second he jogs off, though, I immediately feel better. If something was truly wrong, he probably wouldn’t be running.
Now that I’m alone with Delilah, I drag in a fewbreaths and peer at her from under a hooded gaze, my heart twisting into knots inside my chest. Then suddenly, I’m overcome by the torrent of thoughts in my head, the agony of what I’ve done to her beating me up from the inside out. I drop to my knees in the grass near her feet, hands diving into my hair as I will myself to calm.
I tied her to this tree. I fucking left her. A wave of nausea surges from my stomach as the scene I’d been greeted by plays in my mind over and over again. They had their motherfucking hands on her. Who the fuck knows what they’d have done if I hadn’t shown up. My teeth clamp together, molars grinding until I’m certain they’re pulverized.
A ragged whimper has my head shooting up, and my eyes lock on Delilah. She watches me warily, her beautiful body shaking, but her jaw tightens. “You can go now.”
My brows furrow, and I search her eyes, trying to figure out what’s going on in her head. “I’m not going. Not yet.” I swallow hard, standing up just as a blast of cold wind whips past. It’s getting cooler out here with every passing second. The shiver that racks her body makes me want to do really stupid things like untie her and take her somewhere else. But I know I can’t very well do that and get away with it. Not during daylight hours.
I turn, looking over my shoulder back toward the trees. There’s no sign of anyone. While working, it was easy to stay warm enough, but she’s been incapable ofmoving for hours upon hours now as the temperature has dropped and the wind has picked up.
