Page 134 of Ramshackle
“How are you feeling?”
“Good,” he replies. “I’m fully recovered. I guess now they’re trying to decide what to do with me.”
Aiden told me a little bit about the plan for the rescues. They’d try to find any surviving family members they could go home to and enter witness protection if needed, thanks to Elias’sFBI contact. Those who had no one else were stuck in limbo here. They aren’t members of the Guild to join the rest, but it’s too dangerous to let them back on the streets where GE could pick them up again. Aiden also wants to make sure none of the rescues have already been brainwashed to follow GE before releasing them.
“Do you…have a home somewhere? Some place to go back to?”
Charles chuckles. “Can’t say that I do. I’ve been missing for a long while.”
He looks like he’s in his late forties or early fifties. And if he was with my mom, even for a short time, on the island twenty years ago...
I’m amazed he seems…normal. Not a brainwashed soldier or a zoned-out lab rat.
A child cries loud enough to draw my attention back to Kellan and the kid’s area. Kellan’s kneeling down to comfort the little boy. He raises his arm. It’s bright red like he’d been cut with something, but golden scales slowly fill in over it. The little boy stops crying to stare at it, wide-eyed.
“What’s on his arm?” Charles inquires, and I realize he’d also stopped to watch the scene.
“It’s his gift,” is all I say because I’m still not trusting enough of this man to tell him everything.
He smiles with a look of understanding and doesn’t ask for more. “So. Are you here for stories about Merina?”
I nod and smile back. “Yes. If you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. I’ll start at the beginning, then. When we first met.”
I frown over my shoulder at the mirror. The dress Aiden bought me is the perfect party dress. Long sleeves, a V-neckline, and a short, swishy skirt. It’s a black skater dress that shows off my legs, especially in the matching pair of heels that I doubt I’ll last more than an hour in. But the back…it’s open in a larger V than the front, exposing my scars for everyone to see.
I left my hair down, styling loose curls in the hopes that it would hide the worst of it, but even with the top third of it covered, there’s no mistaking them.
There’s a knock at the bathroom door. “How’s it going in there?” Dane calls out.
I can’t wear this.
According to Kellan,everyonein the Guild will be at the party tonight. The members who may spend more of their time out on jobs or living in their own space will be coming. Aiden’s been working tirelessly on security measures and the best way to discreetly get the arrivals in, so I haven’t been able to see him since I found out about it.
“I’m coming in,” Dane announces when I haven’t answered, and the door opens before I can tell him I’m fine. He stops in the doorway, his hand frozen on the knob as his eyes trail up my legs. His amber gaze turns molten the more he sees, until he finally stops on my face. “You look…” He swallows hard. “You’re beautiful, Rae.”
Warmth floods my face. “Thanks.” I shift to hide my back from being visible in the mirror. “I need to find something else to wear, though.”
“Why? It’s perfect.”
I reach for my shoulder subconsciously. “It’s not the dress.”
Dane steps closer, his face drawn with concern. “Well, it definitely isn’t you, so what is it?”
I know he’s seen them. They all have. But when I wear my usual clothes, it’s easy to forget about the crisscross of ugly scars that run the length of my back.
My other hand reaches around, fingering the rough patch where it ends at the small of my back. No, I can’t…
His stare follows that hand, and realization has him clenching his jaw.
Dane turns my back to the mirror again, so we’re both looking at my scars. “These? You don’t need to hide them.”
“They’re ugly. They tell everyone what GE did to me.”
“They’re not ugly.” He pulls my face to his. “They show the world that you can’t be beaten. Wear them like a badge of honor. GE had you twice, and not only did you survive, but you came out stronger. You’re unstoppable. I’ve never met anyone as fierce as you.”
My heart flip-flops at his words, and butterflies gather in my gut with nerves. I scrutinize my back in the mirror one more time.
