Rival

by Cindy R. Wilson

  “You should eat,” Alice said. “We all have work to do today.”

  “I can’t. I really need to talk to you.” Not in front of Theo, he wanted to add.

  Alice continued to sit. “I know this isn’t how you want things to go, but—”

  “It’s more than that.”

  Theo shoved a bowl at him. “Eat! We have our supplies back—at least we have food. Look at the bright side.”

  The bright side? Killing an innocent girl was the bright side?

  He shoved out of his seat. “I’m not hungry.”

  “Where are you going?” Theo asked.

  Maddox debated. He wanted to see Juno. But Theo would know—or someone would know where he was. “Home.”

  He didn’t wait for Theo’s response or even look back as he stalked out of the dining area. He’d go home for now, but he wasn’t going to let Theo get away with this.

  His mom wouldn’t let them do anything to Juno until the community had a say. He had some time, but not much.

  He’d make his mom listen before that.

  Maddox walked the long way around the shopping area, catching sight of the ocean. He breathed in deep. Fishing. That’s what he could do. He could convince Theo that Juno was a great fisherman, and maybe he’d let her repay her “debt” in work.

  Then she’d be able to get out of the storage closet and still help out the community. A win-win.

  He wandered in the direction of the water, working through several different scenarios of the idea. It would work, especially if he could get his mom to back him up. After all, she had more say than Theo. She could fix all of this if she wanted to.

  Then the reality hit him. Theo didn’t care about fishing. He cared about retribution.

  Maddox cursed under his breath, then paused. He squinted at the beach when he saw a figure close to the road, just on the other side.

  It looked like a girl. Almost the same size as Juno. She wasn’t on his side of the border, but close.

  He wandered a little closer, and then it hit him. Pillar.

  He glanced around to make sure no one was nearby and then jogged across the sand. Pillar crossed her arms when she saw him, but she stayed where she was, making it clear she wanted to talk.

  “Pillar,” he said when he reached her. “What are you doing here?”

  “I needed to check on Juno. You didn’t hurt her, did you?”

  “No,” he choked out, guilt flooding his body. “I wouldn’t do that.”

  “But you’d let them do it.”

  “No. No, I won’t. I’m trying to fix this. I—” He didn’t know what else to say. He needed for her to believe him—for someone to know he wanted to help Juno.

  “Why did you have to say anything? She cared about you, and then you turned her in for something she didn’t do,” Pillar said, tears in her eyes.

  The surf raced to the tips of his shoes, but Maddox barely noticed. “I swear I didn’t say anything. It’s—my brother saw her when she visited the other night—when you were with her, remember?”

  “She didn’t steal your supplies.”

  “I know.” He almost reached out to assure her but forced his hands to stay at his sides. “I know she didn’t.”

  One tear slipped out, and she wiped it away hastily. “Then, she’s okay?”

  He nodded. “She’s okay. You…you believe me, right? That I didn’t turn her in. I don’t want Juno hurt. I was trying to fix this—to stay away so she wouldn’t get hurt. When my brother caught me with her, I had to push her away. To protect her.”

  Pillar’s lip wobbled. “That’s why she was so upset?”

  Another blow to the heart. Juno had been upset about what he’d done. He couldn’t blame her. It made sense. He would have been hurt, too. But it was for the best. At least he’d thought so at the time.

  “Why did she turn herself in?” Maddox asked, glancing around again. He couldn’t stay out here much longer.

  Pillar gave a bitter laugh. “Why? Someone had to take the fall. Juno did it for the rest of the community. For me.”

  He blew out a breath. Of course. Theo had seen both Juno and Pillar. If Juno thought Pillar might be in danger, she’d do whatever she could to save her.

  “And also…” Pillar’s voice trailed off, fading under the sound of the waves and the wind.

  “What?”

  “Don’t you get it by now? Even when you didn’t want to talk to Juno, she still came and found you. She turned herself in to protect me, but she also turned herself in to protect you.”

  His throat dried. Why would she do that after everything he’d done to hurt her?

  “I’m sorry,” he murmured.

  “You should be.” Pillar pointed her finger at him. “And you’d better make sure she doesn’t get hurt.”

  She didn’t let him answer, just ran in the other direction. He watched as she disappeared behind a building.

  Maddox swallowed hard, forcing himself to turn away. He wished he could run away like Pillar. But where could he run? He had nowhere to go. And if Juno wasn’t there, what was the point, anyway?

  It was taking the easy way out. He owed it to himself to try harder to fix this. No, he owed it to Juno.

  Maddox walked straight home and grabbed a jug full of water and some vegetables his mom had set out on the counter. Then he walked to the storage closet, passing a few people on the way but refusing to engage.

  Tim leaned against a tree outside the locked room, frowning when he saw Maddox. “What are you doing here?”

  “She needs food and water.” And God, he hoped someone had at least left her a bucket to use the restroom. Something. Bile climbed up his throat. They really were treating her like an animal.

  “Theo said you’d probably come over here,” Tim said.

  “So what? It’s not like I’m letting her out. I’m just making sure she doesn’t die before we decide what to do.”

  Tim didn’t respond for a long moment, but the logic of it seemed to make sense to him, so he shrugged.

  He undid the lock and prepared himself to see Juno. Prepared himself to apologize and promise her he’d fix this mess.

  The door squeaked when it opened, and light flooded the dim room. He stepped inside and then froze.

  There she was, in the corner next to the shelves. She peered toward the door, squinting against the sudden light.

  He expected something when she saw him. Anything, really. Maybe not a smile, but that same light in her eyes that he was used to. Acknowledgment of some kind.

  But when she saw him, she only lifted her chin and looked in the other direction. He’d gone too far this time. She’d never forgive him now.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Juno

  Juno’s traitorous heart still jumped when she saw Maddox. Just seeing him standing there made her ache to have him hold her. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes were a little tired, but that didn’t take away how she responded to him.

  Determined not to let her true feelings show, she lifted her chin and stared at the wall. It was marred by a smattering of scratches, and in the dim light, she’d made them into all sorts of shapes—crab, a boot, and Victor Bridge. But then that had reminded her of Maddox, and she’d tried to find something else.

  “I brought some water. And food,” Maddox said, closing the door slightly behind him.

  What? Did he think she’d try to run away? She had nowhere to go. Rand and Stef didn’t want her, Maddox didn’t want her. She might as well stay here and wait for whatever punishment they had.

  She heard the shuffle of feet and saw Maddox move toward her out of the corner of her eye. He set the water on the ground a few feet from her but hung onto the vegetables. Her stomach rumbled, yet she managed to keep her hands at her sides.

  She’d been so upset yesterday, she’d barely eaten—and that was before her captors came to get her. She hadn’t had water in almost a whole day.

  “Juno?”

  She had to bite h
er cheek to keep from answering. All she wanted right now was to go to him, to let him wrap his arms around her, and to pretend none of this was happening.

  He glanced over his shoulder at the door. Was someone waiting for him? Was he not supposed to be in here?

  “I’m sorry,” Maddox said. When she only stared at the wall, he continued. “I know you didn’t steal the supplies.”

  Then who did? she wanted to ask. Had they even considered it might be someone else, or was she just the easiest target? And how had that man known she’d been across the border? It had been so foggy that night. The only way he would have known was if Maddox had told him.

  “Please, Juno,” Maddox whispered.

  Her heart nearly broke at the desperation in his voice.

  “I didn’t turn you in. I was trying to protect you.”

  Her chest constricted at the words. But why would she believe him? He’d lied to her before.

  He crouched in front of her, close enough she could reach out and touch him. “I’m going to fix this. I’m going to—”

  “What the hell?” another voice said.

  Juno jerked at the anger in it. The door burst open, and the same man who’d accused her of being a thief walked through.

  Maddox stood, shaking his head at the same time. “She needs food. And water.”

  “She’s not a visitor,” the man sneered. He narrowed his eyes at her—almost the same way Maddox had done so many times when they first met. “She’s our prisoner.”

  Juno slowly got to her feet, prepared for the worst. Would they kill her? Torture her first?

  She swallowed, forcing her mind to go blank. The more she thought about it, the worse the scenarios got. She almost wished they’d hurry up and get it done so she’d be able to stop thinking of all the terrible ways they would find to punish her.

  “You can’t just leave her in here without food and water,” Maddox said. “You know Mom wouldn’t want that, Theo.”

  Mom? Juno blinked. Their mom? Oh, God. They were brothers. This man, the one who had treated her so badly and accused her of a crime she didn’t commit, was Maddox’s brother.

  “She made a choice,” Theo said, “and now she has to deal with the consequences. Just like the others should have been doing this entire time.”

  “She didn’t kill Dad,” Maddox growled.

  The words hung in the air until silence settled around them. For a long moment, no one spoke. Theo looked like he was about to hit Maddox, and Maddox looked just as close to starting a physical confrontation.

  Juno eyed the door. She could make a break for it. Use their distraction to try to get away. She knew places to hide—she’d scoped them out when she’d walked from her territory to the bridge. Of course, then she hadn’t thought of them as hiding places. She’d thought of them as places she could live if she ever left home.

  Places she and Maddox could stay if they ran away together.

  The idea of that quelled her urge to run. That was before, when she thought Maddox was on her side. When she thought his feelings for her were as strong as hers were for him.

  “Leave the food and water,” Theo said gruffly, yanking the door open, “but that doesn’t mean this is over.”

  Maddox glanced back at her once. She quickly averted her eyes. Maddox was the last thing she wanted to think about while she was stuck in here. But sadly, he was the one thing that had kept her going these past several weeks.

  Once they were outside, she heard the door lock again and listened to the murmur of voices. She had no hope of escape. Even if she could manage to find a way out of the locked room, she knew there was someone standing guard. She could hear him.

  Juno sank to the floor again and reached for the water. The first taste almost had her whimpering. She took another, then another. Before she could swallow down half the jug, Juno forced herself to stop.

  Stupid. What if this was the only water they gave her? She might have to save it. It didn’t seem like Maddox was supposed to be in here, and if he was the only one giving her food or water, she had to face the reality that she might not get any more.

  Was that their plan? To starve her? Make her die from dehydration? It sounded like a pretty horrible way to go, but that was the point, right? It was a punishment.

  Juno reached for the tomato. She’d eat this now and save the rest for later. Tomorrow if she could wait that long.

  She almost found herself wishing for one of those rats she and Maddox always caught. Or better, some fish. Juno bit into the tomato and then lifted her head even as juice dripped down her chin.

  Fish. That was it.

  Maddox’s community clearly needed to bring in more food, and they were going to start fishing to make ends meet. Juno knew all about fishing. And crabbing, which Maddox hadn’t even mentioned. That was how she could repay her debt. She could help fish.

  Juno stood and carried her tomato to the door. She put her ear to the surface to listen. She didn’t hear anything, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t anyone out there.

  She ate another bite of the tomato, thinking. It was a good idea. She’d help them build nets, teach them the best way to bring in the fish and crab. She’d be helping them out, and they wouldn’t have any reason to hurt her. They’d let her out of the storage room, and she could feel the ocean air on her cheeks, smell the salt and walk on the sand.

  She could be useful to them like she’d been useful to her community.

  Juno finished her tomato, listening at the door the whole time. She almost banged on her side to see if someone would come in. But they’d probably assume she was being unruly—that she’d finally realized she was their prisoner and wanted to fight back.

  No, she’d take her time and wait for someone to come back. If they ever came back. Then she’d find a way to get them to see reason.

  Or…

  Juno sank to the floor, shaking her head. She was thinking she could talk with Maddox. But that was an even worse idea. He didn’t care that she was in this mess. He’d completely ignored her at the bridge. If she’d thought he had any feelings for her, they’d been dashed away for good when he’d dismissed her. They’d been crushed when he’d turned her in.

  He’d probably just been using her to learn how to fish, and now that he had, he didn’t need her.

  Which meant his community didn’t need her, either. They’d leave her locked up in here until she died, or they’d get rid of her more quickly.

  Because she was the enemy.

  There was nothing she could do to change her fate, and it was a mistake to think even for a minute that she should try.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Maddox

  He bided his time, making himself wait until after dinner to get his mom alone. This wasn’t the kind of conversation he wanted to have in front of the entire community.

  But when Alice stepped outside after she ate, Theo and James went with her, like a little meeting of the heads of the community. And no one had invited him.

  He followed, anyway, letting the evening breeze cool him off. Theo raised his eyebrows at Maddox when he caught up to the group in the courtyard, but Maddox only crossed his arms. He was a part of this whether they wanted it or not.

  “We need to show them this can’t happen again,” James said.

  Alice nodded thoughtfully.

  “Right,” Theo said, voice cold. “If we let one of them get away with it, it’s not going to end. We have to put a stop to it right now.”

  “Isn’t that what you did?” Maddox cut in. “You already locked her up—took her away from her family.”

  Not that her family seemed to care one way or the other if she was gone, but that was beside the point. Pillar cared. He cared. And it wasn’t fair.

  But would he feel the same way if it wasn’t Juno?

  Maddox had asked himself the question more than once. Would he be fighting this hard for someone else? If Theo had hauled back a grown man without evidence, would Maddox care that h
e was locked in the storage closet, or would he be right there with the rest of the community thinking justice should be served?

  He hoped not.

  “What are you suggesting?” James asked, mimicking Maddox’s stance. His eye was still swollen from when he’d been captured. “We let her go? Just give her a slap on the wrist and send her home?”

  Yes. “It’s not—no, I’m not saying let her go.” Although, that was exactly what he wanted. “I’m just saying, I think we’ve seen the other side as the enemy for so long, we haven’t stopped to see if they really are anymore.” Maddox turned, appealing to his mom. “If that were me, and the other community said I stole something, would you want them to lock me up without any proof?”

  “No, I wouldn’t. But Theo said she confessed.”

  James nodded, but Maddox shook his head. “No, she didn’t. You know the truth. She said she’d come with us—not that she stole the supplies.”

  “Then why didn’t she deny it?” James asked.

  “Someone had to take the fall,” Maddox said. “I think she did that for her community. So we didn’t have a fight on our hands.”

  “What the hell?” James asked. “You’ve seen the girl twice—you fall in love with her or something?”

  The words were like a punch to the gut. How did James know? How had he not seen it before? He felt things for Juno he’d never felt for anyone else. He didn’t want to see her hurting, especially if there was something he could do about it.

  He was so surprised, it took a moment for him to answer.

  “In love?” he said, voice gruff. “I don’t even know her.”

  Which was the worst lie he’d ever told. Because he did know Juno. He knew her better than he knew himself. She’d taken the fall for this, even though it wasn’t her fault. She hadn’t turned him in, even though he’d treated her like crap back at the bridge. She’d forgiven him more than once. He didn’t even know what he would do in her shoes, but she’d made the most noble choices.

  For that, he owed her more than anything.

  “That’s right,” Theo said. “You don’t know her. So how can you be sure she didn’t steal the supplies? I mean, why would she come with us if she wasn’t guilty?”