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Or not enough of them.
Maybe he needed me to reach out for him when he was hurting even if he’d hurt me? It seemed a bit backwards and maybe like I was a doormat, but I felt like I would want the same if the situation was reversed.
Yeah, I would hope they would still help me even with what I had messed up. I’d wanted just that when I knew they’d be upset from my taking over Bahati’s coven.
I was about to ask where Cerdic was so I could talk to him about spending time together when someone told me something crazy. “Could you repeat that?”
Branko tried to smother a chuckle. “The convention center is done and ready for humans. I thought it madness so fast, but I went and checked myself. Metal was welded over every window. There are no ways to get in. They have layers and layers of fences with barbed wire in between. They hung barbed wire on the damn building.
“It’s on the overpass, and kill areas are set up in case something happens. Flood lights with their own batteries are installed, so even if the power goes out it won’t take down all of the lights. All the bunks are in place and more showers rigged up. More bathrooms installed and renovated. It’s not pretty, but it’s public restroom stalls and more sinks added.
“The place wasn’t carpeted, so it wasn’t hard to put in a few more floor drains and set up shower curtains with hoses. None of it will win for the prettiest bathrooms or housing, but it’s solid. Everything is cleaned top to bottom, and they even loaded up the different kitchens with what was needed. I’m not kidding that it’s all done.”
“Holy shit. That was clearly the right motivation,” I muttered, having thought it would take a few weeks at least. That convention center was fucking massive.
“They did leave those two hotels in the barrier for showering and stuff as well, saying that would be better for women. Both hotels are done too. Cleaned top to bottom, anything not needed out and more beds—you fed them and they worked, Inez.”
“There is one thing they’re asking for,” Moon said quietly, waiting until I nodded. “They want hotels in the French Quarter.” He winced when I flinched. “I know. I know, Inez, and we are—”
“It doesn’t look like it did,” Branko told me. “Vitor took out a lot of the damaged buildings and what he could of residences.”
“You both want this too,” I muttered, shocked at this turn as well.
Moon slowly nodded. “We lost Vegas. I loved that place. It was gambling and used to be run by gangsters, but it was also always something new. New shows. New shopping. New fun. And it’s gone. We lost that because of the apocalypse and bombs making it too hot to salvage. The French Quarter was amazing.
“Parades and too much fun but love for everyone and just… I don’t want that to be gone as well. It won’t ever be what it was, but…” He shook his head. “The architecture was cool. It was some of the best food on the planet. I know you went through something horrible there. I do and if you can’t, you can’t. No one would judge you.”
People would and we both knew that. That wasn’t the reason I was willing to do it though. I felt the pain in what they said that many would feel if they lost something else that was cool about America.
“I can do one of the hotels for now,” I muttered. “If Kristof is with me and Petre.” I cleared my throat. “It’s really different?”
“Not a lot or that wouldn’t really be the point of preserving it, but Vitor got rid of all the deserted cars you saw, and that hotel you were attacked in is gone. You did that,” Branko reminded me. “It’s not what it was or was before. I still see it. You weren’t there long enough to maybe feel the same. That was his hope. Keep that balance.”
Fair enough.
And he was right. It was mostly that one hotel that I’d taken down burned into my memory and the view I had as I came back outside after. That building was gone as well and not just because of me. It had some structural damage… Or that was what they said as to why Vitor had taken it down.
I wasn’t sure I believed that or wanted to know either way.
But it all did look different to me and yeah, the deserted cars and trash gone made a huge difference. So I put three of the hotels back online, and people were talking about how to preserve buildings but not let them end up as corrupted hiding spots.
Yeah, they could handle all of that. I wanted back out of New Orleans.
“I’m so proud of you,” Kristof whispered when we were back at the castle. “Truly, you amaze me, my wife.”
“Inez!” someone called out before I could thank him. I was out of his arms and Cedric was cupping my face, studying me closely. “You were at the French Quarter? Why? Who made you go back there? Are you—”
“I’m fine,” I promised, covering his hands with my own. “No one made me. I agreed to do it.”
Kristoff filled him in and he nodded along but looked like he had harsh words for whoever came up with the idea.
Instead of saying something that might upset me, Cerdic simply kissed my hair. “Please don’t push yourself so much. It hurts my soul to see you in pain, okay?”
“It was okay.” There was more I was going to say, but Darius and Jaxon joined us and had about the same reaction. We caught them up and then I continued. “I was proud of myself for going back and pushing past but also laying a healthy boundary. I only did three hotels today and it was fast. I think it was worth knowing I could say that—comfortable to, for the—”
“Stress it caused you to go,” Darius offered, nodding when I did. “I’m glad. I haven’t been able to go back yet.”
“I have to fix other hotels soon if you want to be there when I do,” I hedged.
