“How? Who?” Those words are wrapped in pain, shaky, tortured. I never told her who we were running from then, and won’t do it now. “You know I have the means to go after them. All you have to do is give me a name, and they won’t wake up tomorrow.” Her voice may be broken from the shock that Milo is dead, but her resolve is unshaken.
Pulling back, I wipe away my tears. Raven is the only one who can see me like this, and I’d be okay with it. I sit on the bench behind me, forcing my vocal cords to fall in line enough to present a steady speech, unrattled by my emotions.
“This is a battle I can’t let you fight on my behalf. Trust me when I say the people responsible will die. I’ll make sure of it.”
“You can’t honestly expect me to stand aside and do nothing.”
“You won’t be doing nothing. You’ll help me if I need to disappear again.”
“Tell me everything. Please! You can’t keep me in the dark. Milo—” Raven chokes on my brother’s name, her eyes sinking to the ground, palm squeezing over one fist, unable to keep the tears at bay or look at me.
“And you know damn well if I tell you everything now, you’ll rush into something that might cost you your life.” Raven’s eyes peel from the ground to level with mine. I hope her wall of tears prevents her from seeing all the pain I can’t hide. “I promise, in time I’ll tell you everything, but for now I have no intention of risking your safety.”
Raven pulls me into a hug again, and her body is shaking so violently, it makes me run soothing circles on her back, as the only thing I know helps her.
“Are the men responsible— ” She sniffles. “—here? Is this why you’re here?”
“No. If they were, they would’ve been dead already. I’ll handle this.”
“There isn’t anyone on earth more stubborn than you, so I’m not pressing further now, but you promise me one thing—you’re getting out of whatever you’re doing alive.”
How do I promise that, knowing how slim the chances are? I don’t enjoy lying, though I’m damn good at it, but I’ve never done it with Raven before. For once, I’ll have to.
“Of course. Do you doubt me?”
“Never.” That single quiet word is full of hesitation. “But I’m still mad at you for not contacting me right away. Ten months, Maeve! How could you leave me thinking you were dead all along?” Raven lets out those words in a silent cry.
“I’m so sorry. I thought I was protecting you by staying away.”
Raven wipes another stray tear with the back of her sleeve of what I can only bet is a grossly overpriced jacket, before finding the strength to look back at me.
“What’s up with the red hair? Don’t get me wrong. It looks perfect on you, but your black hair was amazing. And besides, you know what they say about women with red hair? It’s red for a reason, so men can spot the red flag from afar.”
A sudden change of the topic. It’s what she used to do ever since we were kids when she was on the verge of a breakdown, and didn’t want me to witness it.
I welcome the distraction, and I’m grateful she doesn’t ask the “how” question again. I can’t talk about it even with her. Not while the villains of my story are still breathing.
I replay her words about the red flags in my head, chuckling as a delayed response.
“Then why aren’t you sporting red hair, too? You have plenty of red flags yourself,” I retort. Surprisingly enough, I manage a meek smile.
Raven wipes my cheek with her thumb before she answers.
“I like to keep mine hidden.”
“No, you don’t.” I swallow hard and let the silence stretch in its heaviness. But when the weight gets too much, I nudge her shoulder, determined to further put distance between the sorrowful topic trapping both our minds. “Sooo you and Link...” What better distraction than mentioning the only man Raven has ever liked besides my brother?
“You’re one to talk with Atlas under your belt. Or is it you under his?”
The mention of his name alone pulls me a million miles away from the emotional state occupying my body, shaking me, tearing me apart from the inside, mere moments ago. Still, I’m not going to let her mockery go unpunished, and elbowing her seems fitting for theoccasion.
“Bitch!” I add lovingly, while she squirms.
“You know, the whole campus is pretty much talking about you today. Atlas Holt’s girlfriend, who hit him and lived to see the day. You’ll be an urban legend now.”
“And to think I only bitch-slapped him. I didn’t give him a proper punch in the face like my dad had taught me.”
“Well, I’d say I wish I were there to see it, but your whole interaction has gone viral, so I saw it about a dozen times... and I laughed my ass off. Then I scrubbed it off the net, just in case... to keep you safe.”
