Page 43 of Shattered Saint
Easton was silent and I wondered if he was thinking about what I said. Maybe there was a chance that he would change his mind. “I’m giving you one more day before I want your answer. And arguing with me will cause that timeframe to decrease significantly.”
I went back to ignoring him, choosing to look out the window instead of at him. I was pissed that he would put me in this predicament. Then again, it was my fault for giving him the opportunity to do it.
I was so screwed.
But I couldn’t think about that now. What mattered right now was getting to Nash and finding out what was going on.
As we drove toward the cabin, the landscape began to change. Gone were the streetlights and in their place were tall pines along this narrow road. The sky above us was gray and continued to grace us with rain.
The closer we got to the cabin, the more isolated we became. I was pretty sure we were on the brink of losing our cell service. The occasional cabin or lodge we passed here and there soon became blips in the miles of untouched wilderness that we passed. I couldn't help but wonder what we would find when we reached our destination.
Easton slowed down as the GPS told us we were only four minutes from our destination. Even if the GPS hadn’t confirmed it, I knew we were almost there when we drove past the larger cabin that my family also owned. We were coming up on the moment of truth, and I wasn’t sure if I could handle it. “You need to go down that road,” I said as I pointed out the windshield.
Easton nodded and took my direction unquestioningly, which on some level, I was surprised by.
When we pulled up in front of the smaller cabin and Easton parked, I looked down and noticed my hand was shaking.
Easton stepped out of the car and came around and opened the door for me. After I stepped out, I watched as he went to the trunk of his SUV and pulled out the black duffel bag that had Raven and Nash’s things in it.
The air seemed to be chillier than when we left Brentson. The silence that surrounded us was deafening. It made every step and breath we took seem louder than it actually was. As we approached the cabin door, I felt my heart pounding in my chest. Would we find Nash and Raven inside?
When we reached the door, I looked at Easton, who was staring back at me. He didn’t say a word before he knocked on the cabin’s front door.
17
EASTON
Iglanced at Bianca as I waited for Nash or Raven to open the door. It only took a moment for the door to open, and I was face to face with Nash.
And to say he looked worse for wear was putting it mildly. I glanced over his shoulder at the brunette behind Nash. Obviously, this was Raven and, despite this being the first time I’d seen her, it was fair to say she wasn’t looking much better than Nash at this point, and I wanted to ask what was going on. All of that went out the window when Nash spoke first.
“Bianca? What the fuck are you doing here?” Nash asked her as he glanced at me.
“I wanted to talk to you, so I went to your apartment. I was there to ask you about what happened with Mom and Dad after the party at our house, but you weren’t home. Then this asshole walked through the door and told me that he was going to see you, so I made him bring me along. He wouldn’t tell me where we were going, but I pieced it together once I recognized the roads we were taking.”
That wasn’t the way things had unfolded, but Nash didn’t need to know that.
Bianca stopped talking and suddenly her eyes settled on Raven. They then drifted between the two of them as I watched her try to put together this mystery that was unfolding in front of us. Bianca walked over to Raven and gave her a small hug before returning to stand near Nash. The whole thing confused me slightly, but I was willing to watch from the sidelines for now to see what would happen.
“It makes sense why Nash is here because we co-own this place, but why are you? And what happened to you? There's so many scratches and bruises… Sorry, I’m being rude, and I apologize for being offensive,” Bianca said while looking at Raven.
Before anyone else could speak or move, I pushed my way into the cabin, which was growing smaller by the second with the number of people that were in it. I placed the duffel bag at Nash’s feet before taking a step back.
“Next time, give me a warning if I’m going to have to babysit your sister for a couple of hours.”
Bianca turned and glared at me, but I ignored her. My goal was to keep any suspicion about why Bianca was with me and about us low.
I took a step forward and introduced myself to Raven. “By the way, I’m Easton, this fucker’s best friend.”
“Nice to meet you. My name is Raven,” she said in return.
We shook hands before taking a step back from one another.
Bianca cleared her throat, drawing our eyes back to her as she refocused her attention on us. She side-eyed me before she turned to Raven and repeated her question again.
“I’m here because your brother—”
“Wants to keep you safe,” Nash said, finishing her sentence.
