Dessin told me that the day I learned everything… it would be the worst day of my life. But it’s not enough to keep me from prying.
“I might be as bad as Greystone with letting secrets slip,” he says.
I hiss and beg and tug on his coat as we get back on the bike to get back to the Evergreen Dark Wood. It’s dark, and after a while, I give up. My head falls against his back, and I watch the moon touch the top of the sky, shimmering down on the bushy evergreen trees.
Kane slows down for a few yards before we come to a complete stop. I blink sleepily as Kane helps me off of the bike. Immediately, I can’t wait to change into my clothes, remove this thin white gown and toss it into the wilderness. I can’t wait to eat, to sit in front of the fire and fall asleep in his arms.
I turn away from Kane, searching for his pack. Instead, I’m greeted with three sets of eyes. Under the glow of the moon, there are two men and a short woman. One of them has tears streaming down their soft cheeks, and the other two look like they’re fighting to keep it together.
My heart gallops in my body, springing to life like a young stallion.
He didn’t just rescue Ruth. He went back for Chekiss and Niles, too. He brought my friends back to me. I whip my head to stare at Kane. He nods in heartwarming confirmation.
“Sky?” Ruth mutters, followed by an exasperated sob. I hold my arms open as she runs to me, and as we collide, her body shakes from a heavy cry.
“I thought I’d never see you again! I can’t believe you sacrificed yourself to make sure we got out safely! I was so scared—”
“It’s okay, Ruthie.” But my words are thick and heavy like molasses in my throat. “We’re all together now,” I reassure her as my hands rub up and down her back.
“You promise?”
I nod against her embrace. But I’m not sure. I don’t know the outcome of anything. That cage left me numb, the torture left my heart bruised and barely beating. When my eyes open, I see my boys waiting patiently for their turn.
Ruth and I separate. She wipes her nose on her sleeve and steps aside, smiling.
Niles charges me first, lifting me into his arms and spinning me in circles. He’s beaming with excitement, laughing as he squeezes my ribs to the point of pain. He sets me down and grabs the sides of my head to demand my full attention.
“You made a promise to me. You said you’d get us out of there, and that we would have a home with you,” he reminds me with glistening eyes. His cheeks are a shade of watermelon pink, and his golden hair is just as groomed and thick with styled curls as I remember. “Thank you for keeping that promise.”
“It was all Kane. But you’re welcome. We would have never left you in there.”
He caresses my cheeks with his thumbs, noticing the swelling, the cuts, the result of my time away. His throat bobs as he nods.
But as I step up to Chekiss, my chest coils inward and my bottom lip quivers. I experience the rush of what it was like when my father would come home, in the early days when we would share an ice cream cone and long hugs. That same feeling of longing and emotional attachment.
He wears his frown as if it’s a zipper, holding in a long-overdue tsunami of tears. Our foreheads touch gently, hesitantly. And just like that, we release the air we were both holding in our lungs. A sob shudders from my chest, and he lets me weep, patting my back, cooing in my ear that I’ve done so well. That I have such a big heart. I’ve gone most of my life without affection, love from a father, hugs from a mother. Scarlett was the closest I ever got, and even she had those days of madness, of violent coping, or morbid darkness. But today is different. Today I’m surrounded by people that care about me.
“Finally,” Chekiss says, pulling away to wipe my tears.
I smile. “Finally.”
