Losing All But The Fight. (complete) updated.

Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Music fluttered around me as I leaned back in my chair with my eyes closed enjoying the intoxicating scent of the green house. I spent some time walking around and enjoying the variety of plants precisely placed inside. Vines crawled up the connections of the foggy glass, the reflection of the sun off the small fountain in the middle put dancing bubbles of light across the ceiling, moving as the water was disturbed by a pump in the bottom.

The door burst open and Vance came in the room. I dropped the front two legs of the iron chair to the ground, taking my feet off the table. "What is it."

He gave me a grim look and sat down. Something was wrong. I sat up straighter. "Tomorrow. Elijah's release has been pushed up."

Jumping to my feet I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Why?" I cursed. "Never mind. I know why." Drake couldn't find me. Daddy dearest was cashing out some piggy banks to clean up his mess. Clenching my fist I turned back to Vance as Josh walked in looking angry. Got to say he bit it well. His eyes showed how livid he was but my sweet Vance was doing a hell of a job keeping it in and Josh coming up behind him after closing the door looked only slightly more composed, jaw tight. "Is everyone here yet?"

"Just pulled in the driveway." Josh added. "It will take him a few days to be processed out. They're gonna try to drag it out but his lawyers a snake."

"Doesn't matter." I shook my head and took a few steps thinking. "Alright. Where's Jonah?"

"They're all crowded in the den now and the seals went to set a perimeter around the property." Josh spoke. I nodded and set off to find his father.

The chatter from the den floated into the foyer. The amount of bodies in the house have certainly grown and when I knocked on the door I had several extra set of eyes on me.

"A word?" I asked Jonah.

Without hesitation he stood and we walked into the room on the other side of the foyer and stairs. "With Elijah's release they are asking for another team." He begun. "I've looked at the purposed list of men. Their references are quite high. I want you to consider it."

I ran my hands through my hair and looked down for a minute in contemplation. The thought of Elijah's reaction to my absence was enough to make me figure I'm screwed either way. I should let Jonah make the call for his family. "Fine. Do it." He looked relieved. "You set boundaries. Only people you personally can vouch for should be near your family." He nodded in understanding and squeezed my shoulder.

"Tonight I can start on the hierarchy. Everyone is going to have to get familiar with faces. Everyone. No one leaves the house until its over. Not Dawn, and not Vance or Josh." I spoke up.

Josh poked his head out the window and shook his head at my hiding spot. I waved him out with me and he stuck a foot out the window to crawl out on the roof.

"You wanna hide with me?" I whispered.

"You know they can probably see you right." He chuckled.

"I know." I sighed pulling out a smoke.

Josh sat beside me in silence for a long time and we looked out across the field and tree shrouded property. The tiring sun pushing the hues of yellows and golds off the grass and stretching them our way. It was beautiful. Cruel that the view had to be ruined by the hustle downstairs.

When I yawned, Josh looked me over. "I'm fine." I assured him with a smile pulling my knees up to rest my chin and watch the grass. After a long silence I continued. "You and Vance need to sit in tonight when I explain who's who in the family." I shut my eyes for a moment and then looked at Josh. "I want you both to be able to recognize them if you have to. I just..." My eyes began to burn. "I let Jonah make the call on the second team."

"Oh, hey." Josh pulled me into his arms and I shook my head against his shoulder unable to find the right words. "Shhhh, you've got enough to worry about. Vance and I will be fine. Don't focus on that ok."

I pulled away embarrassed and pushed the hair out of my face. "It's hard not to. I haven't had to worry about anybody but me in a long time." Every time my mother crosses my mind I want to slam another nail into Elijah's coffin.

"If you have a flashback during..." He begun, referring to my part of the coming meeting.

"I'll be fine." I spoke firmly. "I've had them for a while now. Yesterday's just got the best of me."

He didn't look convinced but he dropped it and nodded grabbing a smoke out of my pack and tossing me one before lighting one himself.

"Thought you didn't smoke?" I rose a brow.

Josh lay back against the roof to watch the sky change colors with the dropping sun and turned my way giving me a devilish smile. "Neither do you." He commented slyly. "It's gonna be a long night give me a break."

I laughed at Josh and couldn't take my eyes off the way the sun made him seem to glow and his eyes shine, while I lit the last smoke of the night.

Sitting up I watched the sky and grass fade into darkness. Josh got a text on his phone and pulled it out of his pocket. "They're ready."

Climbing back into the window Josh followed me in and watched me shake out my muscles a little, blowing out a large breath. I cursed. Here we go, I guess.

"Kitten, you're just going to fill them in on the high ups and they can come to you for questions. Those boxes from what I hear are enough to get nearly everyone. It'll just take time and then you can check over it all before they move in on it." How? How does he speak and just...bam...just like that I begin to slow down?

My shoulders relaxed as I studied Josh's features. Does he know just how statue like he is? Beautiful. He smirked when he caught my dazed expression and I brushed the curls out of my face readying myself to go downstairs. Not the time to let my mind wander. What is with these issues I keep having around him?

When I reached the bottom of the stairs all the blinds in the house had been let down, the kitchen and dinning room had been transformed to combine the next space over as well.

Jonah greeted me first with words of support before I entered everyone's line of sight. I stood off to the side as Gregory passed out papers and began the meeting, going over points of interest on the property as well as protocol.

When he was finished I began without an introduction and grabbing a bottle of water stepped in front of the board set up on the counter that separated the cooking space from the rest of the house. Going through the stack of copied pictures I noticed many I had taken myself.

A few whispers broke out behind me, them having glimpsed the scars on my back and I huffed throwing a picture of Elijah on the top of the board, then Drake. The room fell to quiet once more and Jonah came to stand beside me. I gave him a sad smile and shuffled through the pictures throwing a few more pictures on the board. "Shit." I swore. The picture of Domino they had was very recent. Brushing it off I slapped his ugly face up on the board and turned around gauging the group.