Page 3 of Justice

“If my heart stops, you will revive me, right? I feel like you can’t be as old as you are without knowing some basic CPR.”

“Liberty. Stop. You’re not dying; you’re fully alive.” Sterling finally said what we all were thinking.

“I just-”

Oak cut her off. “This book is,” You heard him audibly swallow, “Amazing.”

It really was. From where I stood next to Oak, I could see just how unique the details were. Each page was handwritten, hand-painted, and painstakingly bound. Oak’s finger ran softly along the parchment pages, tracing the details in awe.

Liberty suddenly sat up. “Do you think it’s what you were looking for?”

“If I had to bet, I would be nearly positive,” I offered, dying to get my hands on the book myself.

Oak gingerly flipped the page, the title so smudged with age we couldn’t read it. My heart stopped completely, nearly plummeting to the ground at the possibility that this entire book might be illegible. I closed my eyes, not wanting to look until I knew if my disappointment was warranted. He turned the page, then the next. “I think it’s a journal. Maybe not James’, but he definitely added notes in the margin. I can tell by the handwriting.”

I opened one eye, peeking at the words sketched into the book. “It’s research.”

“He had all the time in the world to do research, but is his research useful to us?” Sterling asked as he came up next to Oak, peering over his shoulder.

“I don’t know.” Oak sighed. “Not until we sit down and read it.”

We were all itching to read it, but Oak deserved it the most. He was the closest to James, almost like a real family, one that Oak never really had. “You should read it, Sterling and I, we will continue looking.”

I held a silent conversation with Sterling before he nodded his agreement. “Yeah, I’ve been learning stuff I never knew in this current book. I’d like to read further, anyway.”

Oak absentmindedly nodded before he sat in the nearest chair, submerging himself in all the handwritten words in front of him. Liberty leaned close, her lips so close to my ear that I could feel them brush against my skin as she whispered, “Thank you.”

I tilted my head toward her. “Hmm?”

“I know you’ve all been trying to help me, and I appreciate it. But Oak – he’s intense about it. He needs to figure it out, and he needs it this very second. He’s hard on himself, and since he is dead set on protecting me, he won’t even allow himself to sleep.”

It was true. Oak tried pretending, but the moment Liberty’s eyes were closed and her breathing had leveled out, he was crawling out of bed, trying not to fumble as he blindly put his pants on. “He feels personally invested now, and I understand. It’s his find to be found.”

She grabbed my fingers, lacing our hands together before announcing, “We are going for a walk.” Oak opened his mouth to protest, but she held up a hand, cutting him off. “Within the estate’s gates.”

She pulled us through the hall and out the door, then shut it behind us before she spoke. “I seriously feel like that house is suffocating me.”

I’ve felt like that every day I’ve stepped into this place for the past two hundred years. “I can understand that.”

She fanned at her face, trying to cool down as she lifted her hair from her neck. “I feel like I haven’t felt fresh air on my face in ages.”

“It’s only been a few days,” I reminded her.

“Still.” She walked to the corner of the garden and found a stone bench where she sat. “What’s it like?”

“What?”

“Living dead? I figure since I’m now practically ayou, I should know, right?” She kicked at the dirt with her feet.

I laughed and sat down next to her. “You most definitely are not becoming me.”

“I’m pretty sure I am.”

“For one, you have boobs. That is something I never imagine I will gain.”

She gave me a half-smile. “You know what I mean.”

“It’s boring, to be honest. But the way you describe it, you make us seem like something out of a movie. Living dead.”

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