Moirai (24 page)

“I'll be manning all the controls. You just have to sit
back and relax.” He opened the hatch for me to get in. “So what'll it be?”

I didn't have to think about it. “You're flying with me.”
There was no way I was getting in a drone on my own. If something went wrong,
Joshua knew how to interact with the machine and could keep us both out of
trouble.

“Climb in,” he offered, and I did, squeezing in before
Joshua joined me on the seat. He closed the lid to the drone as he sat down. We
were nestled tight in one seat. “This is cozy,” he teased, pressing the buttons
as he turned on the plane. I tensed behind him. “Hold on and relax, I've got it
covered.” There wasn't much else I could do but hold on. My arms wrapped around
his waist as my legs were positioned at either side of him. “You're squeezing
me to death.” He nudged my arm from his stomach, for me to loosen my hold.

“Sorry, just nervous,” I confessed.

“Don't be, I've done this before.” Joshua sounded like a
pro, confident in what he was doing. I closed my eyes the moment I felt the
drone lurch forward and begin to move along the grass as he turned us around.

“How are we going to get the other drones home?” My eyes
opened just enough to peek out the window. When I did, I found myself unable to
stop looking. The world was passing by, quicker than from a car, and I felt my
stomach sink as the nose of the plane tilted up and we were lifted off the
ground.

“Take a look to your left and right,” Josh answered.

I did just that, my eyes glanced out the window, and a
few feet behind us I could see the drones catching up. We were staggered in a
pattern with Joshua leading the fleet and there were two to our left and two to
our right. “You're doing that?” I gasped.

“Impressed?” He teased.

“You have no idea,” I whispered in awe.

Arriving back to Shadow the same day we left Genesis was
incredible! The drone had gotten us home in just a few short hours. Everyone
who had traveled with us to Genesis had left days ago and was now arriving.
Joshua landed the drone smoothly, the other planes coming in to land behind him
one after another. He parked the plane in the hanger, returning it where it had
been hidden for months.

Joshua opened the lid and climbed out, offering me his
hand. I took it, groaning as I stepped from the plane. The movement from air
back to land made me momentarily unsteady on my feet. He gripped my waist as I
staggered forward. “Careful,” he whispered. “It takes some getting used to.”

“How many times have you done this?” It was impressive.

“I've lost count,” Joshua confessed. “Come on, let's go
home. I could use a shower and lunch.”

I wasn't in the house but five minutes when I heard the
door. “Who do you think that is?” I glanced back at Joshua as I headed down the
stairs. I had been pulling out a fresh change of clothes when I'd heard the
door.

“No clue,” he called down to me.

I unlocked the door, pleasantly surprised to see Adelaide
standing there with her teddy bear in hand. It had been hand sewn and looked a
little worn but she clung to it for life. “You're okay!” she squealed in
delight and I bent down, wrapping my arms around her.

“Of course,” I smiled, hugging her tight. “I missed you.”

Adelaide laughed. “I missed you more.” She showed me her
bear. “Guess what I named her,” she boasted proudly.

“What?” I asked with an eager smile.

“Olive.” She laughed, hugging me again. “Did you hear
there's going to be a parade tomorrow?”

“A parade?” I smiled, glancing behind me as I heard
Joshua coming down the stairs. “Did you hear that?”

“Sounds fun,” Joshua grinned, coming to sit on the bottom
stair. “Hey there, tiger.” He laughed as Adelaide came over and hugged Joshua
too.

“You'll be at the parade, right?” She nodded eagerly.
“Please?”

I smiled, “How could I say no to that?” I glanced at
Joshua. “I think we have to go to the parade. Adelaide asked nicely.”

Joshua laughed. “Well if we have to, then I guess it's
settled. We'll be there tomorrow.”

I shut the door and watched from the window as Adelaide
headed home. I felt Joshua's warm embrace from behind as I spun around in his
arms.

“How did things go in Genesis while you were cooped up
with Craynor?” he asked.

My face paled just thinking of Anita. “He killed the head
housekeeper,” I whispered, taking his hand and leaning my face into his neck,
finding warmth in his embrace. “Then Craynor told me and another girl, Lisa, to
throw her in the trash.”

I felt him pull back slightly. My eyes looked up, seeing
his widen in shock. “Wow.” He paused. “Come on,” he insisted, taking my hand as
he led me up the stairs to our bedroom.

“We didn't listen to Craynor. Which just caused more
problems for us,” I confessed. “We wanted to make a statement, so we burned her
body on the front lawn of the property.” Joshua led me to the mattress and I
took a seat at the edge of the bed.

“Seriously?”

I nodded, remembering what we'd done. My eyes stared down
at the bedspread. “Jaxon helped since I couldn't get the wood to light.” I
paused with a sigh. “Lisa and I got caught. I made sure Jaxon got away so that
the plan would happen, even if I couldn't be a part of it.”

His hand smoothed over my back in soft circles. “That was
brave of you, Olive.”

“Or stupid,” I admitted. “I ran into your father in the
mansion.”

“That's not a huge surprise. He does a lot of work with
Craynor.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” I wasn't sure if I should confess the
reason Anita had been killed. What good would it do if he wasn't planning on
returning to Genesis and seeing his father again? “That reminds me, there's
something I want to do and I'd like your help.”

Joshua's forehead creased. “What is it?” he asked. I
climbed off the bed and dug around beneath the mattress. “What are you looking
for?”

“This!” I pulled it out, showing him my father's journal.
He didn't say anything. I didn't expect him to. “I don't want it anymore,” I
told Joshua. I shut the lights off and walked down the stairs.

“Where are you going?” I could hear his voice behind as
he followed me down the stairs.

“To burn it,” I answered. “I need it gone. I need him
gone from my life,” I confessed as I stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a set
of matches from the drawer to take outside with me.

“Olivia, do we have to do this now?” He followed into the
crisp spring air as I gathered things from around the backyard. I found a metal
wastebasket and lit the match, igniting the pages inside. Slowly it burned, the
leather seeming to take longer as the pages seared and curled into ash.

Joshua didn't say anything but he did stand beside me. I
imagine he didn't know what to say. I didn't blame him for it. We'd both
thought Gavin was different, a better man than he'd been. It was the closure I
needed after visiting Torv.

“I wish I could burn memories as easily as you can burn
the journal.” His voice was soft, almost accusing, as I turned to face him,
dropping the book in the garbage. It was still on fire and the flames licked
the pages, erasing the past.

“What memories would you want to destroy?” I couldn't
imagine he had a terrible childhood. He had two parents growing up, and both
seemed fond of him.

Joshua sat down on the back porch step and finally, a
moment later, I followed, sitting down beside him. “Tell me,” I whispered,
nudging him. I wanted to hear what was on his mind.

Joshua sighed, reaching for my hand. “There were things I
saw, witnessed as a child that I didn’t quite understand.” He explained, “My
father used to sneak out at night past curfew. I always wondered why. I
couldn't fathom where he would go. I think he was having an affair.” I
understood the weight of his words: it was illegal. It was one of the reasons
Anita had been killed. People didn't have affairs in Genesis. As it was sex
wasn't spoken about. Though just because it wasn't spoken didn't mean it didn't
happen. I knew my parents conceived me naturally and though I'd never seen them
hold hands or kiss, I understood what had transpired for me to have been born.

“Do you have something of his you want to burn?” I
offered, giving a faint smile, doing my best to make light of the situation. I
knew it sucked. “No,” he whispered, glancing at me. “I keep thinking about what
Douglas and your father said. That my mother had intentionally chosen you to
marry me.”

“Josh,” I sighed, feeling a heavy weight in my chest at
the reminder of what we'd been through together.

He looked at me slowly, shaking his head. “I just
feel…betrayed.” His voice was a mere whisper. “She lied to me.”

I ran my hand down his back, keeping him close to me. His
body heat helped warm me, and I knew he wanted the comfort as well. “We've both
been lied to.” It didn't make it feel any better. “I'm sure your mother thought
she was doing what was best for you.”

“No.” Joshua glanced down at the ground. “She did it for
you. She was more concerned about the rebel alliance and being a leader than
what her actions would do to her own son. Doesn't that bother you at all?”

I hadn't quite thought of it like that. I chewed on my
bottom lip, wishing there was something I could say that would make it better.
“People don't always live up to the standards we set for them,” I reasoned.
“Maybe she did this for you too? She found a way to buy your freedom,” I
offered. In the end she had paid dearly for it with her life.

“Maybe.” Joshua didn't sound so convinced. He wrapped an
arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. “I just hate being lied to.”

I nodded weakly. “So do I.” It was something we had in
common. Something that troubled us both. Our families had betrayed us, whether
they intended to or not.

I changed the next morning into a short cotton dress that
hugged my breasts and fanned out over my hips. The dress had a floral print of
pink and red cherry blossoms and though I'd never worn it before I knew it
would look good. Surprisingly, Cate had made it for me, and brought it by the
previous evening. As much as I hated her when we first met, she had grown on
me.

“Wow, you look…” Joshua smiled, glancing me over as I
noticed he wore slacks and a dress shirt. I hadn't asked him why he dressed up
today. I didn't have time as I felt his lips find mine, and his hand rested on
my lower back. “We can't be late,” he breathed against my lips, pulling back as
he took my hand and led me out the front door.

“Late?” I asked, knowing we had another twenty minutes
until the parade was supposed to start. “Don't be silly. We have plenty of
time,” I emphasized as we stepped outside and already on our street I saw a
mass of people lining the curb from our house down to the city center. “What's
all this?” I asked, knowing it had to be more than just Shadow’s population.
There were too many here to be only from our town. Only now did I see how much
Cabal had changed, with Shadow allowing guests from around the country to
visit.

Joshua didn't answer me. He held my hand and led me down to
the curb before going down on one knee.

“Joshua?” I asked, wondering what he was doing. “Come on,
get up, you're going to get dirty.” I tugged at his sleeve, only to see him
shake his head no. He had the biggest smile on his face. My eyes widened as I saw
his hand slip into his pocket as he pulled out a vintage ring; I had no idea
where it had come from.

“Olivia,” he began, staring up at me as he took my hand.
“We've known each other since we were children.” He gazed up at me with adoring
eyes. “I knew I first loved you when I watched you play in the sand beside me.
It wasn't a crush.” He shook his head. “I've known all my life you were
something more to me than I should have ever felt. Should have desired. I was
terrified that day last May when I thought you would marry another man in
Genesis. We've been through so much together, you and I. You've given me more
than I could ever ask for and you've given Cabal more than they could have
dreamed. I want you in my life for all of eternity, Olivia. I love you. I can
only dream of our future together, but I don't want it to be a dream. I want it
to be real.” He whispered, “Will you, Olivia Parker, marry me?”

“Yes! Of course!” I laughed, pulling him to my arms as I
wrapped him in my embrace and kissed him. I heard a shout of excitement through
the crowd and glanced sideways to see Adelaide jumping up and down. “Weren't we
already engaged?” I whispered with a smile into his ear.

“I had to be sure,” he answered before another grin broke
out onto his face. “I have one more thing to ask you.”

“Seriously? That wasn't enough?” I laughed.

“Will you marry me today?” He grinned and I felt his
forehead come to rest against mine. “Please, say yes,” he whispered and I felt
both of his hands in mine.

I nodded and mouthed a simple, “Yes,” as we kissed again.
“What do you have planned?” I asked, realizing the parade wasn't just about our
homecoming and all that we'd done, but somehow had turned into a wedding as
well. I didn't mind it. If there was anyone I wanted to celebrate with, they
were here.

“Come on.” He took my hand and walked towards the city
center as the crowd behind us followed.

“Josh?” I asked, wondering what else was planned. I was
beyond nervous. I felt his hand give mine a squeeze. As we turned onto the city
center I saw the town and the floats for the parade. They were elaborate. I
didn't know how they'd made them. I didn't ask. It was beautiful nonetheless.

“Come with me,” he told me, leading me towards the front
of the parade. I was grateful for the noise and commotion going on around us.
The excitement made me bubble with anticipation as I practically danced my way
to the front. I nearly doubled over laughing, seeing Chancellor Collins in a
powder blue suit. It wasn't his style or his color, but he wore it proudly. I
wonder who dressed him, Cate? She had been upset with the punishment months
ago. I wouldn't put it past her finding a way to get even.