Savage One: Born Wild Book Two

by Augustine, Donna

“No. They aren’t staying. Now don’t come.” I opened the door and shut it before she could try to come with me. Hopefully she wouldn’t just open right back up and follow.

  I walked out the door. It was entirely possible they were here for something else. It wasn’t what I’d bet on.

  Callon inched closer to me as I approached. I wasn’t sure if he was giving me a buffer or was afraid I’d tackle them to the ground.

  Dal said, “Hi, Teddy. So happy to see you again. We came to talk to you.”

  Even the phrase “ready, set, go” didn’t make me want to run the way those words did. They boded nothing but bad. I needed to limit exposure before we all got sucked into an emotional tsunami that left no one standing.

  Dal stepped forward, clearly itching to reach out to me before she crossed her arms in front of her.

  Dax stepped up next to her. “After what happened at the farm, what Bitters said, we went back to the grave. It was empty. We felt that we needed to tell you.”

  Crazy. They were completely bonkers. “It’s been years. Are you sure you went to the same spot? Are you sure an animal didn’t…”

  My words died as they all looked at me aghast. What the hell? It wasn’t like animals didn’t eat dead bodies sometimes. I didn’t know when all these beasts got such delicate sensibilities. Didn’t they realize I was doing them a kindness? This relationship was doomed. They were wrong. I wasn’t their daughter and they didn’t really want me. They just didn’t know it yet.

  Dax cleared his throat. “Either way, we know you’re having some trouble here, and we wanted to see if we could help.”

  Sure they did. Now I was never getting rid of them.

  I turned to Callon and tilted my head to the side. “I need a word with you.”

  “Why don’t you go get warm in the lodge?” Callon said to them.

  We walked until Callon stopped. I hoped that meant we were out of earshot, but this discussion was happening either way. There were enough problems. I didn’t need these two staring at me while we sorted through the mess that was going on here.

  I paced in front of him. “When are they leaving? You didn’t leave it open-ended, did you? I hope you told them we didn’t need their help. They’re only here for me. Do you see the way they look at me?” I crossed my arms to stop from pointing at them. Then I uncrossed them, thinking of how Dal had done the same thing two seconds ago. They didn’t need anything else to support their crazy notions. They’d take an innocent gesture like that and use it.

  He stood still as he watched me move back and forth. “Parents or not, they’re offering to help. I’m not kicking them out.”

  “They stare at me weird, like I’m going to fix them. I’m not. I’m going to break their heart again.” I glanced over at the lodge and saw a glimmer of them through the window. I wasn’t so sure how mine would be faring either. “They’re doing it now. I can’t have them here.”

  “They’re curious. They’ll get over it.”

  I shook my head and stopped pacing. “I hate when people look at me.”

  “It’s not that bad.”

  “It. Is. For someone who wants a…” I pointed a finger back and forth between us, because I was not saying relationship. “This behavior doesn’t infuse confidence in you being a good…” I wasn’t saying boyfriend either. “You get my point.”

  He tilted his head toward me. “You’re going to play that card after you tried to run away the day after without a word?”

  Yeah, I sort of had. I had a good reason, like trying to save everyone’s home, thank you. But it didn’t look too good on the relationship scale. If he was flunking, I didn’t know where I was right now.

  He leaned forward. “You want to kick them out, you do it.”

  He headed off toward the lodge before I could argue further. Some boyfriend he was.

  I could still see Dal and Dax through the windows standing in the hall. They stared at me like I had three horns and purple hair. I’d rather walk into the middle of the Hell Pit than go inside that lodge right now. But it wasn’t like I could leave.

  I caught a glimpse of Tuesday standing next to them, smiling. That got my feet moving. She better not be telling them anything about my life. Distance was what was needed.

  By the time I got inside and close enough to hear, it was already getting weirder.

  She stood too close to Dal. “You know, Teddy and I are pretty much sisters. I guess that would make you my parents, too.”

  She wanted my fake parents. Unfortunately, no one was going to be able to keep them, so she shouldn’t just move it along.

  “Hey, sis, I need you.” I wrapped an arm around her and dragged her into the kitchen. “What are you doing? Don’t encourage this.”

  “You said the farm was nice. Maybe me and Koz could honeymoon there with our new parents?”

  “You can’t have them.”

  “I shared with you.”

  “I can’t have them either. They’re not mine, and nothing good is going to come from pretending.” I gave Tuesday a last warning glance to keep her greedy hands away from the fake parents as I headed back.

  She crinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at me as I left.

  By the time I walked back into the hall, Callon and the fake parents had moved into the great room. Callon was talking to Dal and Dax when I walked in. He glanced my way, and I could’ve sworn I saw guilt. Was he telling them to stay as long as they wanted? Maybe he’d told them to lay off the staring? You could never quite pin him down.

  “So, how long do you think you might be staying?” I should be telling them to get out but couldn’t seem to get my lips to form those words. They’d lost their only child and gone insane. Since I didn’t have the guts to say it, couldn’t get Callon to say it, I was stuck dealing with it for a little bit. It wouldn’t be too long. A Hell Pit was heading our way, about to wipe out the lodge. There was always a silver lining.

  Dal smiled and shrugged. She didn’t seem to care whether I wanted her there or whether I even wanted to be in the same room with her. All she wanted to do was smile at me like I was a Christmas Day feast. What was wrong with this woman? Did she not know I wanted nothing to do with this charade? She should not be smiling.

  Dax didn’t have any of his wife’s smiling attitude. “We’re staying until this situation is settled. Until you’re settled.” He stated it like he was about to go out back and chisel it into the side of the mountain if I didn’t get the message.

  “Well, you might be waiting quite a while. I don’t think I’m going to be settled for weeks, possibly months.”

  Dal continued to smile. Dax looked ready to find some more mountains.

  “It might even be years. I could end up having to go from place to place for a long time, the way this stuff is hunting me down. It’s not a pretty picture. It’s a real disaster.” The only thing I didn’t say was “you should run for your lives,” but that was clearly implied if they were sane enough to hear it. It was time they went and found themselves a new fake daughter.

  “That’s fine. We can wait,” Dax said.

  I glanced at Callon. “Could even be decades, right?”

  “Sure. Decades. Maybe even a millennium?” Callon shrugged. And this was who I’d slept with? Asshole.

  I was never going to…

  No. Don’t say that, even in your head. You might be stuck here for a while. You’ll never stay out of his bed now that you know what you can have while in it. Lying to yourself would only complicate things and add unneeded guilt.

  With no way to fix this, only one option left: retreat. “Well, I’ve got a lot of stuff I need to get to before dinner.”

  Dal smiled. Dax looked rooted to the ground.

  I left and went outside. Tuesday followed me as we walked away from the lodge.

  She didn’t press me for information, but she looked like she wanted every detail.

  “You know all that food I snuck you? I might have to go into hiding, and you’ll have
to return the favor by bringing me dinner.”

  “They seem nice enough. I think you should embrace it.”

  That suggestion made me walk faster. “There will be no embracing. They will eventually realize it’s a mistake, and then it’ll be done.”

  “Okay,” she said, her voice a little higher and faster.

  The crows took that opportunity to caw and fly overhead.

  “Are there more crows?” Tuesday asked, looking upward.

  “I think they made friends or something.” I didn’t have time to worry about the damn crows.

  We hiked a little farther up the mountain. When I turned around, I sucked in a breath.

  “Tuesday,” I said, pointing in the distance.

  “Oooh, shit.”

  For the first time, we could see the Hell Pit from a lookout point close to the lodge.

  * * *

  I chewed on a piece of roast at dinner. Dal and Dax were sitting across from me. Tuesday was beside me, eating daintily as she smiled at them. Callon was to my left. Issy and the guys were all the way at the other end of the long table, leaving some seats in the middle as buffer.

  “How far did you have to travel from your normal route to get around it?” Callon asked, talking about the Hell Pit. It had been the main topic of dinner, rehashing everything that had happened.

  “About a half a day,” Dal said, glancing at me. No matter how hard I tried to not participate, it didn’t matter—their attention was focused on me.

  I shoved the last of the meat on my plate in my mouth. I chugged some water down when it nearly got stuck and then stood.

  “Really long day. I’ll see you all in the morning.” I gave the table a wave and then exited the room before anyone could stop me. I got out of there fast, but not before I noticed Tuesday slide into my chair. If only she could take my place.

  There would still be tomorrow and the next day, but if I could limit exposure, eventually they’d leave. We might all be leaving.

  That didn’t help me sleep. This time it wasn’t just fear that kept me awake, but Callon. There was only one thing that would wash my mind clear for a precious few moments. Don’t do it. You can’t give him what he wants, and you shouldn’t pretend you can. You’re too messed up and you know it.

  Although maybe I could. Or I could pretend to? I couldn’t leave him anyway, and it wasn’t as if I wanted anyone else. Was there really any harm in continuing this for a while?

  After ten minutes of hard internal debating, I gave up caring about what was right. I got up, one destination in mind.

  I opened my door to see Callon already heading my way. He stopped in front of me.

  His eyes slipped lower, looking at the ragged t-shirt I was wearing to bed like I’d covered myself in honey.

  “Do you want me to leave?” he asked, his voice gravelly. That was it, a dip in his pitch and I grew breathless. What had become of me that he could undo me so easily?

  “No,” I said, as I took a step back, inviting him in.

  He followed, shutting the door behind him.

  In one last flare of panic, I asked, “This doesn’t mean anything, right?”

  “Do you really want to discuss that?”

  It did mean something to him. And I’d be lying if I said it meant nothing to me, but that didn’t change anything, did it? If we talked about it, it would ruin this moment, and that would be very, very bad.

  “No, Definitely not.”

  He put an arm around my waist and lifted me, and I wrapped my legs about him like I’d done it a thousand times as he walked back to the bed.

  Thirty-Seven

  I grabbed some biscuits in the kitchen and headed outside. I’d skipped breakfast and lunch. There was no denying it. I was a chicken avoiding my fake parents. If they didn’t see me, maybe they’d leave. I was so consumed in my thoughts that I nearly mowed Levi over as he was walking toward the supply shed.

  “Sorry,” I said, jerking away from him.

  He gave me a nod in return, not openly hostile but a few pegs down from friendly, as he kept on his way.

  I didn’t move. Levi was supposed to die from a heart attack, and not for years. Today, I’d seen him die of a fever while lying in some worn-down shack. He was wearing the same shirt he had on today. Something had changed.

  I went straight for the kitchen. Issy was busy rolling dough. “Any idea where Callon is?” I asked, keeping my distance. I didn’t need to see another death, especially hers, or I might pass out before I found him.

  “He was out front earlier. Not sure where he went off to.” She glanced up, took one look at my face, and squinted. “You okay?”

  “I’m good,” I said, trying to keep space between me and everyone I saw as I made my way out of the kitchen. “Or I will be. I just have to talk to Callon.”

  I looked out the front door before shooting into his office, and then taking the stairs two at a time.

  Tuesday was making her way down the hall.

  “Did you see Callon?” I asked.

  “No. Why? What’s going on?”

  “Not sure.”

  Tuesday came to stand in front of me, and I nearly fell over.

  Tuesday’s death had been the same for as long as I’d known her. She’d die in her bed after living decades longer, if her wrinkles meant anything. It had never wavered, not once. I could set my clock by it, and I’d taken solace from it many times. No matter what happened, she’d be okay, even hanging around me. She’d live a full life.

  Or that used to be the case.

  Today she was dead in a ditch, her body twitching as the last of her life left her. Her chest still. Her face youthful.

  “Teddy, you okay?” Tuesday reached out to place a hand on my arm, and I jerked away.

  It took a second before I could get my words back. Tuesday was getting more and more concerned as she watched.

  “Yeah, I just…” My words dried up again.

  “What? You look white as a ghost.”

  “I’m just freaked out, and it hit me, is all. I’m okay. I swear. Just on edge.” I couldn’t let her know the changes I was seeing in people’s deaths. Especially hers.

  Her face softened. “Yeah, I know. I think every sane person is on edge at this point.” She rolled her eyes as if it all made sense, turning to head downstairs. Before we took our first step, the bell rang. That meant either there was food to be had, which wasn’t likely at this time of day, or there was something important about to be said. The idea of an announcement filled me with so much dread that I nearly couldn’t walk.

  By the time we got a few steps down, people were already piling through the hall and into the great room. I couldn’t see any more death visions and hold it together through that meeting.

  “Go get a seat. I’ll be down in a second. I want to drop off my jacket in my room.” I waved her ahead.

  I ran back upstairs and deposited my jacket to keep up my cover. The room was packed by the time I got back. I didn’t go in but lingered in the doorway, where I could make a quick exit.

  Callon was standing off to the side in front of the crowd, waiting for everyone to settle down.

  He glanced over at me. I shook my head slightly, begging him not to say what I feared. He paused long enough to give me a glimmer of hope and then moved to the front of the room, not looking at me again.

  “Thanks for coming. I’ve got some bad news that can’t hold. The Hell Pits are getting closer and seem to be picking up speed. We’re going to have to evacuate in three days.”

  A murmur spread through the room.

  “It’s unavoidable,” Callon said, raising his voice over the din. “Pack only what you think you can carry. If you want to stay and take your chances, that’s up to you. This isn’t a forced move. You’re free to do whatever you want. But you will be on your own.”

  The room erupted into full-blown panic. Several people asked, “Where are we going to go?” Others had already moved on to “What about our things?”, “H
ow are the children going to manage the move?”, and “How far are we going to go?”

  He was swarmed with people as I ducked out the front door and threw up in a bush.

  * * *

  He walked into his bedroom. I looked at him from where I was sitting on his bed. I’d been waiting nearly an hour for him to get done answering questions. We couldn’t leave this place, and by the time I was done, he needed to understand that too. I glared at him a little harder with each step he took, throwing down the gauntlet with my expression.

  He looked back at me, silently accepting the challenge.

  “You knew this was coming. It’s not like it hit you out of the blue, which is more than I can say for most of the people who live here.” He moved to the far end of the room, staring out the windows of the horizon, where there’d been a clear sightline to the Hell Pit since this morning.

  “This morning, two people’s deaths changed,” I said.

  There was a split-second pause before he replied, “Then we’ll be careful of those two people.”

  “We don’t know how many more there are.” My voice was harsh and stilted. He wasn’t hearing me.

  He turned from the window, as agitated as I was. “There’s no other choice. We. Can’t. Stay.”

  He was right. We couldn’t. This thing would follow me to the ends of the earth. I was sure of that. But they might be able to if I didn’t.

  I jumped to my feet. “Then we should leave, right now, while we might still be able to.” We. Could I do that to him? Condemn him to a life perpetually on the move? There was no other choice right now.

  “We can’t. The two Hell Pits have merged into one. There is no saving this place. It’s over.”

  “There’s got to be—”

  “There isn’t.”

  I grabbed his arms, and then I whispered when I would’ve rather screamed. “Tuesday will die. I saw it.”

  Another pause, this one long enough to give me hope. Then his eyes shuttered off his soul. “I’ll warn Koz and we’ll protect her. There’s nothing else to be done.”

  I turned and then sat back on the bed. Now what? What did we do now?