New Roots (Fate's Intent Book 8) Page 21

  She backed off me and her eyes were blue again but they were watering and she covered her mouth as she moved away more to get up.

  “Love?” I held pressure on the wound and got up after her. “Love, what’s wrong?” Adele went right into the bathhouse without answering and I followed. “Love, what is it?”

  “Don’t touch me!”

  Her sudden panic worried me. “Why? What happened?”

  “I can’t believe you.” Adele’s tears were falling, causing her voice to crack.

  “What?”

  “Is that how you were?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “With Jaylyn! Is that how it felt?!”

  I mellowed the worry from my voice. “It wasn’t the same.”

  “How can you say that?! How can you look at me and say that?!”

  I sighed, running my fingers back through my hair while I tried coming up with an adequate answer. “That’s not what I meant. Yes, it felt the same but we never took it further than that and you know it.”

  “Still. Just knowing how it was makes me feel worst for letting it happen.”

  “You did that so I wouldn’t end up doing it to you. I would have killed you then.”

  “Can you please just go away for a while?”

  “Love!”

  “Please! I just can’t look at you right now.”

  I was getting a little heated myself but I had every intention to give her the time she wanted. “Okay. Let me just get something for this first.” I walked to the sink and wet down a cloth to put on my wound and apply pressure. “Come get me when you’re over it.”

  Adele kept her back turned, speaking like she was truly more angry than upset. “Don’t count on it.”

  Chapter 48

  Jaylyn

  “There you are.” Izin had Dirk in his arms and looked up to see Zayden walk into the lounge. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “What about her?” Darius asked.

  Zayden sighed and dropped himself down on the couch next to him. “She hates me but other than that, she’s fine.”

  “What do you mean, she hates you?” Aleksander asked.

  Zayden only sighed again and moved the cloth from the base of his neck.

  Darius was first to see it and leaned away. “She actually bit you?”

  “You could have guessed that she needed to.”

  “Did it not make her feel better?” Ruby wondered. “I thought it was—you know—sexual.”

  Zayden shared a quick glance with me. “It is, I mean, it was but now she’s mad because she knows exactly how it was for me and she hates herself for letting it happen.”

  I gasped. “She’s mad at us?!”

  “Not at us just me.”

  “How can she be mad at just you? She has to be mad at me too. I’m going to talk to her.”

  I started to get up but Ruby took my hand, making sure I stayed. “No. I’ll talk to her.”

  “You?!” I laughed.

  “Well, this time it should be me.” Ruby paused for a moment and let herself stand up with her eyes shifting towards Darius. “I at least know how she feels.”

  “Please don’t throw that in my face.”

  “I wasn’t. It’s just this time, I know what she’s going through.” She walked out through the side entrance to get to the stairs and the room became quiet.

  “She better fix it.” I muttered.

  “I hope so too.” Zayden agreed. “I know I wasn’t getting anywhere.”

  “Is she going to be getting the control with you?” Aleksander asked.

  Zayden shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “So, who got her angry?” Izin asked.

  Eyes moved around the room and it was quiet for a moment.

  “No one did.” Troy finally answered.

  Izin looked confused. “Then what happened?”

  “I’m not really sure.” Zayden said. “It just happened when she saw my blood after Darius threw me into a wall!”

  “You didn’t let go!” Darius replied, still trying to argue his point.

  “None of that matters now because we were lucky enough to have Jaylyn here.” Izin said. “What I want to know is how it happened?”

  Zayden shook his head. “I don’t know. She just saw my blood like I said. I could tell by the look on her face. It was weird.”

  Troy laughed. “Where’s Trever when you need him, right?”

  “Oh, please.” Darius sighed. “Like he would fucking know. He’d take a guess and you’d all go with it, thinking he knew what the fuck he was talking about.”

  “You don’t give him enough credit.” Izin said. “Trever’s awfully smart for his age.”

  “But he wouldn’t know a thing about something that’s never happened before.”

  “I don’t know.” I smiled, glancing at Zayden. “He’s the one that agreed to Zayden biting me and that’s never happened before.”

  “Agreed? You mean it wasn’t his idea?”

  “No. It was mine.”

  “Because you can’t die! I could have told you that.”

  “But still asking him was a good idea since he seemed to know more about it than me.” Zayden replied.

  “And what kind of advice do you think he’d give about this? How about this, who cares? Just get her to gain control. It shouldn’t matter how it happens. She’s pregnant, weird things are bound to happen.”

  “All right.” Zayden sighed. “I guess you could possibly be right but I don’t know if she’ll even be up to trying to gain the control now.”

  “Then she can do it on me.” I said. Everyone in the room seemed to of laughed except me. “What? At least it turns out a lot cleaner from me. Look at you, you’re still bleeding.”

  “Because I don’t heal like you.”

  I sighed and got up, pushing Darius over so I could sit between them and look at Zayden’s wound. “Well, I’m sure I actually felt it a lot less than you.”

  “She already said that she didn’t want to get that way with you.”

  “Sexual? Who cares? It only lasts for a minute and it’s not like we did anything else. The feeling completely goes away when you stop.”

  “Yeah. I’ve experienced that.”

  “Okay.” Troy cut in. “Can you stop talking about it? Not really something I want to think about.”

  “Sorry.” I smiled, glancing back at him with glowing eyes. “My point was that it wouldn’t be a big deal. If she’s going to continue to be mad a Zayden then I’d much rather her take it out on me. It saves me time when I don’t have to heal myself.”

  “Well, you have to try and convince her of that.” Zayden said. “She’s not exactly thrilled that she has to do it at all.”

  “She’s over it.” Ruby walked back in, sitting down.

  “Just like that?” I asked, getting up to sit next to Troy.

  “No but that’s probably what you wanted me to say.”

  “So, she’s not over it?” Aleksander asked.

  “Of course not. She didn’t seem as mad about the whole Zayden and Jaylyn thing but—”

  “It was never a thing.” Zayden cut in. “We never had a thing.”

  “Yeah, it was so a thing.” Darius laughed. “I saw it myself.”

  “Please don’t.”

  “Whatever.” Ruby sighed. “She wasn’t so mad about that towards the end. She’s now more repulsed that the baby you put in her is turning her into a bloodsucking animal.”

  “She said that?”

  “Those were my words. She put it a bit more subtle but that’s pretty much what she meant. You disgust her.”

  Zayden looked insulted just to hear it.

  “That’s not what she means.” I laughed. “It’s what all of that comes from. You know what Adele really hates?”

  “How could we possibly narrow that down?” Darius asked. “She hates everything.”

  “Not so much hates but is scared of.” Aleksander said.
<
br />   “She’s actually scared of something?” Troy asked.

  “Spiders.” Izin answered. Everyone looked to him and I didn’t expect him to know. “That’s why.”

  “Is that true?” Zayden asked.

  Ruby nodded. “One of the few girl things about her. I don’t think anyone told her where your powers come from but she sure knows now.”

  Zayden let out a long sigh and started to get up. “I guess I should talk to her then.”

  “No.” Izin immediately cut in.

  Zayden stopped and didn’t take a step. “Why?”

  “You’ll just make things worse. Here.” Izin rose to his feet and slowly handed baby Dirk off to Zayden. “I’ve found that my methods are much more successful. I’ll go.”

  Zayden looked around at us with a bit of curiosity but started to sit down instead of ask. “Okay.”

  “This won’t take long.”

  Izin walked down the hall and Zayden watched every step until Dirk started to fuss in his arms. “Shh. It’s okay.” He wrapped the blanket tightly around him for comfort. “He won’t be gone very long.”

  “Actually, he might be getting hungry again.” Ruby said. “Let me see him.” She leaned over and gently took Dirk from him.

  “Always seems to be.” Darius laughed.

  “Told you.” I said. “But he’ll need to if he’s going to grow like you.”

  “Please stop talking about him growing!” Ruby snatched while she had already begun to feed Dirk through the talk. “I don’t even want to think about that.”

  “She’s a little sensitive.” Darius whispered.

  “Finally, something gets to her.” Ryon appeared next to Aleksander where Izin sat and had his eyes on Ruby. “Though the reason is still settling in.”

  “What are you doing here?” Zayden asked.

  Ryon just sat with a smile. “I don’t know. It gets pretty boring.”

  “Well, you can’t stay. Someone could see you in the open like this.”

  “Then allow me to fix it.” Ryon gain his full color and appeared alive again like everyone else.

  “Shouldn’t you be with Trever?” Troy asked.

  “He’s in too tight of quarters right now for me to just pop in and my world’s just—never mind.”

  “Why? What’s happening?” I snatched anxiously.

  “Nothing.” Ryon laughed. “And a lot of it. You’re having more fun around here.”

  “That’s not what I would call it.” Ruby muttered.

  Ryon laughed again. “Okay but more is happening. Mostly focused around you but still worth seeing. Especially right now.” His eyes moved down to her mostly exposed breast while Dirk was latched to it.

  “Watch it.” Darius replied, not sounding angry yet but could at any moment if he wanted. “That’s my son.”

  “You were just a few days lucky. You should have seen Trever after you left that day, Red. He was just—freaking out.”

  “Why?”

  “You mean he didn’t end up telling you?”

  “Tell me what?”

  “We were never really sure who the father was.” Her eyes widened. “He just told you what you would have wanted to hear.”

  “What?!”

  “It’s not like Kole could really tell, Red. We’d have to use Jay for that. He’s not a healer.”

  “I fucking knew it!” Darius raged, getting up.

  “Darius, wait!” Ruby shouted, not being able to get up after him.

  He turned right around and he was clearly pissed off. “I knew that’s why he was here and I’m going to kill him!”

  “No, you’re not! Come back here and sit down!”

  “You think I’m going to let him get away with it?! That bastard has intruded into my life for the last time!”

  He turned like he was truly going to take action against Trever this time but thankfully, Ryon was right there to stop him and was really the only one that could.

  “Since when did you ever care what Trever thought. Listen to your wife and sit down. I don’t want to have to stop you.”

  “Then don’t.”

  He proceeded to pass him and I was worried but Ryon was in front of him again. He held out his hand and forced Darius back to the couch. “I said I didn’t want to, not that I wouldn’t.”

  I didn’t know how much it helped, Darius was just ready to get up again.

  “Don’t.” Ruby said, taking his arm with her free hand. “Just let it go. It doesn’t matter. Dirk is not his. We already talked about this.”

  Something must have gotten through to him because he relaxed, enough that he didn’t try getting up again but he still didn’t look happy.

  “I’m sort of glad your point of view has changed since I know you’ve never wanted to be a father.” Ryon said, sitting back down.

  “Things changed.” Darius said. “I wouldn’t take it back.”

  “Good. It only gets better from here.”

  Ruby looked sad and shared a sympathetic look with Darius.

  “We know about it.” She said.

  “Know about what?” Ryon asked.

  She looked over at Zayden briefly. “About the child Adele lost.”

  “What?!” Troy and I both sat up at the same time and shouted it.

  Chapter 49

  Troy

  My heart raced. I couldn’t believe I haven’t heard of this before.

  “It was a long time ago.” Ryon tried to explain. “And it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to. I know what they did.”

  “You mean you know they got rid of it?” Darius asked.

  “Wait, what?” Zayden wondered. “What are you talking about?”

  “Adele didn’t technically lose the baby—naturally anyway.” Aleksander answered. “After the decision was made, I authorized Kole to destroy it.”

  “And she doesn’t know?”

  “She never has to.” Ryon said. “It’s just what had to be done.”

  “For this future to happen.” Ruby added. “That’s what Trever said.”

  “I can’t believe we never knew about this.” Jaylyn said.

  “That’s because no one can tell you anything.” Ryon laughed. “You’d make a big deal about it.”

  “It kind of was a big deal. How could you hide what they did and not ever tell her?”

  “And what do you think that would have done? Made things better? Doubtfully. She’s over it by now especially when she gets to do it again.”

  “No.” Zayden cut in. “It just terrifies her. She told me she’s scared of losing this one when she first told me about it because of what happened before.”

  “And she’ll get over it when she has him. Not a big deal. You take everything she says way too seriously. She doesn’t mean what she says. She means what she doesn’t. Funny that I know that about her and you don’t.”

  “I know her enough. She meant it.”

  “The goal has always been not to make Adele angry. If she knew the truth, everyone involved would regret it forever.”

  “Doesn’t sound like it would affect me.”

  Ryon laughed. “Fine. Go ahead and tell her but know it won’t change anything. She knows this is how it was supposed to be and deep down, even she wouldn’t change it. It would have just—complicated the current situation.”

  “I’ll say.” Ruby joked. “Try imagining it from Adele’s point of view. What would people think of her if she had a child with brothers?”

  “It no longer matters.” Zayden said. “Even hypothetically speaking of it would be pointless.”

  “Yeah, I suppose. It’s much harder to actually undo the past. It may surprise you but even I wouldn’t change it.”

  “Ryon?” Everyone lifted their eyes to the entrance where Izin was walking in with Adele. Her eyes were locked on Ryon like she was overly surprised to see him.

  “Hey, Sis. How’s it going?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t call me that.”

  Izin guided her to the open s
eat next to Zayden and she lowered herself down with her eyes still on Ryon.

  “You all right?” Zayden muttered, leaning close to her.

  She looked over with a quiet nod. “Yeah. Fine.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Awe, shit, Izin—” Ryon smiled, scooting himself over so he could sit down. “You didn’t really think I’d be out of your life for good, did you?”

  “Apparently not.”

  Ryon laughed. “You sound so thrilled.”

  “You better not be walking around here. Someone might see you.”

  “Is that a rule?”

  “Uh oh.” Ruby cut in. “You should have told him he has to walk around here. Ryon purposely breaks rules.”

  “Purposely? Red, come on. I don’t purposely do it. People just make it too easy.”

  “And you don’t think that’s dangerous, especially now?” Jaylyn asked.

  Ryon’s eyes rolled. “Please. Fuck the Elders and their list of rules. They’re seriously overreacting about this whole thing.”

  “You think so?” Jaylyn’s voice sounded hopeful.

  “I know so. Like they really do much. It’s all about lazing around, being bored. They just need something to do. Creating jobs for the dumbest tasks. Honestly, they’re all going insane. They’ve been dead for too long.”

  “Not something you can just undo.” Aleksander said.

  “I know. I haven’t been dead that long so it’s not really effecting me.”

  “Because you still come here.” Zayden said.

  “My choice to.”

  “Well, glad to see that everyone is getting comfortable.”

  “Hello, mother.” Ryon smiled, seeing her standing stiffly at the entrance.

  “Please behave.”

  “I am!”

  “Adele. Jaylyn. I’d like you to come with me. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

  “You found someone already?” Adele asked. “I figured it would have taken longer.”

  “The choice was quite clear.”

  “Oh, no.” Ryon muttered, shooting his glance around the room. “You sure that’s a good idea?”

  “I would like my decisions to not be questioned. Getting passed the dislike of it, everyone will find it to become quite helpful.”