Page 52 of Bound By Water
My cheeks heat. “You still want me to? I understand if you don’t.” I dart a glance at his black eye. “Thanks to Oliver, I know how to find my room now.”
He stares at me. “Of course I want you to stay with me. For however long I’m here, that will never change. Understand?” There’s a note of something I can’t place in his voice.
“I don’t want you to leave,” I blurt out, then wrinkle my nose. “Sorry. That’s extremely selfish of me. I know your mom and sister are still out there hiding, and you’ll have to go back to them.” There’s no way he’ll stay here without his family. “I’m not sure I’ll be ready to go with you, but if not, I’ll be here when you get back.”
His mouth compresses. “I don’t know if I’ll come back.” When I only stare at him, he continues, “Look. I know you think this is the best place for you, but it’s not for me. Not because of the rules, either. I don’t want to live in a cage. Even one as padded as this place.” His eyes silently plea for my understanding. “I’m hoping you’ll go with me.”
Torn between the safety here and him, I shrug. “We’ll see. But promise me… no matter what… you won’t leave without saying goodbye, okay?” I push back at him. “Goodbyes are important.” Not having been able to say them to my parents had left this huge hole in my heart. “Promise me.”
He hesitates for a long minute, but then solemnly promises. “I promise, I won’t leave without saying goodbye.”
Relieved, I nod and turn around to finish the rest of my dinner. “Did you choose any classes?”
“Spanish and martial arts,” he informs me. “I only speak English, and I figured another language would be useful, especially with Mexico right next door. Maybe it would be easier to hide there instead of the States.” His tone is nonchalant, but I can tell he’s given the idea more than a passing thought.
“I’ve always wanted to go there,” I tell him with a smile. “After dinner, would you teach me how to pick a lock? It could be an extremely useful skill, and I need all of those I can get. Although I did good hiding from Quaid today.”
His face morphs into something comical. “Youhidfrom Quaid?”
I snort and explain what he made our class do today. “I remembered what you said about the university and hiding in plain sight, and thought it was a great idea.”
He frowns. “Yeah, but don’t try it in closed spaces. You could be trapped.”
I laugh. “Now you sound like Quaid. Maybe you two have more in common than you think.”
River narrows his eyes. “Don’t even go down that route. He’s an asshole.”
As irritated as he makes me, I don’t think Quaid’s an asshole. Protective. Intense. There’s a lot riding on his shoulders, and despite the friction between us, I like knowing he’s standing between me and the enemy.
Rolling my eyes, I tell him. “So are you. Not to me, but I can see that side of you.” When he looks startled, I wink and change the subject. “Guess what? I shot a gun today!”
“So, you found the safety?” His grin tells me he’s remembering me raising the gun at him and trying to pull the trigger. “I’ll be sure to remember that in the future.”
I shove his shoulder. “Whatever. Yes. I found the safety, Mr. Smartass. My aim, though, appears to be dismal.”
He wipes an arm across his brow. “Phew, guess I’m good for a little while.”
With a grin, I finish eating, then grab my tray. “Whatever. Let’s go. I’m eager to learn another new skill.”
Once we reach his room, he shows me his lock picking kit. “It includes tension wrenches, picks, and rakes. I’ll teach you how to use this kit and a few other items like bobby pins, paper clips, and a knife. Once you understand how a lock works, you can try to find your own mechanisms.”
Tilting my head, I study the pouch in his hand. “Why do you have a kit? Is this something I’ll need to put in my survival bag?”
“Yes,” he says fervently. “It’s not how I got out of the handcuffs at the gas station, but I’ve used the kit a lot to get in and out of places. Definitely a must for your ‘survival’ bag.”
After ushering us back to the hallway, he locks the door, then demonstrates the tools several times. “The bottom lever is for tension. Once you have that in place, you use the second tool to lift up on each of the five pins. You’re looking for the pin that’s the hardest to lift, which is called the seized pin. Keep wiggling the tool under it until it lifts. You might hear an audible click or not, but once it’s up, you have to find the next seized pin. Once all five pins are up at the same time, it’s unlocked.”
He hands me the tools and places them properly into the lock. “There. Wiggle the top tool and try to lift the first pin.”
Biting my lip, I focus on the tiny hole and finding the pin, but it’s way more difficult than it looks. After thirty minutes, I’m sweating, hair is in my eyes, and my shoulders are aching.
“I need a break,” I inform him, dropping my hands from the lock and slumping against the wall. “Who taught you to pick a lock?”
His eyes brighten with laughter. “My sister. Smart as a whip. When we went on the run, she looked up all kinds of things from lock picking to prepper survivalist stuff. She wanted to be prepared. She would learn something and make us learn it, too. Lily was insufferable.”
I laugh. “How long did it take her to learn how to pick a lock?”
He winces. “Five minutes.” I gape at him, and he shakes his head. “She’s a genius.”
