Rain Shadow(32)

I shrugged and gulped back the beer. There was no way to get up now without them thinking it strange. The beer can smacked the table harder than I’d intended. “Both, I guess.”

Cash slugged back his beer and popped open another. “What did you say to Belkin the other night at Mickey’s?”

They were trying to corner me, but I was done with their interrogation. “Who?” I asked innocently.

“The asshole you kneed in the face,” Cash continued. “You leaned over and said something that scared the shit out of him.”

“Don’t remember. I was just trying to show Dreygon that I was with you guys. I guess I just threatened to hurt him more. Don’t know for sure. Why is it such a big fucking deal? Is that the guy they arrested?”

“Yeah, that’s one of them.” Cash’s phone rang, and he pulled it out of his pocket. “Hey, what’s up?” He waited for a response. “Sorry to hear that, Boss. She was a good lady. Are you and Angel heading back?” He paused. “All right. See you soon.” He put the phone down. “Gracie didn’t make it.” Cash stood from the table. “I’ll go let the others know.”



Jericho shook his head. “Shit. This is going to be really hard on Evie.”

“Yeah.” I got up. “Thanks for the beer.” I walked back to my cabin to wait for Angel to return. I was going to be there for her if she needed me. I really fucking hoped she needed me because I sure as hell needed her.





Chapter 11

Angel

The landscape whirred by as the truck headed along the highway. My eyes ached from crying and my head felt as if it was filled with air.

“I’m just glad your grandmother isn’t around. Losing both daughters would have been too much.”

“What about you?” I asked sharply. “I warned you many times that Gracie’s high blood pressure needed to be dealt with. You ignored it just like you ignored it when Mom started losing her mind. Both of them could have been helped. The only reason you’re childless now is because of the life you lead.”

His thick fingers twisted around the steering wheel. “I’m not going to argue with you tonight, Angel. It’s not the time or place.” It was one of those rare times when he was the rational one and I was the unstable one. But the true impact of Gracie dying hadn’t even hit yet. I was still numb from shock, but losing her had just made life at the compound that much worse.

I slumped down in the seat like a rag doll and closed my eyes. My head ached and my stomach felt sick. Like a lame horse, the truck trudged along the unpaved road to the cement tower, a tower that I’d been locked in forever. A tower I was ready to climb out of at any expense.

Jericho opened the gate and we drove through. I already felt her absence and the place seemed a little darker because of it. There were no lights on in Luke’s cabin. I would have been disappointed if my entire body hadn’t already been shaken to its core. We parked the truck and I ran to Jericho.

“So sorry, Evie.”

I hugged him and realized that I’d missed his arms. I’d been horrible to my best friend. Since Luke’s arrival, I had basically ignored him. He deserved better.

I peered up at him. “You’re the best friend a girl could have, Richo. Promise me we’ll always be friends.”

He squeezed me tighter. “Always, Evie.”





Chapter 12

Luke

The loud rumble shook the cabin walls and windows, and I shot straight up in bed. The cabin was completely dark but then a flash of bright light lit it. Then blackness quickly followed. I’d fallen asleep. The one time when I’d hoped to stay awake, to wait for Angel, I’d dropped off into a deep sleep. I pulled on my shoes. Another flash of light was followed by thunder. After endless days of nearly cloud free skies and hot sun, a thunderstorm had settled over the compound.

The flickering lights of a television lit up several of the cabins, including Dreygon’s, and I wondered if Angel was with him. When our mom died, the four of us, my dad, my brothers and I had sat around the kitchen table staring at each other in disbelief for several days. Death was a shock that really knocked you senseless. I remembered feeling as if all the energy had been wrung from my muscles and someone had emptied my head. My mom’s relatives came to stay with us, and I wanted badly for all of them to go away so the four of us could just stay there at our kitchen table and wait for Mom to walk back through the door.

A dark ridge of clouds had settled over the mountain peaks like a gray wool hat. The sky lit up with a constant flow of electricity. Only a few heavy drops fell. Angel’s cabin was dark. I wanted to kick myself for falling asleep. She’d come back here to find that I didn’t care enough to stay awake for her.