by Casey, Ryan
Jax. So that was the bastard’s name. “I’ll make this Jax pay for taking you away. I’ll make him pay for—”
“Jax isn’t one of the bad guys,” Ella said.
Martin paused. His heart raced. Confusion filled his body. None of this felt real. It felt like a dream turning into a nightmare. “He attacked our community. The shelter. The shelter we were heading towards. Remember? He attacked it.”
Ella looked off into the distance. Like there was something on her mind. Like she was trying to recollect something from her past. Something just out of reach.
“Ella, if he’s brainwashed you, you need to look through it. You need to see the truth. We’ve got a home waiting for you. And it’s... it’s not perfect, but it’s as good as it can be. We can go back there. We can go back there right now. And we don’t have to worry about this, Jax. We don’t have to worry about his people. Not anymore.”
She looked around at Martin, and she took a deep breath. “But it’s not Jax we need to worry about.”
Martin frowned. “I... I don’t understand, Ella. I don’t—”
“Jax isn’t a bad guy. He’s... ruthless sometimes. But we have to be. We all have to be. You told me that. Right?”
Martin shook his head. He didn’t understand. “Ella, you need to listen to me. We need to get out of here. You need to—”
“I was wounded,” Ella said. “I didn’t want to tell you. I didn’t want you to know. You were so close to Lancaster. I just wanted you to be happy. So I headed into the woods. I thought I was going to die. But Jax saved me, Dad. He stitched me up and saved me. I almost died. But I’m still here. Because of him.”
Martin heard Ella’s words. Everything came flooding back. The worry over Ella’s disappearance. Then the panic. All of it reminding him of Gary all those years ago. A spectre haunting him all over again.
“Ella. I… I—”
“You’re on the wrong side, Dad. You’re on the wrong side. And you’re so deep in you don’t even see it.”
Martin shook his head. His confusion turned to anger. Because this was supposed to be the moment he got his daughter back. It was supposed to be the happiest moment of his life.
But he was being denied that.
By his own daughter.
“Whatever he’s told you, it’s not true.”
“But I’ve seen it,” Ella said. “I’ve seen it for myself. It’s why I couldn’t come back there. It’s why I’ve had to wait all this time. Wait for you to find us. But now you’ll see. You’ll see the truth. And it might not be easy. It might be difficult to hear. But... but you’ll see. And when you do, you’ll know exactly why I’m with Jax and his people. And you’ll know exactly why you’ve been on the wrong side all this time, too.”
Martin couldn’t say a word anymore. All he could do was sit there. Shaking his head. “Ella. I—Please. This isn’t right.”
“But it is,” a voice said.
A movement behind Ella.
Another figure in the doorway.
That man stepping inside. The bald man. The smile on his face.
Jax.
Martin’s body tightened up. Anger spilled through him. “Whatever you’ve told her, whatever you’ve poisoned her with, I’ll make you pay for it. I’ll make you—”
“But it’s not poison, Martin,” Jax said. So calm. So to the point. “Because it’s the truth. And Ella’s seen it for herself. We’ve all seen it for ourselves.”
Martin looked at Ella. He looked at Jax. He saw them, both beside each other. Both so comfortable in each other’s company.
Both on the same side.
She wasn’t captive. She wasn’t a victim.
She stood by him because she wanted to stand by him.
And that was the most painful thing of all.
“There’s a lot you have to learn,” Jax said, stepping forward. “About our people. About our plight. And about something else, too.”
He stood right in front of Martin. Looked right into his eyes.
“About what?” Martin asked.
Jax took a deep breath. And then he smiled. “About the man called Harold. About your nice little community in Lancaster. And about exactly what kind of people you’re trying to protect. Because you’re believing in a lie, Martin. You’re believing in a lie.”
“I don’t understand—”
“Harold isn’t who he says he is. He isn’t the benevolent leader he pretends to be. And I know it first-hand. I’ve seen it first-hand.”
Martin shook his head. Confusion overwhelming him. Head so dizzy he could faint. “I... I don’t...”
“We know it’s true because we’ve all seen what he’s responsible for. What he’s capable of.”
His voice grew louder. More impatient.
“I’ve seen what he’s capable of for myself.”
Emotion cracking through.
He looked away.
Then he looked back at Martin. Back into his eyes. Took a deep breath.
“I know... because Harold murdered my girlfriend in cold blood.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Jax saw the shelter in the distance, and he felt a smile cross his face.
It was another crisp autumn morning. Ice covered the roads, lethally slippery. Snow clung to the branches of the trees. A bitter breeze blew against his face, biting cold. Felt like winter was well on its way.
And winter wasn’t gonna be easy. Especially living life on the road like he was. There were eight of them in total. A decent group. All pulled together. All on the same page.
And his girlfriend was beside him. Olivia.
She always made him feel far stronger than he was. Far more capable than he was.
He looked at the buildings in the distance, and he felt his smile growing. He’d watched this place from afar for a few days, ever since the girl they found in the woods—Ella—mentioned it. She told him about her dad. About how he’d headed that way. And initially, Jax was cautious. He wasn’t sure whether he wanted to risk it.
But the time had come. Enough time had passed. Ella had been in their group for a few weeks now. Recovering after her injury. Avoiding infection, a miracle in itself.
Settling in. Becoming one of theirs.
Jax looked to this community ahead. There were people here. Lots of people. All of them pulling together. All of them working for one another. They looked good. They looked happy.
And they had a warm home.
And Jax felt like this was the natural conclusion to his journey. They’d been on the road for so long now, moving from place to place. They’d gone days without food. Without water. Days sleeping in tents, waking up with ice clinging to their faces.
But it all ended today.
Everything changed today.
“You sure about this?”
Jax turned around.
Olivia stared into his eyes. It didn’t matter how often he looked at his girlfriend, her beauty never failed to stun him. Her jet black hair. Those freckles across her face. He fell in love with her the first time he laid eyes on her five years ago, and he fell in love with her again, right now.
She was his reason for fighting on in this world.
She was his reason for keeping on going. Keeping on searching for something better.
He took her hand. The rest of their people walking closer behind them. “We have to try. I mean, we’ve watched this place for a few days. These people, they seem like good people. Working people. The kind of people we can trust.”
“But what if you’re wrong?” Olivia asked.
He didn’t know where it’d come from, this sudden concern. Olivia had been so optimistic about finding a new home. Finding a new group. Finding somewhere to settle down and start again.
But then he could understand it. They’d spent so long on the road, in the wilderness, that it felt like forever. It felt like trusting new people was a dangerous step into the unknown. Like starting all over again.
He tightened his grip ar
ound Olivia’s hand. “I won’t be wrong about this. I know we’ve run into bad people out there. I know there’s been bad groups on the road. But these people. They seem decent. They seem good. Okay?”
Olivia looked right into his eyes. Smiled. Nodded. “If I’m right, though...”
“You won’t be right.”
“But if I am... we’ll still be okay. We’ll still keep on going. We’ll keep on surviving. Just like we always have.”
Jax leaned in and kissed Olivia. Tasted the salt on her lips. The dryness of her face.
And then he pulled away from her, that kiss recharging him, igniting him.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s go find our new home.”
They walked down the road together. Walked towards the buildings. Birds sang in the sky. The sun shone down brightly. A few specks of snow drizzled down, dusting the streets.
And the closer Jax and his people got to this place, the more his nerves grew. The more his trepidation built. Because what if Olivia was right? What if these people weren’t good? What if they couldn’t be trusted?
He snuffed that thought out. Because he had to believe in the principles he’d always believed in. The inherent goodness of other people. The desire to work together. To move forward. As humans. As a society.
He had to believe in those principles. Because they’d always served him right so far in his life. Since his days as a monk, he’d seen people differently. He’d seen that everyone was suffering in their own ways. Everyone was fighting a battle. Nobody was bad. Not inherently. They were just struggling. They just wanted to cling to the things that made them feel good. The things that comforted them.
The things that made them feel home.
He went to say something to his people when he saw someone up ahead.
A man stood there. A big guy. Two people either side of him. These people were wearing black balaclavas.
But the man wasn’t.
The big bloke. The chubby bloke.
A pistol in his hand.
Jax felt the hairs on his arms stand on end. He slowed down, stepped forward. This wasn’t right. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. This wasn’t—
“Don’t come another step towards us,” the man said. “Understand?”
But Jax didn’t understand. And he felt angry, too. Because this was supposed to be their home. This was supposed to be their salvation. This was supposed to be a happy ending.
Jax stepped forward. “We—we don’t mean trouble. We—”
“And I appreciate that, friend,” the big bloke said. “But we’re full. Full to the brim. We don’t want anyone else coming in here. We don’t need any more outsiders. We’re just fine. So walk away. Find somewhere else. While you still have the chance.”
Jax didn’t know whether it was the exhaustion that did it. He didn’t know if it was the dying optimism that did it.
But there was something that made him act against his better judgement.
Something that made him act recklessly.
Something that made him do something that would change his life forever.
He tightened his fists.
Took another step forward.
“I—”
He heard the blast.
But he didn’t feel any pain.
He looked down. Looked at his body. Looked everywhere.
But there was no blood.
There were no bullet wounds.
“Jax?”
Jax turned around, and his heart sank.
Olivia stared at him. Wide-eyed. Confused. Lost. Scared.
She was holding her neck.
Bleeding.
Jax threw himself at her. “Olivia!”
He grabbed her as she fell. He held her close to his body. Held her as she bled out. Tried to do something for her. Anything for her. Comfort her. Help her. “Please. Please.”
But there was nothing he could do but sit there.
Nothing he could do but hold her.
Nothing he could do but cry with her.
“I’m sorry. I was wrong. I—I’m so sorry.”
He felt something. Her cold, shaking fingers reaching up. Touching his face.
And then he saw her smile. Despite all the pain, all the agony, a smile.
“Keep on fighting,” she said. “Keep on...”
Olivia’s hand dropped from Jax’s face.
Blood trickled out over the snow.
And when Jax finally brought himself to look up from her body, the man who’d shot her was already gone.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Martin sat back against the wall of the cabin and tried to process what he’d just heard.
A cool late morning breeze blew in through the cabin door. Ella and Jax sat opposite Martin, saying nothing. Just waiting for him to say something. Waiting for him to respond.
“I just... That’s not the Harold I know.”
Jax sighed. “I know. And I’m sorry. I know you probably had a positive opinion of him. And it’s hard, learning the truth about those we believe benevolent. But I’m only sharing the truth. And it’s a truth my friends here can corroborate. A truth your daughter can corroborate. Harold executed my girlfriend. He killed her in cold blood. And it didn’t stop there.”
Martin swallowed a lump in his throat. He wasn’t sure he wanted to hear anything else.
“I was angry after that,” Jax said. “Grief hit me like nothing else. I wanted to run in there. I wanted to kill the bastard myself. But I realised that was just going to get me killed. That was just going to do harm to my people. I needed to step back. I needed to bide my time. And I needed to wait for the right moment.
“But it wasn’t as simple as that. Harold... he came after us. Sent his goons out into the woods to hunt us down. He pushed us out of the area. Forced us back. And it turns out we weren’t the only ones. There were others groups, too. Others like us. Others who’d sought out shelter. Others who had been forced away. By Harold. And they are the people who make up our group now. They are the people who form my people. And they are the people who you have to stand by. Because we’re the good guys. Not Harold. I’m sorry.”
Martin looked at Ella. He couldn’t wrap his head around this. Couldn’t take any of it in. Because Harold. He seemed a good guy. He seemed like he had the best interests of the shelter at heart. Like he cared about Lancaster. Cared about people.
But maybe that was just it.
He cared about Lancaster. He cared about his people.
But did he care about people?
He thought about how much the numbers were trickling down. How, in the early days, more people joined their shelter. But how they had dwindled over time. He thought about how proud Harold was of his home. But how mysterious he was about their recruitment process. About the scouting missions his closest allies went on.
And then he thought of Quentin.
He’d seen it. Seen it for himself in the woods. Quentin. George. Both of them in balaclavas. Shooting Jax’s people in plain sight.
And then pointing the rifle at him and being so close to shooting.
“I’ve seen it too, Dad,” Ella said. “And... and I wanted to come back. I wanted to get you out of there so badly. But if I’d come near that place, he’d have killed me. So we had to wait. We had to wait ’til we had a chance to draw you out. Only... only something happened. Something bad.”
“The explosion,” Martin said. “Innocent people died. Good people died. You condone that? You stand by that?”
“I regret it,” Jax said. “I don’t like it when innocent people get caught in the crossfire. But the fact stands. That place. That place you call home. It’s a great place. A thriving shelter and community. And it’s something that deserves to be run by someone better.”
“And you’re the better alternative? Really?”
Jax smiled. “I didn’t say myself. I just said someone better.”
Martin looked away. He felt exhausted. Still couldn’t wrap his head around any
of this. Still couldn’t believe it.
“So what is it you people actually want?”
Jax walked over to Martin. He reached behind his back. Snipped his wrists free of the ties. Then his ankles.
And then he stepped back and stood by Ella’s side.
“What we want is simple. We want to take Harold out. We want to remove him. Because as long as he lives, he’s a threat to all of us. With him gone, we can move forward. All of us.”
Martin shook his head. “Even if this is true, how can I trust you?”
“Because he saved my life,” Ella said. “And because I’ve seen it. While you’ve lived there, I’ve seen people die. Friends I’ve made. People I thought were stronger than me. I’ve seen them die. And it’s because of him, Dad. It’s all because of him.”
Martin shook his head. He looked at Ella. Then at Jax. “Harriet,” he said. “Oscar. And Bruce. If... if Harold finds out I’m onto any of this, they’re in danger.”
Jax took a deep breath and sighed. “I’m sorry to say this, Martin. But if you’re out here, they’re already in danger. Which means we need to act quickly. All I want to know is whether or not you’ll help us.”
Martin looked at Jax. He looked at Ella. And then he looked at the rest of the figures hovering outside the door.
He didn’t agree with Jax’s methods.
He was a murderer. He was no good.
But then he couldn’t argue with the facts about Harold, either.
And he couldn’t deny something needed to be done.
“I’ll help you,” Martin said. “But not for yourself. For the people there. For the people I care about. Not for you. Because you’re not going to lead that place. You’re a murderer, and I don’t trust you. But I’ll help do something. I’ll—I’ll help change things. If you’re telling the truth, I’ll help.”
Jax walked over to Martin. He held out a hand, and he smiled.
“That’s all I want,” he said. “And all we want.”
Martin looked down at his hand.
He looked at Ella. Staring closely at them both. Watching them.
He took a deep breath.
And then he turned away from Jax’s hand.