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“Sure thing,” he replies, getting up and following me.
Nearing the door to the suite, I turn to face him. “I appreciate everything that you’ve done for us, but you can’t be building snowmen with my son.”
“Why not? It’s just a snowman,” he replies, stepping into my personal space. It’s not meant to be an intimidating move, more to ensure our conversation is only heard by the two of us, but I react like it is, stepping back.
“We both know that it isn’t just a snowman,” I reply, my back hitting the wall as I look up at him.
He considers my reply for a moment, then reaches for my arm, cupping it gently. “If I’m honest, maybe it isn't just about building a snowman. Maybe I’m insane for saying this, but I’m going to anyway.”
“Say what?” I reply softly.
Like a deer caught in headlamps, I freeze, uncertain about every decision I’ve made in the past twenty-four hours. The intimate way he looks at me, and the gentle way his thumb rubs up and down my arm has my fight or flight instincts kicking in.
“Lia, I want–”
“Please, don’t touch me,” I warn, cutting him off as tears of anger, of fear, of hope, brim in my eyes. It’s the hope that’s blooming inside of me that spurns me into action as I push at his chest, forcing him backwards and away from me. I can’t afford to let my guard down. I chose wrong once before, I won’t do that again.
“Fuck,” he murmurs, pulling back, giving me the breathing space I so desperately need.
“You have been unbelievably kind,” I say, struggling to find the words to thank him for what he’s done for us. “But I can’t do this.”
“I won’t lie and tell you that I don’t want you to stay,” he counters, taking me by surprise with his honesty. “There’s something about you Lia. I want to get to know you more. I want to help you and Toby. Stay?”
“Stay where? I have nowhere to go. I have no friends here, no family. All I have is Toby. He’s all I’ve got.”
“It doesn’t have to be that way. Let me be a friend to you both. Let me help you, at least until you get on your feet.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Why? Have I not shown you that I’m someone you don’t have to fear?”
“I’m not a very good judge of character, Drix. I’ve made that mistake before.”
He runs a hand over his face in frustration, his brown eyes filled with concern, with empathy, and if I’m not mistaken a dash of anger.
“You’re mad at me.”
“Christ, no,” he replies, shaking his head. “I’m mad at the man who hurt you. I’m mad at him, not you.”
“Believe me, the feeling’s mutual.”
I don’t tell him that I’m also terrified of Martin. What if he comes after us? What if he finds us, hurts me and takes Toby? I have to keep moving. I’ve travelled hundreds of miles and it still doesn’t feel far enough away.
“You know running isn’t going to solve your problems, Lia,” he comments, gently. “You’ll be in the same position in the next town you stop at. “Perhaps even worse off.”
“I’ll figure something out. I’ll find a way somehow.”
“How? You have no money, and presumably no plan beyond getting in your car and driving aimlessly until your gas runs out. You must see how irresponsible that is.”
He’s right of course, but that doesn’t stop me from snapping back at him. “You’ve no idea how it feels to be scared for your life. So fucking out of your depth.”
Drix’s eyes flash with compassion, with knowing. “That’s where you’re wrong. I do know. I know only too well.”
“Drix, I–” I begin, but he cuts me off, refusing to elaborate further.
“Regardless of how I feel about this whole situation, the snow is staying. Your car has no snow tires, you’ll end up getting in an accident before you get a mile down the road. I can’t in good conscience let you put yourself or Toby in danger like that,” he argues.
My shoulders sag. He’s right, again, and honestly, I’m not even sure how my car got us this far as it is. The last fifty or so miles before I reached Princetown, its engine had been rattling like a dying man’s chest in the last hours of his life. It’s a miracle we even made it this far.
