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Worn out and thirsty, she headed to the fridge and opened it. Just eggs, butter, a block of cheese that had seen better days and…a bottle of orange juice. Tears filled her eyes as she grabbed it. The date was still good. She wished she had one of Harris’ screwdrivers at this point.
She had already righted the couch, but the cushions were ripped. Shrugging, she sat down anyway and opened the bottle. Chugging it down, she was making a mental list of what clothes, pictures and stuff she would take with her.
Her phone rang and she jumped from the couch in a panic. Releasing a breath, she grabbed it while rolling her eyes.
“Sis?”
“Walker?” she replied.
“Yes, who else would call you sis? You got some other sibling I don’t know about?”
She smiled at his usual smartass personality. “Where have you been?”
“I had messes to clean up, remember?” he quipped.
She thought of the carnage on the mountain. “Okay, well so did I.”
“What?”
“My apartment has been trashed.”
Silence.
“Did you hear me?” she asked.
“Are you okay?” His voice held a growl in it.
“Yes, but my stuff isn’t.”
“The perps aren’t still around?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh yeah, I’m feeding them pizza as we speak, dumbass.”
“Cute, Riley,” he snipped.
“Pisses me off cause I had to stop and clean all this shit up before I can leave.”
Silence.
“Walker?”
“Leave to where, Riley?” he asked.
She rolled her eyes again, took a sip of her juice and answered, “Up the mountain.”
Silence.
“Walker? What the hell is the matter with you?”
“Listen, Riley…I’m almost to town and I will swing by and help, K?” He hung up.
She pulled the phone away and stared at it like it was something alien. Now, she remembered her brother all too well. Living a life, he could never talk about. Giving cryptic answers to any questions, she had. After meeting Harris, she understood more now about what they did and why they did it. Still, he could be an ass, her brother. She smiled. She loved the asshole anyway.
Setting the phone back in its cradle, she headed to her bedroom to get a suitcase. This time, she would have underwear, though she doubted the man would let her wear any. She snickered as she stopped and rubbed the goose bumps from her arms her heart beating rapidly. God, she couldn’t wait to see him.
After an hour of packing, she felt she was ready. Looking up from the dresser, a man stood in the doorway. “OH!” She jumped with a start.
Walker walked in from the darkened hallway. “It’s me, Riley.”
“Shit! I remember it now. You are just like Harris!”
Walker slowed his walk. “I am not.”
“Yes, the sneaking up on people. The appearing and disappearing! It’s fucking spooky!”
He laughed. “Okay well, it’s in our training. We might always be that way.” His expression sobered. “Riley, I have to talk to you.”
She shut the empty drawer. “Well, make it quick, I have to leave soon.” She went over and zipped up her suitcase.
“He’s gone.”
Her eyes slowly rose up from the suitcase to his somber face. “What?”
“Harris. He’s gone.”
Swallowing heavy, she sat down on her bed, her heart pounding in her ears. “Like gone as in…”
Walker’s eyes widened as he rushed over to the bed and grasped her hands. “No, no. He’s alive.”
Her breath whooshed out of her as she had trouble speaking “W-why do you do that? J-just blurt shit out! No preamble…” Her shoulders dropped as she fought a panic attack.
“He left the mountain yesterday.”
She blinked her eyes at him. “B-but why? He knew I was coming back.”
“I don’t think he did.” Walker patted her hand.
“What? I’m confused.”
“Well, you knew the man. He’s impossible. I tried talking to him several times about you and he shut me out. We took care of the cleanup and set everything to rights. I’ve never seen him so angry. He maybe spoke five whole words to me the entire time.”
“I don’t understand, Walker.”
He shrugged. “Remember what he said in the copter the day we flew off?”
Her eyes rounded. “Yes! That 550…700 number code shit. I meant to ask you—”
“Well, I said I would be back in two days. He replied he was leaving in three. I knew then he was done with the mountain. I think he just assumed that you were with Adam and that was that.”
Furious, she stood up. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Walker shook his head. “When he said it in code, it meant he was keeping it between us. We have a code of honor, Riley.”
“Fuck that code of honor shit! You should have told me he was leaving!” She sighed as sadness filled her. “I’ve been broken up with Adam for almost 6 weeks.”
Walker shook his head. “Neither of us knew that.”
Her breathing sped up, as she felt angry now. “He didn’t even give us a chance?” She remembered the way he’d acted and the nagging fear she had all this time. It was because he never intended to keep her.
