I had been without civilization for almost two years- still I had to stomp on my manners and ignore the instinct to be polite and receive their “hospitality” with grace. I wasn’t that girl anymore. I wasn’t the perfect cheerleader that mother’s adored and teachers could count on.
I was a hunter. A killer. A survivor.
So I stared at them and waited, putting puzzles together inside my head. Miller had said last night that he wanted to save his sister. He had also said he had a mother and while he would like to rescue her, he knew she wouldn’t come.
Possibly this was because she was married to the head guy. Ugh. Miller!
He also never mentioned his brother. How many other awful family members did he have lurking around here? Had this whole thing been a trap from the beginning? Had Miller lured us here under the pretense of free medicine?
After several awkward minutes in which I didn’t acknowledge the introduction or attempt to make more conversation, Mathias asked another question, “Where are you headed, Reagan Willow?”
Two truths. “South,” I said simply. Past Mexico.”
A low chuckle started in the back of the room and rolled forward like an ocean wave of dark amusement. Matthias’s dark gray eyes sparkled with humor and I felt Kane relax next to me.
Linley was the only one that didn’t seem entertained by my answer. “You’re not serious?” she asked in that lilting southern drawl.
“I’m very serious,” I answered.
“What could possibly be down there that could draw you into Mexico?” Linley pressed, her delicate features pinched with concern. She was beautiful, even in a simple white t-shirt and black yoga pants. She didn’t wear any makeup, but her shining dark brown hair was freshly washed and styled.
“We started out following a lead,” I cleared my throat and pretended a little bit of nervousness. “But that was two years ago. I guess…. It’s just a direction to go.”
That actually felt a lot like truth. The words burned in my throat and churned my stomach. Maybe the Parkers had been right from the beginning- maybe north was the way to go. We’d run into nothing but problems since we reached southern Missouri and I imagined it was only going to get worse. That was if we ever got out of this current predicament.
“A foolish direction to go,” Matthias snorted. “Mexico has been overrun by Feeders. You wouldn’t make it past the border.”
I nodded, not trusting myself to stay respectful if I opened my mouth.
“Are there more of you?” Linley asked. Her kind eyes beseeched me to tell the truth. But I felt like it was smoke and mirrors- good cop, bad cop. They wanted something from us and this was the moment for my lie.
I shook my head, “Just the four of us.”
“One girl for all those boys,” Matthias leered at me.
I narrowed my eyes and pressed my lips together in an attempt not to fly across the room and choke the living hell out of him. Kane stiffened next to me again, his body coiled with tension.
That was the motivation I needed to stay silent. I could take Matthias’s jabs or digs, but I could not allow Kane to become somehow protective of me. I was certain of that.
Matthias was scary.
Kane was dangerous.
Matthias looked over at his son and his eyes widened just a fraction, just enough for me to register his surprise. And then his gaze flickered back to me and he looked at me with an entirely different measure now- as if instead of a prisoner, I was now a commodity, I was a possession.
My skin crawled, my breathing picked up and my palms started sweating. I had to get out of here.
Just then, Samson pushed back through the door, dragging a bound and gagged Miller. His eyes were both black and almost swollen shut and his bare arms and chest were bruised and lacerated. His dirty hair was now caked with dried blood and he looked like a child next to the man pushing him around.
My stomach lurched and revolted against the idea that this little boy was abused or mistreated- that he was punished for leaving and for coming back, but most of all for getting caught with Hendrix and Nelson.
Chapter Three
“Well, if it isn’t the prodigal son,” Matthias crooned from his seat. He sat forward and straightened his back with excitement- at the sight of his son…. at the sight of his own son bloodied and beaten.
Miller was brought to stand in front of me, so that he could face his parents. His shoulders were as straight as he was able to make them and his chin tilted with defiance. My heart was breaking for him and I regretted doubting him, regretted implicating him in some elaborate plot.
I understood why he was so desperate to get out of here now.
Kane remained stoic next to me, not smiling with satisfaction like his father, but not weeping with despair either. In fact, the only emotional face in the room seemed to be Linley’s and she was hiding it well. Just the tiniest lines near her eyes where they were stressed with the effort to keep still.