Page 48 of Darkness

Ivy’s arms throw out to the sides as she rushes out of the room toward me too. “E-Eva!” Her voice breaks as she calls out my name.

My breathing is frantic as I run like hell to get to her. It’s an eternity, but eventually, we slam into each other. My arms wrap around her, holding her body to me so fucking tight. I never want to let her go. Not again. The memory of her being ripped from my grasp is too strong.

Ivy clings to me as tears cascade down our faces.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” I grip her for dear life.

“No, I’m fine. Completely fine. Are you all right?” she asks frantically.

Sniffling, I pull back from her, my hands moving to her face, smoothing her hair as I look at her—really look at her—to make sure she isn’t lying to me. “I’m fine. Just dying to find you. Jesus, Ivy, I was so fucking worried, so fucking scared. I was going out of my damn mind.” I pull her back to me, just needing to make sure she’s really here with me and not some figment of my imagination or some nightmare I’m yet to wake up from.

“I know. I was worried about you, too, but I was told Nycto and the guys have been taking good care of you. They’ve been nothing but amazing to me since I arrived.”

I peek over my shoulder to where Nycto is watching our interaction intently, then turn back to my sister. “I’m so glad you’re here. Not knowing what was happening to you was killing me.”

Ivy winces, grabs my hands, and stares straight into my watering eyes. “I’m fine. I promise. Nothing happened to me. I’m one hundred percent okay. Not a scratch.”

I lean in and press my lips to her forehead. “I love you so, so much. I don’t ever want us to be separated again.”

Ivy swipes under my eyes to wipe away my tears. “We won’t be. We’re a team. We do everything together. Make decisions together. Everything will be fine.”

Guilt flows through me as I think of Nycto. Of the kiss we shared, of the connection I feel with him. But first and foremost, I need to think of my sister and her well-being. What is best for her and her alone. My feelings don’t come into this. Just in case the men don’t like what we’re discussing, I switch to Spanish.

“What do you want to do, Ivy? I’m not sure we can go back to Cuba. The men who took us will probably come after us again. We will have to make a way for ourselves here in America.”

Void, who I now notice is inside the room behind Ivy, looks over like he’s suddenly interested in our conversation. I can’t help but feel Nycto’s eyes glaring into my back as well.

Ivy narrows her eyes on me. “You want to go it alone? In a country where we have no visas or passports, no money, nothing to help us?”

My stomach churns as I glance back at Nycto, his expression unreadable. I can’t tell if he’s angry, somber, or despondent. Maybe it’s all three? Turning back to Ivy, I shrug. “What else would you have us do? We can’t go back home. It’s too risky.”

Ivy turns, glancing back at Void. I really hope he doesn’t speak Spanish. His eyes shift to the floor like he doesn’t want to be a part of this discussion, and I’m confused as to why she’s even turning to him. What’s with that?

She tightens her hands on mine, her eyes shooting to Nycto for the briefest of moments before returning to me. “Why don’t we stay here?”

“Here? At the clubhouse?”

“I mean… I’m sure Nycto is willing to let us stay until we get on our feet or even longer if we want to. To be honest, Eva, I feel safe here. Protected. And I haven’t felt like that for a long time.”

My body slumps at her words. All I want is for Ivy to feel safe and protected. After what we’ve been through in our lives, then being kidnapped to be sold, I want her to know she’s being taken care of.

“Why do you feel safe here?”

Her eyes shift to Void, and it starts to sink in. Maybe she sees him as her hero? Maybe he was the one who got her out of wherever she was, and now she doesn’t want to leave him.

“Have you seen this place, Eva? It’s an underground bunker. We’re in this country illegally, and we can’t go back home for fear of being taken again. If we go out on our own, it’s exactly that… we’re on our own. Here, Defiance can protect us. I don’t know about you, but that makes me feel shielded from the bad people. If those assholes who tried to buy us ever come knocking, Nycto and his brothers will be here for us. Doesn’t that mean something to you?”

Her belief in these guys is quite astounding for someone who has only been here for twenty-four hours, give or take. Now that I know she’s not desperate to escape this place, I switch back to English for Nycto’s and Void’s sake.

“You really wanna stay here? At a biker club? I didn’t think it would be your kind of thing…”

“To be honest, I didn’t either, but since I’ve been down here, this room has felt more like home than I’ve felt in a long time.”

That statement shocks me. This weird, dank, strange-smelling cell is more like a home than our home was in Cuba? I don’t understand.

“How?”

She exhales. “Think about it, Eva. At home, it’s just you and me. It’s amazing… great, really… and we are the best company for each other—”

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