Love and Decay, Kane's Law (6 page)

“I’m very serious,” she confirmed.

But my mother wouldn’t let it go, “What could
possibly be down there that could draw you into Mexico?” I could
almost hear my mother’s next thought out loud, she was
that
doting-
Or away from Kane
.

“We started out following a lead. But that
was two years ago. I guess… it’s just a direction to go,” she
explained.

Now that, I believed.

“A foolish direction to go,” my father
taunted. “Mexico has been overrun by Feeders. You wouldn’t make it
past the border.”

She nodded but didn’t respond verbally
although I watched her body shiver with the effort to keep her
mouth shut. I wanted to smile again.

“Are there more of you?” My mother asked.

Reagan shook her head and her ponytail
wobbled. “Just the four of us.”

“One girl for all those boys,” My father
sneered. Oh yeah, he hated her or at the very least didn’t trust
her. And now he was trying to make a point.

Reagan immediately reacted. Her entire body
tensed and readied itself for a fight. Her arms stiffened, her
thighs lowered so she was bent over her knees. Her eyes flashed
furious heat and her lips pressed into a grim line.

She was seconds from attempted murder of my
father. I could see it all over her deliciously flushed face.

I prepared to fly after her, to keep her from
first degree murder. But the moment my muscles went hard next to
her, she seemed to come back to herself. I stayed tight, just in
case this was some kind of trick of hers, but secretly I reveled in
the synchronization of our bodies. She could read mine as easily as
I could read hers. That meant something.

It had to.

Just then Samson walked back from the
interrogation rooms- reorganized old practice rooms- shoving my
little brother in front of him. Samson looked smug as hell and
Miller looked… Miller looked like he should have never gotten
caught last night.

Typical.

I glanced down to say something to Reagan,
something reassuring about my father and his attitude towards her,
but the pained look in her eyes suggested I keep my damn mouth
shut.

I glanced back at Miller, trying to see what
she saw in him- the way her new eyes took in our situation and
perceived us. Good or bad.

But Miller was in terrible shape. And even
though I knew my home would be the best place for her, she just
didn’t seem to buy it. Her face had paled, her muscles falling
slack in disbelief. She was disgusted with what she saw.

And that could easily translate into her
being disgusted with me.

Which was no good.

I needed to get her out of here. I needed to
show her she was safe with me, that nothing like this would ever
happened to her.

Just as long as she cooperated.

Chapter Three

My father’s eyes lit up with depraved
anticipation as he took in my little brother. There were a few
things about Matthias that I didn’t understand- his utter hatred
and disgust with Miller was one of them. But it wasn’t my place to
question. I tried to convince Miller to play along, to follow
orders and fly under the radar. But the kid just liked to push
buttons.

“Well, if it isn’t the prodigal son,” my
father called out when Miller stood before us, beaten to a bloody
pulp.

I stilled next to Reagan. I hated that she
had to see this, see how dysfunctional my family could be at times.
If I could hide this part of my life from her, I would- she would
never see the darker side of the Allen family. But it was too late
now, and so I just had to hope Miller kept his shit together and
didn’t make this worse for everybody.

“Hi, father,” Miller called out, sounding
like he’d swallowed a sock. It was starting already. I could feel
the tension rolling off my little brother like radioactive waves.
He bristled like a porcupine when prodded and by his beaten, black
and blue face, he had been well and poked.

My father either didn’t notice, or didn’t
care. He grew instantly serious and demanded, “Have you learned
your lesson, Son?”

Miller’s head bobbed up and down like a
cartoon. “Yes, Sir,” he said with pretend conviction.

My father played along, “And what did you
learn?”

“Not to get caught, Sir.” I almost smiled at
Miller’s candidness. That was a lesson I had wanted him to learn
years ago.

The room erupted into disapproval. Half these
men would stone Miller if my father would allow it. He was
constantly causing trouble, constantly bringing down my father’s
wrath. The people despised Miller for it. They were too loyal to my
father to appreciate someone with a different opinion. But most of
all, my father could be a cruel and unpredictable man when set off.
Miller often set him off.
This concerned the people because
Miller was frequently not the only person punished for his
transgressions.

While the men and women shouted their
disapproval behind me, I felt the slightest wince fall from
Reagan’s lips. She felt sorry for my brother- which was to be
expected.

There were many things I could say to her,
excuses I could make, but this was the very worst place to try to
have
that
conversation with her. Besides, her eyes were on
my father in this moment and now my father’s eyes were on her.

Matthias let the room settle down while he
studied Reagan carefully. Finally, when he could be heard over the
din, he said, “We’re a community, Reagan. Do you understand that?
We take care of each other. We protect our own from the dangers of
this fallen world. And we haven’t lost anyone yet, even while our
numbers continue to grow. This was once a tiny, insignificant
little nothing town. But now look at us.” He threw his hands around
the room and smiled at her, “Flourishing. We are flourishing, even
in this uncertain time of disease and death. People all over hear
of our prosperity and safety. They flock to us, Reagan. They come
in droves.”

Most of that was true and I hoped Reagan
believed him. The only fact that was a little distorted was that
we’d never lost anyone. Although, I knew my father truly believed
his words. It was a little convenient for him that those that we
had lost were not exactly considered tragedies by his standards.
And since he was the one that set the criteria, we were not exactly
in a position to argue with him.

“I’ve never heard of you,” Reagan told him
flippantly.

I gripped her arm before I could think
through my actions. Couldn’t she see what happened to someone who
defied my father? Didn’t she understand that what happened to
Miller could easily happen to her?

I would protect her as much as I could, but
even I could be overruled. Even I could be stopped.

My father sounded sadistic when he answered
her. I cringed as his acidic words fell from his callous mouth,
“You never heard of us until today. Now… now you’ve heard of us.
Now you’ve seen what we can do. Now you understand.”

“That is true,” Reagan admitted. I relaxed a
little and softened my grip. I sucked in a slow breath and waited
for her to say more- whether good or bad, this girl had me on the
edge of a cliff with anxiety for her next words.

Matthias turned his attention to Miller, “You
met her last night, Miller. I know you brought the other two back
with you. But how many more were with her?”

“There was another guy,” Miller said.

I cringed, knowing this would not end well
for Miller. The answer came too easily, too compliantly. He was
lying.

And my father could see that, “Just one other
guy?”

Miller grunted a sigh of frustration, but it
was contrived. “I told you last night and I will tell you again
this morning. I wasn’t runnin’ away. I was goin’ for a walk. And
then I ran into these guys. They made me bring them back in here.
They forced me to! But it was only her and another guy that stayed
behind. They kept talking about a contingency plan. And I guess it
meant they would come after them if they never showed back up.”

His story made sense at least and he hadn’t
changed even one detail since last night. He was getting better at
this, but I could see the lies too easily.

And I had no doubt my father could as
well.

“Give us the story, Reagan,” my father
ordered.

She twitched, but just barely. Matthias
couldn’t see it from where he sat, but I felt her body next to
mine, sensed her beyond her physical reaction.

“Like I said,” she shrugged casually. “We
didn’t know you were here. We ran into Miller by accident.”

“Then why send the scouting party ahead?” My
mother asked seriously.

“To see if it was safe. We had never heard of
you. And in our travels we’ve run into a lot of bad guys. Even you
guys handcuffed us and dragged us through this interrogation. The
last settlement we were at stole our guns and ammo and syphoned our
gas. We don’t trust people. We were trying to be cautious.”

I felt two things in that moment. I knew she
was telling the truth, at least in this part, and my body warmed
and heated as I felt this real part of her reveal before me. And
then, the burning destruction that singed each one of my nerve
endings. I knew she’d been living a hard life before today and I
loathed that she’d been taken advantage of. It was amazing, in
fact, that they hadn’t taken advantage of her in other ways.

But she would never be in danger of that
happening to her again.

Not as long as she was with me.

“You’ve never heard of us?” My father was
incredulous but sincere. “When’s the last time you’ve been around
people outside of your own party?”

She sounded more confident when she said,
“Not since the settlement where everything was stolen from us.
Weeks ago- states ago. We haven’t been around other people since.
We’ve been avoiding settlements and other people ever since.”

“Do you know why our country fell, Reagan?”
This was my father’s standard test for each and every newcomer. He
had to evaluate their reaction, see how they absorbed his doctrine.
I couldn’t stifle the shiver of expectation that rippled down my
spine. I could hardly wait to see how she would take this, how her
opinion would change, evolve, soften. She shook her head, so my
father continued, “Our government imploded, plain and simple. With
all our troops scattered around the globe and then more than half
of all the government officials infected with the virus within days
of the outbreak, there was no one left to organize us- to rally us.
They failed us, Reagan. When we needed them the most, they couldn’t
give us a cure, or a solution or protection. They just… dissolved.
And they left their citizens in dire straits. They left us to die.
Our people need a stronger system; they need someone who can keep
them from falling prey to these animals, who can offer them hope
for the future.”

Reagan stood unmoved next to me and raised
one skeptical eyebrow, “And that person is you?”

I couldn’t say I was surprised by her
reaction, although I was more than a little disappointed.

“Kane, give our guest a tour of the town.” My
father’s order was rife with irritation, but I appreciated his
patience with her. He was giving her another chance, something he
very, very rarely did. But this was for me- for my obedience and
dedication.

“Yes, Sir,” I answered loyally.

I pulled on her forearm, where my hand had
never lifted. I opened the door for her and nearly winced when she
immediately cringed at the sounds greeting her. I wanted to scoop
her up and sprint from here, so she wouldn’t have to listen to this
anymore, so she could escape this horror as quickly as possible.
But that wouldn’t be doing her any favors.

The Colony was her permanent home now, she
needed to get used to this; she needed to become accustomed to our
way of life.

My father cut through my thoughts, calling
out to us before the door could close, “And when you’re finished,
Kane, set her up where you see fit. Miss Reagan Willow is going to
be staying with us for a while.”

I stopped the smile of victory that wanted to
break free across my face. This day had been strange; I couldn’t
remember ever wanting to smile this much. But now I had my father’s
approval, although I was a little surprised he’d given it. I had to
assume he saw the same fire and life in her that I did. Maybe he
wasn’t so opposed to different ways of thinking after all. Or maybe
I’d earned enough respect in his eyes for him to want to give me
something, even if he didn’t understand why I wanted it. Either
way, Reagan would be staying.

With me.

I led her down the hallway, anxious to take
her home. I knew she would see her friends when we passed, so when
she asked, “Can I speak to them?” I wasn’t surprised.

“No,” I told her. They were part of her old
life, and that was over now. I was her future, this town was her
future. She didn’t need to speak with those people ever again.

When we stepped outside, she flinched against
the bright sun and I paused to wait for her to adjust to the
mid-morning light. I watched her carefully, just in case this was a
trick, but she seemed genuinely blinded for a moment- and that was
a feeling I could relate to. Her shoulders sagged and her arms
twitched uncomfortably.

My father approved, I had complete control of
her now. Given all that, the handcuffs seemed a little extreme.

I turned her around and let my fingers trail
down her forearms. Her skin was so perfect, so utterly untainted.
She didn’t seem to fit into the same world I lived in. She was a
puzzle piece from a different jigsaw, but I would make her fit in
here. I would find a place for her.

I unlocked her handcuffs and slipped them
into my back pocket. Her hands fell to her side and as the blood
slowly returned to her fingertips she wiggled them until they moved
a little more steadily.