I didn't stop him.
He left, and I slammed the door behind him. I locked it, but then forced myself to unlock it in case Lily arrived. She was expecting Miles at any moment, and I was expecting them to come here as soon as he returned.
"Is he gone?" Lyn asked as she entered the room.
"Yep." I leaned my back against the opaque door. The glass pressed cold against my shoulders. "He didn't say when he'd be back."
Lyn raised her right eyebrow. This was the one she raised when she knew I was lying—or doing something worse.
"What?" I asked, waiting.
She said nothing. She turned away and disappeared into the kitchen. I followed. Steam rose up from a boiling pot and filled the small room with lingering warmth. Argos hovered nearby, and I sat down at the table.
"You didn't tell me he was on drugs," she spoke her mind.
She had heard every word.
"I didn't know," I admitted, but Lyn's dark eyes moved across my face. "Honestly," I promised. "I thought it was aspirin."
"He's an addict, Sophia."
I knew it before she said it, but hearing it was another experience. I bit my lip, only to force myself to grumble from an almost-closed mouth, "So, why are we helping him?"
"We aren't," she said. "We're helping the entire country."
"We?"
She sighed. "You don't remember Albany for what is was. Leaving there and helping your father was the best thing I could do, and the best thing your father can do is to aid Phelps and help others cross borders when he can. We can only do so much."
Lyn was fighting her own war. So was my dad.
"Your father's doing what he can, away from here where it's much worse, so you didn't have to go through what we did." She paused, and tapped her fingernails against her favorite tea mug. It said #1 MOM. The first year she'd arrived, I'd painted it for her at school during craft time for Mother's Day. I didn't want other kids asking where my mom was, so I made something for Lyn. She truly was the best mom to Falo. And I had felt like I had one for a second.
"Make no mistake," she continued, "the war came to you."
I tore my eyes away from the mug and stared at the peeling wallpaper. "Noah isn't a war."
"You're right. He's not." She took a sip. "He's just a pawn in this, and he will end up dead."
My fingers curled into fists on my lap, but my palms were already moist with sweat. "Why would you say that?"
"Because I don't want to see you go out with him, and I'm not referring to dating." Her lip yanked up at the last part, like she had made a joke, but she hadn't. She was talking about death.
"He saved my life," I said.
She leaned on the island in the middle of the kitchen. "How?" She didn't sound impressed. "By forcing you to escape through a river?"
Lyn always knew everything. I blamed it on the fact that she was a mother. Maybe it was a good thing mine wasn't around.
"He helped you avoid your arrest. He didn't save you from dying," she said. "Now, don't get me wrong, Sophia. I care. I do. I just don't care enough about him to lose you in the process."
"I'm here, aren't I?" I snapped. "I stayed home—"
"This time," she argued, snatching up the teapot. She poured the hot liquid into two mugs, but she didn't bring me one. "I can't watch you forever. I can't force you to make the decisions I want. I can't do anything except hope you're a damn better fighter than most."
I stood up, crossed the room, and reached for the mug. She grabbed my wrist, and her slender fingers moved over the back of my hand. "Just be cautious," she said, her voice softening. She had only spoken to me like that once before. It was when she handed me my mother's necklace.
"Why you?" I couldn't pull away from my sister-figure. "Why did my mom pick you?"
Lyn never dropped my hand. When she breathed, her entire body grew. "That's something I can't answer," she exhaled.
"Why not?"
"Because I don't know," she responded before I ever finished the question. "Your mother," she sighed, "Your mother wasn't able to come. She wasn't well."
My stomach flipped over. "Noah said she's fine."
"Noah's a good liar."
"Sophia!" a girlish scream erupted from the front porch.
Argos leapt to his feet and growled. I hushed him as Lyn rushed toward the front of the house. The door was already opening. I ran after her, only to stop when I saw a tall girl with white hair.
"Help," Lily gasped, barely holding up a boy as they stumbled inside.
I lunged across the room and grabbed Miles' other arm. We dragged him in, and he coughed. Blood splattered across the floor. He tried to speak, but all I heard was mumbling.
"Don't talk," I ordered as Lyn directed us to the couch. We laid him down before I relaxed. The blood had only come from a split lip. He was beaten, but he was going to be fine.
"He was laying on the front yard when I got home," Lily explained. "I think he's drunk."
It was then that I smelled the whiskey.
"Drunk?" I questioned. "He doesn't drink."
"Of course he doesn't," Lily said, answering all of my unasked questions with one glare. The police had made him drink. They were hoping he'd slip up and talk. That was obvious now.
Lily crossed her arms. "He even threw up on me." When I looked her over, her shoulders rose. "I had to change." Her concern dissipated with mine.
"She's right. He's just intoxicated," Lyn said, laying a hand on his forehead. "I'll get him some water."
When Lyn left, Lily sat down. "I drove us here with Miles' car," she said, wiggling the keys out of her pocket. "I couldn't let our mother see."
Ms. Beckett was a prideful woman. She definitely wasn't in on the plans. She was probably still at the station, waiting. I doubted she even knew her kids were friends with someone like Noah. I knew enough about her to understand that.
"How did you two get involved in this, anyway?" I asked.
Lily rolled her eyes. "We met Broden the same way we met you."
Her mother was our nanny. Apparently, she had watched Broden, too.
"She stopped watching Broden when he was put in middle school, but Miles stayed in touch," she continued. "Things just sort of happened from there."
"And you?"
"I never got involved," Lily said. "They wouldn't let me, but I watched. I listened. I figured it out."
Lyn returned with a glass of water. She placed it down before helping Miles up. When she handed it to him, he almost dropped it. "Come on," she coaxed his grip around the slipping glass. "You can hold it."
He gripped it and drank it like she controlled him. "Thank you," he muttered, putting the glass down. A little bit of blood clung to the rim.
"No talking," Lyn scorned him. "Let me see your lip."
He moved the glass to his lap, and she grabbed his chin, turning his face to the side. "Well, at least you don't need stitches."
"But the blood—"
"The face bleeds heavier than the rest of your body," she said, tapping his head. "It has to get to your brain, after all."
Miles grinned, only to wince. Then, he hiccupped, and another groan escaped him. His cheeks were red, and his dark eyes rolled around. He may have been drunk, but he was coherent.
"You can tell us what happened when you feel better," Lyn said, more to Lily and me than to him. She didn't have to tell us not to question him yet. He looked miserable.
Minutes ticked by, and Argos paced, his nails clicking on the hardwood. Falo started crying, and Lyn went to grab him from his room. When she returned, she joined Argos in his pacing. They couldn't stay still.
"Where are the troublemakers?" Lily finally asked.
"Who?"
"Broden and Noah." Her tone was sharp. "They were supposed to be here."
"They had a meeting," I repeated the only information I knew. "With others, apparently."
She didn't seem the least bit surprised. "When will they be back?"
I shrugged, but I leaned forward. "Who are the others?"
She tilted her head toward her twin. "He probably knows."
Miles coughed. "Not me, though."
He didn't make any sense.
Lyn tapped her tattooed arm. "Lily, do you want any tea?"
She nodded, but her face was red with anger.
"I'll get yours, too, Sophia," Lyn said, leaving. I was starting to believe Lyn couldn't stay in one room for very long.
"You look like a mess, Lils," Miles joked, pulling at his own hair as if to point out how frizzy hers had gotten.
She glared initially, but her lips broke into a smirk. "Look who's talking."
"I'm okay, sis."
"Are you?" I asked, gaining his attention.
He looked over his right shoulder, his brown eyes widening. "I—" His gaze went to the ceiling, and he attempted to shrug. "I don't know what happened," he said, but it sounded more like, I donut want happened.
Before I realized that I had stood, I had walked over to the couch and leaned down to hug him. He smelled like dirt. "I'm glad you're okay," I choked.
Too many of my friends had been hurt in a short amount of time, yet I didn't know if we would have more injured soon. I didn't know where Broden had gone or what Noah had planned to do, and I wouldn't know until time continued. I only knew that it couldn't be good.
Miles was the boy who helped me with my science project. He was the friend who rejoiced with me when I got Argos. He liked dogs, but his sister had a cat, so he couldn't get one. He was the teenager who taught me to drive in his red car, the one who forgave me when I hit a curb. He even bought me ice cream. Now, he was the boy who got hurt during an interrogation, protecting us all by keeping his mouth shut.
"I'm okay," Miles whispered as I pulled away. His brown eyes were glassy. "Really."
Lily moved silently across the room until she was standing next to me. We both sat on the floor, and Lily laid her head next to Miles' leg. She closed her eyes as if she was ready to fall asleep.
We sat like that until Lyn returned. "You all need to relax," she said, pushing the mugs toward us. "There's no reason to worry until we can do something about it."
Lily grabbed her tea as if it were the only thing that would keep her awake. She breathed into it, and the steam from the drink caused her bangs to curl. I followed her lead, and my throat tightened.
"Can I ask you something?" I managed to speak up after a moment, the hot tea warming my fears.
Miles sat up. "Ask." Lyn was right—his injuries weren't as bad as they initially looked.
"Why would you become friends with Noah?"
"Because I was young," he said it as if he was an old man. "I thought it was cool, you know. Important." His already red cheeks spread. "I didn't know it would turn into this."
"But you kept doing it."
"No, he didn't," Lily defended. "He stopped a long time ago."
"I only helped this time because I thought it would give Broden an escape," he finished.
Apparently, Miles and I thought alike.
"I don't think Broden can escape this," I said, thinking of his parents' involvement.
"He can," Miles argued. "He just doesn't want to."
"His parents were found innocent in court," Lily explained, taking a moment to drink her tea. "He was free. He just doesn't want to be."
"You kids have it wrong," Lyn interrupted, shifting in her seat. It squeaked. "His freedom isn't your freedom. Fighting is his freedom, and it would be yours, too, if you saw the other regions."
"Broden hasn't seen the other regions," I defended, wondering what side Lyn was actually on. She wanted me to believe in them, but she didn't want me to be involved. She was just as bad as Noah.
Right when I thought Lyn would argue me, Miles laid a hand on my shoulder. "This isn't good, Sophia. Tomo isn't something to be messed with. It's dangerous."
"I know."
"No," Miles argued. "You don't. You have no clue." His face heated up with frustration. "The Tomery family created that drug. Noah uses the stuff. Hell, Sophia, he's an addict. A real tomo addict."
"I've seen it," Lily agreed, "and nothing good comes out of it. The future shouldn't be seen."
I swallowed, the tea burning my throat despite the fact that it had cooled significantly. I focused on Lily, the girl that used to play dolls with me. "So, when are you going to tell him about Tony?"
Lily paled as Miles shot up. "Tony?" he repeated. "Tony's back?"
"Anthony was Tony," I explained, knowing I had called out my friend to her brother.
Lily sighed. "He looked different—"
"How could you not recognize him?"
She held up a hand. "We are not going through this again," she said. "Tony's back, and everyone knows who he is now."
Miles fell back as if she had smacked him. "I hate that guy."
"No one has yet to explain why we hate him," I mumbled.
Miles touched his forehead. "Tony was arrested after tomo was released. Phelps blamed his family instead of Noah's since Noah's family managed to escape," he explained. "The entire family was sent straight to Phoenix. They were the face of the crime, so to speak."
"Why would he threaten me then?"
Miles' eyes widened. "He did what?"
I explained what Anthony had said. I even told them about my father and how we escaped the Albany Region. They knew about the forgery, and now, I couldn't hide the fact that I had no escape either. None of us did.
Miles cursed, and Lily pinched his leg to warn him. "It's fine."
"It's not," he said.
"It's reality," Lyn added.
The entire atmosphere thickened, and Falo screamed like he could sense it. Lyn leapt up to return to his room. Miles tensed, and Lily twitched without looking at her brother, reminding me of the connection they shared. Even with her dyed hair, I could see the resemblance the twins had. Their contorting expressions were even the same.
That's when Argos barked.
"What was that?" Lily squeaked, jumping up, only to fall on the couch next to her brother.
I stood up slowly as Falo's screaming stopped. Footsteps echoed up the stairs, and a figure appeared through the fogged glass. The doorknob turned. Argos' fur stood on his backend, and I had to scream at him to prevent him from attacking.
"Heel," I ordered as the door opened, and a boy stumbled in.
"That dog hates me," Noah mumbled, leaning backward on the door as it shut. Without saying another word, Noah fell forward and grabbed onto the landing as his feet slipped out beneath him. "I know," he said, looking directly at the kitchen wall. "It will be hard, but I have to. I have to. She's my sister."
I raced forward, and Argos ran into my legs as I stopped, inches away from the boy. "Noah?" I hesitated. He wasn't reacting to me. "Can you hear me?"
His green eyes flashed, and he waved his arm dramatically. "I'm fine, really. I'm handling this perfectly," Noah continued to speak, his eyes focused in front of him. No one was there. He was talking to a wall.
"Lily," Lyn called out from behind me. "Take Falo."
I didn't look, but I heard Lily's footsteps. Falo cooed, and I knew Lyn had handed the toddler over. Without hesitation, Lyn walked forward and grasped Noah's shoulder. He froze.
"Noah," Lyn spoke harshly but clearly. "You need to listen to me."
He jerked away and spun around. When he tripped, he almost crashed down the basement stairs. His forehead was covered in sweat, but I could only concentrate on his eyes. They flashed brilliant colors, maroon and gold. He had cat-eyes I had never seen before, not even on him.
"I told you to run. Run!" he shouted, his voice ripping against his throat.
Argos growled lowly, and I grabbed onto his fur to keep him away. Noah held his shoulder and pulled as if he would tear his arm off. His fierce scream shattered the room as he bent forward, tearing his shirt, scratching his skin off. I couldn't breathe.
"I told you what I want," his shriek splintered any peace that had lingered in the living room. When he shouted again, he banged the back of his head against the wall behind him. Instead of stopping, he hit his head again. It reminded me of an animal caught in a trap—an animal that wanted to die quickly instead of starve to death.
"Hey..." Lyn was quiet, but I wasn't.
"Stop it," I shouted, diving past Lyn to get to him. "Stop it, now," I said, latching onto his arm.
I half-expected him to slam his head again, but he stilled. I dug my nails into his arm, and he turned his face toward me. His green irises gazed back, foggy. He twitched, and his entire body jerked against the wall.
I never let him go. "Noah, stop," I begged. "Please, stop."
"Sophie?" His delicate voice sounded like a hurt child.
I nodded, even though he couldn't see. "I need you to stop."
Breath escaped his lips as he slumped against the wall. His eyes rolled, but he brought his hand up to my cheek. His fingertips were still. He wasn't shaking. "How?" he whispered.
"Keep him talking," Lyn said, rushing away.
"What do you mean?" I asked him, following her orders.
Noah's grip tightened on my hand. "How'd you live?"
I didn't have a chance to speak.
His fingers found my curly hair. "You," he said, staring at my hair between his fingers. His green eyes were clearing the fog. "I wouldn't let Tony hurt you."
"I know that," I responded as Lyn rushed across the entryway and collapsed next to us. Where was Broden?
"I need you to sit up, Noah," Lyn instructed, holding out a syringe filled with purple liquid. "Can you do that for me?"
Noah blinked at her, clueless, and I shifted my weight so that my knee supported my weight. "Come here," I asked. When he didn't move, I pulled him into my lap and held him against my ribs. "Sit up," I whispered against his hair.
His fingers tightened on my leg. "I got you," he said.
"She has you," Lyn corrected, taking his forearm. "This is going to hurt. Do you understand?" She was looking at me instead of him. She didn't know how he would react.
I nodded, and she jammed it into his arm where it bent.
He sucked in breath, and his fingers pressed against my ribs. I gasped, but I kept my hold on him. There would be bruises. His wheeze was the only breath I heard as he leaned forward, relaxed.
Lyn grabbed me and dragged me away. "Let him throw up."
As she said it, he vomited. An unnaturally purple liquid splashed across the tiled floor. He convulsed, and I pushed against Lyn who continued to hold me back. "What did you do to him? What's happening?"
"His system has to clear the drug," Lyn explained calmly. "Leave him alone for a minute."
Noah coughed. "Rinley."
I backed against the wall, and Lyn let me go so she could pat his back.
"Get a mop, Miles," Lily said, either disgusted by the vomit or Noah's presence. Probably both. Either way, she wanted her brother to help, and he leapt up like he was able to. When he fell back on the couch, Lily sighed.
"I'll get it," Lyn said, gesturing to me.
I took her place, but I didn't put my hand on his back. He only continued to repeat his sister's name. The sour smell made me want to throw up, too.
"We'll find her, Noah," I spoke through the nausea.
His hand came up, but he didn't touch me. Surprisingly, even with the vomit, Noah looked as normal as he could be. Barely disheveled, shadows clung to his eyes, and a sad smile hung on his lips.
"We will," he agreed, light returning to his eyes in a way that made the last few moments seem like a dream—or a nightmare, really—and then, he placed his hands on the ground and attempted to push himself up.
"Easy goes it," Lyn intervened, steadying his stance.
He wobbled, holding onto the wall like it had handles. He looked around the house. "Where am I?"
"Sophia's house," Lyn answered, already mopping up his mess.
He stepped toward it like he couldn't see it. "Where?"
He didn't remember my house. He didn't remember my name. He didn't remember anything.
"Sit," Lyn said, but he had already collapsed on the stairs. "Where's Broden?" she finally asked.
"Haven't seen that kid in years," he muttered, rubbing his head.
Lyn laid the mop against the wall before she picked him up again. He was her practical ragdoll. "Let's get you lying down, Mr. Tomery."
He flinched at his own name. "I'm not exactly a popular person."
"Quite the opposite, actually." Lyn half-laughed, half-sighed. "You seem to have a lot of people after you."
Noah didn't say anything as Lyn lowered him onto the only couch we had left. His head fell back onto the couch before anything else did. He sighed, and Lyn let him go as I draped a blanket over him.
"Sleep it off," Lyn commented.
"Will do, ma'am," Noah cheered sarcastically, still affected from the medication Lyn dosed him with.
I turned away.
"Wait," Noah grabbed my hand, looking up at me with tired eyes. "Sophie?"
Apparently, he did remember me.
"I'm here," I said after a moment.
"Stay," he breathed, and I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. I turned away, only to be met by Lily's widened gaze. Miles' jaw dropped, and Lyn smirked like she knew he would ask for me all along.
His fingers dragged across my wrist. "Please."
"Okay," I murmured, sitting on the edge next to him. Argos curled up at my feet. "I'll stay."
"Good," Noah whispered, his foggy eyes glossing over as he closed them and surrendered to sleep.
...
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