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“I’m Cy. That’s Ember.” The guy in Griffin’s hold grunts out. “No longer strangers.”
He searches my face for any sign of hesitation, but I don’t give anything to him. I have to trust Jay knows what he’s doing.
“Griffin, there’s no time. I trust Jay. Trust me, please.”
Slowly Griffin releases his grip on the man he has pinned to the floor. As he rises, I notice the tattoos that run up his left arm. When I reach his face, I feel caught by his gaze.
“I’m hoping you have a plan to get her out of here?” He says.
The stranger who held me speaks. “Well, that got shot to hell when we heard them radio, they were starting their sweep at the top of the building. We planned for a rooftop exit.”
“Yeah, that was me. I wanted time to get her down without any interruptions. I’m guessing the fire and security system was you two?”
The man rising from the floor grunts in affirmation.
I look at the two strangers before me, each clearly built for combat, but one more solidly than the other. The man, Cy, stands several inches taller than me and the other, Ember, is his equal in height. They’re a balanced pair, and each seems to anticipate the movements of the other as if by second nature.
Griffin studies the pair, just as I had, trying to decide if they’re trustworthy. I know we can, though. How else would they know to tell me Jay’s involved?
Still holding on to his jacket, I give it a tug to bring Griffin’s attention back to me. He must see my plea because he backs away from the man next to him, angling his body in front of my own.
“Let’s get you out of here then.” His words are soft, and I know there is a little bit of sadness mixed in too.
I know how he feels. Everything is happening so quickly. I’m not ready to let him go either.
Griffin takes the lead and heads back the way our new companions came. His pace increases and despite my long legs, I have to almost jog to keep up.
I hate running.
At every corner, door, and intersection, Griffin or one of the others go about checking to make sure no one’s in our way. When there is… one of them rounds the corner, and then there is no one. I never see them, and I know Griffin at least is doing it to shield me from this bit of violence.
The last door we go through opens up into a garage, with large open bay doors leading to a street outside.
Then everything settles in my mind, and I fully process what’s happening. I’m leaving with complete strangers, trusting they were telling the truth about Jay.
My feet stick in place.
I watch as Griffin grabs keys off the wall and exchanges it with one of the others. I see them take a set of keys and unlock a car. A very nice car. But I can’t bring myself to move.
Even if this is over and I’m heading home, I know things won’t be the same, which scares me more than I care to admit. I know returning to my life won’t feel normal. Something in me says I’ll never have that again. That kind of ignorance. This will stay with me and color every moment of my future.
I’m not prepared for it.
From this moment forward, my life will be various degrees of suffering.
Before Griffin, I was trapped in a place between life and death. Not purgatory per se, but a place entirely void of everything. There, a man took hold of me and crushed down on my soul to a point where life became a meaningless word, and hope was forgotten entirely. The moments of respite I found with Griffin are real, but they’re a distraction. Once he walks away, and he will walk away, I’ll be back to the haunting emptiness.
My body has turned to ice, and I only notice Griffin is standing before me when the warmth of his hands settles onto my shoulders. I step closer to him, hoping to retain some of the feeling. Some of him.
“You have to leave now,” he whispers.
His interruption of the deafening silence in my ears forces out the thought circulating my mind. “You’re going back, aren’t you?”
“I have to. I have a job to do here. I can’t disappear.”
“But you can with me.”
“No, never. Not forever.”
