Page 16 of These Bonds that Unite Us
“Having Father locked away is relieving, isn’t it?” Hannah asks as she sinks into Donovan’s empty chair with a groan. Her hand rubs over her stomach, easing some aches away from the strain of growing a baby.
A small smile pulls at my lips seeing her like this. Tired, sure, but also glowing. A few weeks away from our family is enough to bring life back into her eyes.
“As long as he stays that way,” I comment tensely. I’m still nervous his followers will find some way to free him, even with his confession available to the public. Some technicality Dromir and the other DAU agents hadn’t considered.
“I’m worried too,” my sister admits. “More so since Mother, Ben, and Jacquelyn are also unaccounted for.”
Hearing the rest of my birth family aren’t behind bars for their role in the church’s actions burns, but my goal wasn’t to go after them, it was to confront my father. I’ve accomplished what I set out to do, now I have to trust the DAU and the government to take care of the rest.
“So what now?” My voice betrays my nervousness. I don’t want to be separated from her when we’re finally reunited and free, but she deserves the chance to build her dream life for herself.
“Now you keep fighting this rejection, while I file for divorce and full custody of my children.”
My mouth hangs open in shock. I knew from the day they married her husband wasn’t right for her. He’s ten years older than she is, and only ever seemed interested in chasing after our father like a lost puppy. Hearing she’s going to leave him makes me happy. Maybe now she can find someone who genuinely loves and cares for her.
Or someones, I correct when Foster and Shepherd walk into the room. Kaitlin swings between them, giggling like crazy each time her feet leave the ground.
My niece’s eyes light up when she sees her mother, and she tries to throw herself into Hannah’s arms but Shepherd catches her easily. He lifts her gently into her mother’s lap, reminding the small girl she has to be careful with her baby sibling inside of her mommy’s belly.
The tension between Hannah and Shepherd when their eyes meet is one spark away from a wildfire. Foster seems just as smitten when he hovers beside her chair.
A weight eases in my chest watching the three of them interact. No matter what happens to me, at least I know Hannah will have them to support her.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Now Playing: Fields of Elation- Sleep Token
“Good news, Miss Powell!” Doctor Russell says cheerily as she sweeps into my room. “The medication we gave you to treat your chemical rejection has stabilized you enough we feel confident in sending you home!”
I have to blink several times to make her words register correctly in my mind. I’m going home? To my apartment?
“I can see those wheels turning, and yes, I’m serious. Your health isn’t declining as rapidly, and returning to your nest will do more for you than this stuffy hospital room ever could.” She smiles brightly as she checks the stitches in the cut above my scent gland. “Now, there will be rules. First, you have to keep taking the medicine. Secondly, if at any point you feel it is no longer working, or you experience a side effect we haven’t seen, you are to call my office immediately.”
She leaves me with a soft pat on the back of my hand. A short while later my nurse shuffles in and gets to work unhooking my IV. I can’t believe they are letting me leave. Sure, everythingseems clearer, and I don’t feel nearly as fragile as I did several days ago, but are they really trusting me to be alone?
When the curtain around my bed swings open and my best friend steps inside, I realize exactly why they aren’t concerned about me leaving. The glint in Bea’s dark blue eyes tells me what she is thinking before she can open her mouth. I bite back a huff of annoyance. It looks like I will be dealing with drill sergeant Bea until she deems me stable enough to make decisions for myself.
“I see you already understand how this is going to work,” she comments, her tone full of sass. “Good, now get dressed. It’s time for you to come home.”
We spend the three hour ride from the hospital to Starburgh in silence. She’s tense in the seat beside me, her knee bouncing every few minutes. My guilt grows with each mile we travel. I hadn’t factored in my friends and family witnessing what happened with my birth father when I made the decision to confront him. At the time, the only thing that mattered was the ache in my heart and the overwhelming sense of hopelessness.
Staring up at the tan, stone home we share, a sense of peace calms my racing heart. This is our space. Through those doors is my nest, the real one I spent time perfecting and not the mini nest I was using while traveling for Primordial Covenant’s tour.
Thinking of the guys makes pain lance through my chest. The hollow pieces of my soul where their bonds should be darkening with each day we are separated. One day those pieces will crumble to ash, their decay spreading through me until I’m consumed by the same fire that ravages my heart.
“I’m making burgers. Go get settled in your nest, I’ll let you know when dinner is ready.” Bea’s no-nonsense tone snaps my attention back to the present.
Following her through the front door, I take in our shared space with nostalgia. It’s easy to get lost in memories of the yearswe’ve spent together as I pass my fingers over the frames she has hung along the hallway wall. Family vacations with her parents. Events at the academy we’d attended together. Concerts. So many concerts over the past five years.
The stale scent of my bedroom has my nose wrinkling, so I quickly throw open a window to air the room out. I imagine my nest is the same, so I open the door. I’m hit with a wave of desolation so strong it nearly sends me to my knees. My eyes water from the strength of the misery soaked into every inch of this space.
My motions are frantic as I tear the space apart. Dragging all of my blankets and pillows out and tossing them in a pile to be washed. Only when the padded floor is bare do I stop. Breaths fall in and out of my lungs, my body drained of what little energy I had when I arrived.
Ignoring the wave of dizziness that sweeps over me when I stand, I force myself to drag the mass of blankets to our washer and start to rid them of my own awful scent. I’d rather sleep in a clinically clean room than face the reality of just how much Pack Graves’ abandonment gutted me. I’m stable. The chemical rejection isn’t making me spiral, so I can pretend I’m okay for a bit longer.
Bea’s eyebrows nearly hit her hairline when she sees my empty nest. “Dinner’s ready.” Her dark eyes watch me closely as I trudge out of my room and take a seat at our tiny dining table. It’s unnerving having her so focused on me. Like she’s waiting for me to fall apart again.
Nausea bubbles in my stomach as I try to eat, but it’s too much. When I push my plate away, my roommate sighs. “Do you need something lighter?”
