Chapter Sixteen
Present
Jordan
I didn’t think I’d be at a place where Grims exist. Sitting on the bed, waiting for Ten to get here, I’m just in awe.
I’d always heard about them like they’re sorcerers or some shit. Father always made them out to be these insanely evil creatures who took and took, but from what I’ve gathered, he was describing himself and didn’t realize it yet.
“He should be here soon,” Colt surmises. She’s eating pizza again, I’m sure all those months without it made her crave it more than ever. I don’t think I’ve seen her this happy since last spring, it’s a good look on her. Before, I watched her from afar, falling in love with a reality I wasn’t a part of anymore, not that she remembered me from our childhood years. Now, she’s sitting by me, stuffing her face, and I just want to kiss her and cherish every moment.
“Is Ross coming?” she asks, and I forgot that me and Lux decided not to tell her until we knew for sure that he was okay.
Neither of us answer but she looks at me with a quizzical gaze. Out of everyone, I’ve been the most forthcoming. It’s not exactly in the best way, but I’m not one to sugarcoat the truth.
When I open my mouth to speak, Lux slaps a hand over it. “Jordan, I heard the door, you should get it.”
“How the fuck could he hear a door that’s, like, ten bedrooms away?” Colt hisses and glares at him. “Stop being a little baby and tell me what’s going on.”
“Princess,” he implores, and it’s the first time I’ve seen him so vulnerable.
“Don’t,” she whimpers, setting her plate down. Her eyes are already turning watery. “He’s your best friend and you look emotional. What happened? Is he okay?”
Lux shakes his head and the tears he’d successfully hidden while she was away for the day are back. “I don’t know,” he answers honestly. None of us do.
“What do you know?” she prods. I can see the worry pinched at her eyes. She’s definitely one to stress first and be calm after. She’d rather overreact than hope for good in a world full of shit. Can’t say I blame her, my therapist would say it’s a trauma response, and fuck them for that.
“We were talking and someone broke into the cabin. I heard several gunshots go off.”
“No,” she mutters. “No.” Her voice raises and I want to protect her in my arms. Cart her away and make sure she’s safe to where no one can ever hurt her again. “He has to be okay.”
I reach for her but she slaps my hand. It’s not harsh, but more similar to saying don’t touch me right now. She picks up the plate and throws it, her cries coming a second later. She’s not one for dramatics but she and Ross and her are close. Closer than her and I, and definitely closer than Ridge and her. He’s that special spot saved for sad boys with a heart of gold.
“He has to be okay.”
“Let me comfort you,” Lux offers, and she shakes her head.
“I need to go talk to my dad.”
Before we can say anything, she’s up and moving and he’s glaring at me. “Couldn’t you have fucking waited? Been a better liar?”
“I’m the worst fucking liar when emotion comes into play and you know it. She’d have been angrier if we told her later. At least let her acknowledge that he may be hurt.”
“What if he’s dead, Jordan? Ever fucking think of that?” His voice gets louder with each word and I realize I’m the only one who has a shit relationship with Ross.
He hated me when we were younger, he hated me for being a brother to Max, and he hated me for getting Lux when he wanted him first. Yeah, it sucks that he’s hurt, or worse, it’s sad, even, but it’s not hitting me the same and I don’t know why.
He rushes out of the room and I sit here, wondering how I got to this moment. Am I really that dense? Do they care about him so much that they’d treat me like shit out of resentment? Would they rather it be me?
I finally chase after them both, knowing to save face, I have to empathize with the situation they’re in. It’s sad, I should be sad. It’s a mess, I should be stressed. It’s exhausting, I should be tired.
When I reach Colt, she’s talking to Mortem down the main hall. “We need a search party or something. Rescue mission!” she exclaims, getting ahead of herself.
“There’s nothing we can do at Arcadia right now,” he tries to explain, but she cries.
“Nononono,” she repeats quickly. “You haven’t been here my entire life, be here now, help me. Fix this.”
His face morphs into one of sadness and depression, and I kind of feel for the guy. He’s only just got her back and she’s asking him so much. Even if it was anywhere else, how does he know it’s not an ambush? What if they staged that entire thing to fuck up his life?
Lux must’ve went elsewhere, he’s not anywhere near me. I walk toward Colt’s room, hoping to find him there.
For some reason, on my way, Lux’s words click in my head. There’s two of them.
Two.
Not a team.
Not a squad.
Not the Legion. A group of trained assassins.
Two.
I’m pulling my phone out and dialing Prudence’s number within a heartbeat. His answering hello is welcomed with my own words.
“Where the fuck is Ross?” I bark.
Prudence’s voice gives nothing away, but somehow, I know he’s involved. “Not sure what you mean, Jordan.”
“You do, you fucking do, I just need to know why.”
“I think you’re losing it. But in case you’re not, let me talk to my girlfriend,” he evades my first question altogether.
“You don’t have a girlfriend,” I argue, knowing it’s basically true. She’s not theirs. She’s not even mine. To the law, the Vestige, and the world, she’s Lux’s.
“Semantics, Edgington. Let me talk to her.”
“She’s not really happy with you or your brother right now.”
“Why’s that?”
“She knows he fucked Lux. And you didn’t save her from the wedding… that all adds up to her distaste for you both.”
“Fuck,” he heaves out. But I’m not allowing this conversation to curveball, I need to switch the narrative back to Ross.
“Just tell me how Ross is,” I prod, because if he will, that gives me an in, and maybe, just maybe, she’ll stop being upset with me. “Maybe I’ll get her on the phone.”