He presses his lips together in obvious disapproval, but wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me against his side, supporting me like I asked. Harlow presses against my other side, keeping me grounded against the pain.
“Theo is going to kick my ass,” Alex grumbles under his breath as the two of us hobble across the small room to the door.
“Probably,” I say with a grin as we open the door and step through.
A Clear Divide
Alex
Iknow Ollie shouldrest, but I’m not stupid enough to think that if I refuse to help her, she’ll just stay lying down. No, the stubborn woman will find some way to do what she wants, regardless of what I say. Even if it means crawling across the floor.
But fuck do I wish she’d just stay in her sleeping bag.
Picking her off the back of Bean after the mare had galloped them clear of the horde was horrific. She was limp, her blood smeared across her face, too bright for it to be a zombie’s, and for one agonising moment, I thought she was dead. I thought I’d never get to see her smile, hear her laugh, and tell her what she means to me. I thought I’d missed my chance to be with her, regardless of whether or not Theo and Rhys were with her.
But then she’d moved.
The relief had been profound, crashing over me until my legs threatened to give way beneath me. But I’d locked my knees and picked her off that saddle, cradling her against my chest as she whimpered and groaned at the movement. Holding her in my arms after that was a religious experience and made me realise just how gone I am for this woman.
She’s…everything.
But does that mean I can handle sharing her? I’m still not sure, but the idea no longer makes me want to slam my fist into Theo's face—again—and steal Ollie away for myself like a caveman. That’s progress at least.
The shouting gets louder as Ollie and I stumble our way through the door and into the main barn area, Harlow pressed against her other side. The loft extends about halfway across the entire barn and, aside from the small room we put Ollie in, is completely open to the rest of the building. A few people have already set up their sleeping areas up here and are snuggled into their sleeping bags with steaming pots of food. They don’t notice Ollie or me; their entire attention is focused on the argument happening below.
One that’s sounding increasingly hostile.
I lead Ollie to the staircase, thankful that it’s made of sturdy metal and help her down. She grits her teeth and tries to suppress her hisses and whimpers of pain but fails. I hate it. Each sound is like a knife to my gut, but if I don’t help her, she’ll find some other way of getting herself down here that could injure her further.
We finally reach the ground floor and into a clearly divided group.
Most of the group is on one side of the barn, all standing behind Rhys while wearing sorrow-filled expressions. Some people are actively crying, their sobs a haunting backtrack to the fierce argument happening in front of them. On the other side is the rest of the group, and they’re all standing behind a red-faced Jerri.
“Of course she’d be the one screaming,” Ollie mutters, her tone coloured with disgust as we take in the scene.
Rhys is wearing his usual stoic mask, his amber eyes boring into Jerri as she yells and screams at him. Theo is behind him, his hands clenched into fists and his jaw tight. Rachel stands next to him with a hand on his shoulder, like she’s holding him back with a stoic mask on her face. I can practically feel the rage pouring off Theo as he glares daggers at Jerri. He’s dying to say something, to stop the woman’s toxic tirade, but he stays silent.
Rhys probably ordered him to keep his mouth shut so he could be Jerri’s punching bag. Again.
I tune out Jerri’s shouting. I don’t care what the bitch has to say. No, my focus is on the rest of the group and the fact that there are peopleagreeingwith her. It’s not a lot, but there’s enough for there to be a clear fracture in the group.
This isn’t good.
And then Ollie goes rigid in my arms. “Oh,fuckno,” she snarls as she shakes me off and stumbles towards them. Harlow follows her, the dog’s body tense as if she’s expecting an attack at any moment.
Theo is the first one to notice her, his eyes widening as he takes in her appearance. Those eyes snap to me, and I can see both the relief and exasperation in his gaze. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem pissed off with me about bringing her down here. I guess he understands as well as I do that me helping her down was the best option. Rachel is shaking her head, but there’s a small, savage smile on her face, like she can feel Ollie’s rage and is welcoming it.
Rhys notices her next, and there’s a flicker ofsomethingin his eyes, but it’s gone in a blink. No one else sees Ollie—they’re all too busy watching Jerri shout at Rhys—until she opens her mouth and speaks.
“Someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on?” Her voice cracks through the space like a whip, cutting off Jerri mid-rant.
Everyone whips their gazes to her, some in shock and relief, while others are looking outright hostile towards her. One of those is Jerri, who glares at her like her entire existence offends her.
“This doesn’t concern you,” she snaps, her tone filled with venom. “Go back to whatever hole you were hiding in and leave us adults to sort this out.”
Both Theo and I suck in sharp breaths, with Theo looking seconds away from tearing into Jerri; both physically and verbally. EvenRhyslooks pissed; the first time the emotion has crossed his face since Jerri began her tirade. As if sensing that, Ollie holds up a hand, silently telling them to stay put as she stares down the other woman with naked hatred.
“Seeing as I’m a part of the group and was instrumental in saving your ass, I think this conversationvery muchconcerns me. So, do you want to tell me why you’re berating the very man who crossed the country to haul your sorry self out of hell?” Her voice is deceptively calm, but I can hear the steel and anger behind it.
