I shake my head.
“Where’s the Italian? He’s supposed to be looking after you.”
I would argue that I’m twenty-four and can look after myself, but I’m coming to realize that I want someone like Silas or Julius to shoulder my problems for some things. “Dance studio.” Still. He should be home by now.
“Isn’t all that nonsense over with?”
I laugh. “Never. The Mitchells are happy their ‘men in pointe shoe’ debut worked out. Big plans are hatching. Julius heads that department.” Or he will now that it’s officially being created.
He runs his giant hand through my hair. His hands never stopped being huge. “You should know that no matter what you learn in that book, I still lovehim. It’s too complicated and I’ve never succeeded in uncomplicating it.”
His hand shakes.
“I’m still putting a metaphorical bullet in his head. Were you scared?”
“All the time, but not for myself.”
Of course not. I squeeze him tighter. “I’m okay now.” I’ve felt his solid form and I knowhe’sokay. “Thanks, Silas.”
“Huh.Silas.” For some reason, “Silas” is said with generous disdain.
“That’s your name, isn’t it?”
“It is. You’ve just been … never mind.”
I’ve been calling him Dad.
He reaches for the remote. “Should we watch something?”
“You don’t have work to do?”
He doesn’t answer. He finds something to watch. I lie against him and remember he makes it out of the book. That he’s safe.
That we all are.
We’re not okay, but we’re safe.
ChapterSix
Wyatt ~ In the very early morning of May 20th, 2009
Idon’t dream. It’s the sensation of falling through the air, fumbling for anything to grip onto, but there’s nothing, nothing, nothing. Only hollow screaming until I wake up or Darius wakes me.
“Wyatt?Wyatt.”
That’s not Darius.
“Asher?”
“Yeah, it’s uh, it’s me.”
I rub my hands over my face to wake up, hoping I didn’t summon the whole house. Since Darius, I don’t have as many nightmares. It’s not a problem at Randall Central because our room is far enough away from the others and the walls are thick.
But we’re not at Randall Central.
“I’ll just go grab him.”
“He slide in with Simon and Shane?”
