Page 103 of Delirium
I was going to kill him. Cut through his carotid artery and leave him somewhere on the side of the road to bleed out, choking on his own blood. And then I’d send pigs to get rid of his body.
“You’re such a comedian, aren’t you?” I asked, sarcasm dripping from every word. “I have no idea what any of us would do if it wasn’t for you and your words of wisdom.”
“I know, right?” He smiled. “You would all die from boredom. I’m telling you, none of the other guys are as amusing as I am.”
“Har-har,” I grumbled.
“Be careful, Atlas,” Storm said. “Her trigger finger has been quite unpredictable lately.”
“You should listen to the man,” I mumbled, looking down at my wrap. “Accidents happen every day.” I beamed. “We wouldn’t want you to lose the family jewels.” I smirked, looking at him.
His hands immediately went to his crotch, covering the said family jewels, while Storm laughed behind me, practically shaking.
Having him wrapped around me felt good. Too good, if I was being honest, and I never wanted to step away. This fucking cold seeping into my bones was too much to bear, and even looking like a motherfucking panda with ten layers of clothes on me, didn’t help to keep the cold at bay.
But having Storm as my personal blanket worked.
I looked toward the warehouse, ignoring the quiet conversation Atlas and Storm had started, talking about the guys who were still about to arrive. I hated the chill rushing through me when my eyes zeroed in on one lone light turned on just at the entrance.
The suspense in the air, all the cars coming in, had the trepidation awakening in my bloodstream. But no matter how much I wanted for everything to be finished tonight, I had a feeling we wouldn’t find the answers we were looking for. And that worried me—a lot.
It was fucked up, this constant worry gnawing at me, but life was too good to be true. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and destroy this temporary peace we had created. Maya was back, Storm and Kieran were communicating like grownups, my pregnancy was going well, yet I couldn’t shake off the impending doom.
Something was coming, for all of us, and I just hoped we would be strong enough to withstand the avalanche rushing toward us.
“Sunshine,” Storm purred, bringing me back to them. I turned my head to the side, my cheek pressing against his. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “Just cold I guess.” That wasn’t a lie. Even with him wrapped around me, my feet were turning into popsicles, and it wasn’t fun, not even in the slightest.
Why anyone would want to live in a cold place, I had no idea. But they did.
The heavy smell in the air, the cold pressing from all sides, the pressure pushing against my head… I had no idea how they did it.
“We’ve been discussing how things are going to roll out. Freddie and his crew are just down the street, and they’ll be here in about a minute. You’re going to stay behind with Atlas.” I wanted to argue, to tell him that I could go in as well, but he couldn’t be the only one compromising.
I knew very well that he wanted me to stay behind, protected, far away from this place, but he agreed for me to come without a fuss. I could see the worry lining his face, the stress this was causing him, and I wasn’t going to add more to that.
“I would like you to stay in the car with him,” Storm mumbled. “I know it’s not the way you’d want to have, but if shit hits the fan, I want him to be able to take you away from here. I don’t want you to be my hero tonight. I don’t want you to jump out and fight. I want you to run.”
“Storm—”
“No, listen,” he cut me off, moving to my front, letting the cold envelop me again. “I would never survive it if anything happened to you or them,” he mumbled. “So, I’ll need you to run. Run as far away as you can and don’t look back. I’ll find you. I will always find you.”
“I know you will,” I said. “But I hate it. I hate not being able to fight in this.”
I was pouting, I knew that, and I knew how important it was for me to keep the kids safe, but it didn’t mean I had to like it.
“I’ll stay in the car,” I murmured. “But I want us to have a direct line to you guys. I wanna know what’s happening.”
“And you will,” he said. “Atlas will have a radio, listening to everything that’s happening around us, and you’ll be able to talk to me.”
I could do that. I could sit in the fucking car and wait, no matter how much I hated waiting. No matter how much I itched to be out there with them, getting into that warehouse, seeing with my own two eyes what was happening.
But he was right. I hated it when he was right.
I had to sit this one out. Hell, I would have to sit a couple of them out in the next few months. But I’d said it once and I was going to say it again—these kids came first, and if that meant me sitting my pretty little ass down, then so be it.
“I just need you to be careful,” I murmured, sliding my hand in his, lacing our fingers together. “No heroics, Storm,” I warned. “I don’t care who is dying, you are not to die yourself. Okay?”
