Page 29 of Golden Knight

I don’t stop there, “What the fuck, Jake? I thought you just said don’t worry about them. I’ll protect you. Why did you bring me here? Are you a part of this? You know what they did to me. ”

It’s too much. My vision starts to get blurry as black spots take out my peripheral vision. I can’t do this. I don’t stop to think about the consequences.

I run.

I need to get out of this room.

Before I can get too far, large rough hands grab my arm, stopping me from running. The need to get away is strong, so I keep swinging. The arms that are holding me tighten, pulling me against a hard body. Memories of the past start to flicker, but I refuse to let my mind go back to that place. I close my eyes when I feel a deep rumble against my back and then his voice, “Baby.”

His voice stops me instantly from continuing to lash out. His voice is the only thing that seems to pull me back into the present when the past is trying to swallow me whole. Jake just holds me as he starts to explain more of the story in my ear, “It’s okay. Zeev and Blanche took over from her grandmother. After you were taken.”

His words penetrate my mind, and as I process what he is saying, my body starts to sag with relief. “They didn’t take me.”

“No, baby. You’re safe.”

He turns me to face him, picking me up. I wrap my legs around his waist.

“Let's go sit down and we can explain more to you.”

Nodding, we head back over to the couch. He holds me tightly on his lap–so I won’t slip away.

Blanche watches this whole exchange between us with a sad look on her face. She opens her mouth to talk, but before she can get a word out, I speak first. “You don’t have to be sad about what I’ve been through. Others have had it worse.”

She leans forward with her elbows resting on her knees, finally speaking. “First, I want to say, I’m sorry for everything my family has put you through. The fact that you’re telling me not to feel sad for you, tells me that you’re good people.”

I don’t have a response, but Jake does. “Thanks, Blanche, but Amber is the best people.”

I smack Jake’s leg. “Shut up.”

He just grins at me, “You know it’s true, sunshine.”

“You two are so cute.” Blanche cuts in our banter, as she goes on. “You don’t know me well yet, and I hope we fix that soon. But let me tell you I’m not my grandmother, nor do I ever plan on being like her. As the new leaders, we have gotten rid of the slave traders along with forcing people to pay debts with human lives. We moved on to different ventures.”

“Besides, we killed everyone from before,” Zeev adds and then shrugs his shoulders like killing people is no big deal.

I just nod my head, I’m not sure what else to say. I don’t want anything to do with The Wolves, more than I already have. Zeev then grabs Blanche’s hand while he looks at me intensely. I try not to squirm under his inspection. When he’s done, he turns his eyes to Jake, nodding. I’m not sure what that look was for or the nod but Jake seems to understand, and I guess that’s what matters. Zeev leans over and whispers something into Blanche’s ear, she nods and then stands up.

“Amber, would you like to come out and see the gardens with me? They’re my favorite part of this house and I would love to show them to you.”

I’m still not sure how I feel about everything, but since Jake seems to trust them, I guess I could try too. I look back over my shoulder at the man of my dreams and he gives me a small wink. When I turn back to Blanche, I answer. “Okay.”

Standing up from my seat, I follow Blanche out into the garden leaving Jake behind and hoping this was not a mistake.

Chapter twenty

Jake

I watch as Blanche and Amber go outside. Even though I have her back and The Wolves who were involved with her disappearance have been eradicated, something still feels like it's on the horizon. That feeling that things are not quite resolved sits like a brick in my stomach.

Locking her away isn’t a real answer. She would hate it. Even before she was taken, she didn’t like to be confined to spaces, which is how we became friends. I smile thinking about the day we met.

“Hey, man, you okay?” Zeev asks, cutting through my memories of Amber.

“Yeah, I’m good.” I stand up to get a better look out the back door and I can feel Zeev move closer to me, providing me with silent strength.

“I met Amber when I was eight. Her family had just moved in a few months before, but I never really saw too much of her. I was outside in the driveway, shooting hoops. I was so fucking bored and there she was. This little girl at the end of the driveway.” I remember that day like it was yesterday. I turn toward my friend. “I stopped right in my tracks when I saw her. She was like a ray of sunshine like she was a miniature version of Rapunzel. But what made me really notice her was when she put her hands on her hips and sassed me. She told me we were going to be best friends and that I had to play with her.”

I take a deep breath. “I can’t lose her again, man.”

---