Page 37 of Redeemed

“Got—got it.”

“Now let’s go find the others.”

As I tug her along, I make a mental note to not let her have more than that one cup tonight. She can call me a stick in the mud all she wants—I don’t care. It doesn’t sound like alcohol was allowed in her cult, and that means she doesn’t know the dangers of it.

Back with the others, one of the guys Athelia was checking out earlier has approached her. It looks like they’re having a good time until he steps closer. Athelia cringes away, discomfort obvious on her features. Immediately, Xander and Colton both crowd him out, acting as physical barriers between him and Athelia.

As I push Athelia closer to Haven so we can keep a better eye on her, I catch Wesley stalking toward us. I’m about ready to tell him off when I realize his gaze is fixed on the guy who was leering at Athelia. Wesley grabs the guy by the back of his shirt and drags him outside.

Athelia doesn’t notice, so I don’t point it out. I trust Colton’s judgment, and if he says Wesley is a bad dude, I believe him.

For the rest of the night, we don’t let Athelia and Haven get more than a few feet away from us. By the time Athelia has downed her third drink, Haven is just finishing up her first. Both of them are pretty small, and while Haven barely seems tipsy, Athelia is pretty far gone.

We’ve migrated to a slightly quieter part of the house. Colton takes it as an opportunity to pull me and Xander closer.

“I’ve found a way to get Xander accepted into the Rooks,” he says quietly.

Hope sparks in Xander’s eyes. Since Greg invited me to join the Rooks, we’ve been looking for a way to get Xander in. I won’t pledge my loyalty to the organization unless I have Xander by my side, but the Rooks are so exclusive, we lost hope.

When Colton found that out, he got to work concocting a plan. They’ve initiated non-family members before, so according to him, we just have to figure out how to make the higher-ups consider Xander.

“How?” Xander asks.

“I don’t want to get into all the details here, but we need leverage, and I found the perfect thing. It’ll take all three of us to pull this off, and it’ll require complete secrecy. I need you both to trust me.”

“We do,” I say firmly, and Xander nods.

“Good.” Colton rolls back his shoulders. “I’ll explain everything once we’re in a more private setting. If this works, Xander will be inside by Halloween night.”

Perfect.That’s barely a month away.

Not wanting to lose track of them, my attention drifts to the girls while Xander and Colton keep the conversation going. Athelia is talking, and Haven is nodding along, but I don’t think she’s paying attention. Her gaze is fixed out the window, focusing on something across the street. Eventually, Athelia notices and peers out, too.

“Is that a… a…” Athelia frowns. “I don’t remember what it’s called.”

“It’s so tiny,” Haven breathes out, leaning forward so her nose is almost touching the glass. Then she gasps, her body going rigid. “Oh, no!”

In a flash, Haven bolts for the front door. Colton chases after her, but she’s already gone since she’s tiny enough to squeeze between people. Athelia is too drunk to follow, and I hesitate, glancing between her and where Haven went.

“Wes is back inside,” Xander tells me lowly. “He won’t let anything happen to her.”

Dammit.I don’t like leaving Athelia alone with him, but we’ve gotta get to Haven before she gets herself in trouble. While I hate it, Xander is right. Athelia will be fine with Wes watching her.

So we both run after Haven, joining Colton in calling for her. Either she doesn’t hear, or she doesn’t care. We shoulder our way through the tightly packed house until we burst outside. Haven is already halfway across the road by the time we make it outside.

“What are you doing?” she cries.

She’s heading straight for two boys who have sticks in one hand and Solo cups in the other. It’s too dark to make out what exactly they’re doing, but I can see they’re poking at something small and black near the curb.

As we get closer, a tiny, terrified mewl reaches my ears. Haven drops to the ground and shoves the sticks away. She picks up whatever is on the ground—a kitten, maybe—and cradles it to her chest protectively.

“Oh, you poor thing. You—ow! Hey!” She glares up at the guy who just poked her in the back with his stick.

He does it again, harder this time, and so does his friend.

“Stop it! You can’t—”

“Back the fuck off.” Colton’s deep voice echoes off the nearby houses, making the two boys look up. “Unless you’d prefer to spend your last moments sinking to the bottom of Birchwood Lakes.”

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