New Point (26 page)

Gulping a breath, I slither backward, taking my own seat on the sofa. I collect his hand in mine, pressing it to my chest. “I will never hide anything from you again, Miles.” I lock my gaze with his, silently begging him to believe me. “I almost died today.”

Miles face falls, and he gathers me close again, tucking my body against his chest. “Don’t say that,” he growls.

“Listen,” I say insistently. “I almost died today and the thought vibrating through me was that I needed more time with you. It can’t be the end of us, Miles.”

I see his intention to answer when suddenly there’s a commotion in the foyer. The front door flies opens with a clang and then my brother’s strangled voice calls out my name. He stalks through the house into the living room. When our eyes catch his hands fly to his hair, diving through the normally perfect style.

“You’re…he didn’t…” The unflappable Blake Campbell heaves his breaths. Wrinkles crease his brow.

I climb out of Miles lap and make my way to my brother. “Blake.” I don’t know what more to say. Luckily, he doesn’t expect anything. He crushes me to him in a tight hug.

“There was police tape around the library, Zoe.
Police tape.
Took ten years off my life, thinking something happened to you again.”

I squeeze him back, trying to reassure him. “Clinton’s gone, Blake. We don’t have to worry anymore.” Clinton destroyed himself in front of me, and I can hardly believe the words are coming out of my mouth.

The weary sound my brother exhales makes him sound more than exhausted, more like bone tired. He releases me enough for me to take a few steps back.

“Stella?” I question incredulously, staring at my petite, raven-haired friend. Hovering near living room entryway, she surveys the scene uncomfortably.

I’m baffled by her appearance. She wants to see me after I practically begged her to leave me? Something’s off. How did she know where to find me?

“Hi.” Her voice is meek.

“What are you doing here?” I thought she’d never forgive me for brushing off her attempts to rescue me from the depths of my post-Clarkes depression.

“She came for your birthday,” Blake answers quickly.

It clicks.

Stella might be here for me a little, but more than that, she’s with Blake. I toss it around my already jumbled and emotional mind. It fits, the two caregivers finding each other. And I like it.

In an instant my old friend’s uncertainty morphs into a mask of pain. Her flinch is imperceptible, but I notice it. My eyes fly back to my brother who hardly notices the woman behind him.

“Stella, I’m glad you’re here,” I offer.

“Enough with the reunion,” my brother snaps, eliciting another wince from Stella. “Tell me what the hell happened today.”

The weight of Miles’ hand settles on my shoulder and in a calm, steady voice he directs them. “Let’s have this conversation sitting down. Zoe’s had enough stress for today, don’t you think?”

Blake’s eyes narrow dangerously. “I wouldn’t know. Neither of you will explain what the
fuck
happened.”

“Settle down, Blake,” I plead. He lets out an annoyed huff and drops into an overstuffed armchair.

“Stella, join us,” I invite when I notice she hasn’t left her place in the doorway.

“This seems like a family matter…” she trails off, her eyes falling to my brother. They silently plead for him to interject, invite her into the inner circle. He doesn’t respond, and there’s no mistaking the crestfallen features spread across her face. Without another word she spins around and leaves the room.

Not good, Blake.
I want to seek her out, but I know I need to talk to my brother first.

Miles settles a reassuring arm around my shoulders, and I tuck against him, reveling in the hard ridges of his chest. With him here, all the awfulness is much less daunting. For so long I wanted his support and now that I have it, I don’t want to let it go. Ever. With his unwavering encouragement, I recant the disturbing encounter with Clinton and then share the little information I received from the police officer.

“The cops think he somehow escaped from the hospital, but of course the details of that are fuzzy now. He was obviously rational enough to know he needed to disguise himself to get out there. That’s why he shaved his head. They don’t know where he got the gun, but he told me he had to steal back his own weapon.” My voice hitches on the word, and Miles collects me tighter against him.

I shudder against him, a fearful chill washing over me. “It’s so ugly,” I whisper. “And now he’s gone.”

He’s gone.
What does that mean for me? Where do I go from here? There’s a lot for me to work through, but there’s a huge amount of comfort knowing I can work through the mass with help from Etta. And, maybe, hopefully, it seems like, Miles too.

My brother shoots to his feet, unable to sit still. He paces the length of the room furiously. “How did he find out you were here? I thought if you weren’t with me, this would be the safest place for you to live.”

Taking a soothing breath, I place a hand on Miles’ knee and push myself out of his embrace slightly. “I am safe here, Blake. I. Am. Safe.”

And I believe my words. For the first time in a long time, I don’t worry what’s lurking behind my shoulder.

When he looks my way, I see a shadow of the man I’ve come to rely on and comfort me in my time of need. Blake’s expression is ragged, broken. “Did he see you on SportsHour?”

“It’s my fault that asshole host even had a picture of Zoe,” Miles jumps in.

“What are you talking about?” My brother looks a heartbeat away from launching himself at Miles and even my eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

“Lacey, my ex-girlfriend,” he explains to Blake, “thought you two were a couple. She took a picture of you from that night at the bar and sent it into SportsHour. I’m sure she got paid, but she also wanted to break Zoe and me up.”

“What?” I gasp. “That’s, that’s… Not really surprising,” I finish. It’s no secret Lacey wanted Miles back. But I can’t be angry with her, she didn’t know what she was setting into motion. Lacey may be guilty of trying to break Miles and me up but not much more than that.

“I’m sorry,” Miles says, his eyes mournful.

“Not your fault. It’s no one’s fault,” I tell him softly. Though I wish none of this had happened. Badly.

“That’s something else you need to explain,” my brother eyes our joined hands with a hint of disdain. “My sister doesn’t need some chickenshit boyfriend tying her down.”

“Blake,” I admonish halfheartedly. Heck, I somewhat agree with my brother. Even I don’t know where I stand with Miles myself.

“No, he’s right.” Miles is steady, making direct eye contact with my brother. “It’s also something your sister and I haven’t addressed yet. Once she and I come to a decision
together
, I hope you’ll respect it.”

My heart starts pounding in my chest, but this time not for anxiety over Clinton Smith. It’s felt like Miles has made decisions for our relationship. Leaving or disappearing when he’s upset with me instead of fighting. I’m glad he’s willing to come together now, and hopeful we’ll work through the bumps.

At his sides, my brother’s hands twitch. Then he takes stock of my no doubt pitiful demeanor and relaxes slightly. “Fine.” He glances over his shoulder. “What happened to Stella?”

“You practically kicked her out,” I mutter. Happy with something to do unrelated to Clinton Smith, I search through the lower level for her. Blake and I meet in the kitchen.

“Where is she?” he asks, a new sense of agitation flooding his appearance.

“Not here, apparently. You were kind of a dick, I’m not surprised she left.”

Blake’s face clouds over, but he doesn’t say anything to correct my assessment. “I’ve got to find her.” He races out of the house without another word.

“What was that all about?” Miles appears at my side.

If I didn’t feel like the weight of the world was pressing down on my shoulder, I might analyze the exchange more. “Maybe they’re dating,” I guess. “Never considered them together, but it would be nice. Stella’s a complete nurturer, and no one ever takes care of Blake.”

Gently Miles turns me by the shoulders. He searches my face, for what, I’m not sure. There’s nothing left in me. My tongue feels heavier than normal. It would take energy I’m rapidly losing to have a coherent conversation.

We start talking at the same time.

“I’ve lost count.”

“Miles, I –” My brow wrinkles in confusion. “Count of what?”

“All those freckles.” He brushes a thumb across my nose, smiling tenderly.

“That’s what you’re thinking about now?”

Leaning down he drops a kiss to my nose. “I’m thinking about your freckles
and
all the things we should talk about it. But before we can talk, you need to rest.”

Rest.
The word itself sends my shoulders slumping in exhaustion.

“I thought I had already experienced the worst day of my life.” It’s a helpless non sequitur, but Miles gets it immediately.

“It’s the last worst day on my watch. I’m not letting anything like this happen to you ever again, Zoe.”

“You can’t guarantee that.” My whisper is almost childlike. I need his reassurance. Desperately.

Miles cups my cheeks in his palms, drawing my face close to his. “Look at me,” he urges. When our eyes meet, I find vehemence and the stubborn insistence I’ve grown to know well. “I’m here. By your side. For good.”

“My heart tells me to believe you, but my brain warns me to be cautious. You have a habit of disappearing when I’ve done something to upset you or when you think
I’ve done something to upset you.”

His hands leave my face and begin carefully smoothing out messy strands of my hair. “Baby, you need to sleep. Your eyes are half closed. Let’s talk when you’re more awake.”

I acquiesce with a slight nod. I’m not sure what I’m saying makes sense anyhow.

Again Miles scoops me into his arms as though I’m weightless, carrying me up the stairs and into the master bedroom. Dropping one knee down on the mattress, he bends down to settle me onto the center of the bed.

“Wait.” I grasp his wrist to halt his movement. “I know we’re not okay, but will you stay with me?” I hate how pathetic my voice sounds.

“We are not okay
yet,”
he says firmly, crawling into space next to me. He tugs my back to his chest, wrapping an arm around my abdomen. In his cocoon, there’s nothing but serenity. He whispers my name against my hair. “We will be back before you know it.”

I let the comforting words soak in. Even if I don’t completely believe them, it’s the perfect sentiment to send me to sleep.

I
t’s chilly when I wake later, Miles’ warmth no longer wrapped around me. But he’s not the only thing missing from my room. The haunting nightmares I know almost as well as I know myself were visibly absent while I slept. In fact, my rest was perfectly dreamless.

With a freshly washed face and clean teeth, I make my way down the stairs. The television’s on, but no voices accompany it. I find Miles and Blake sitting stiffly in front of the TV, but neither appear to be paying attention to the sports news.

The two most important men in my life are together, and I’m glad. I want to talk to them together.

“Hi,” I say softly. Miles is on his feet in a flash, cupping my elbow in his palm.

“Sit with us,” he encourages.

“I need to talk to my sister,” Blake says gruffly from his seat.

If my brother thinks he can slip into parent role that quickly, he has another thing coming to him. “What happened with Stella?” I counter.

“Took a train back into the city,” he mutters.

“Looked more to me like she was here to be with you than a birthday party for me,” I observe as Miles and I take our seats on the couch.

“That’s the last thing on my mind right now,” he grunts.

“Then why do you look so ticked off?”

His frown deepens. “Stella’s off the table. I’m serious about us talking.”

“Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of Miles.” It’s a petulant move, and almost disrespectful to my brother, but he needs to finally understand I’m an adult capable of making my own decisions.

Miles captures my hand in his, running his thumb across my knuckles in a silent show of support.

Blake shrugs. Then unloads a shitstorm. “It’s time we sell this house. Everything associated with this place and our family is poisoned.”

“Come on, Blake, that’s absolutely not –”

“I’m calling off my responsibilities to the team for the rest of the summer,” he barrels on. “We can go to Europe or Asia or travel the whole damn world for all I care, but you’re not staying here.”

Beside me, Miles visibly tenses but stays silent. I’m thankful for his restraint, letting me handle the situation myself.

I fight to stay calm and keep my voice even when I respond. Has my brother not listened to anything I’ve been saying over this summer?
I’m an adult, Blake!
I want to say. Instead, I’m more diplomatic. “Do you know what Mom said to me when she brought me here? She said this place has healing powers, Blake. I understand you don’t see it that way, but I do. From the moment I moved here, I felt like I fit. New Point accepts me. I’ve made friends and met people I care about. Deeply.” My eyes flit to Miles who’s wearing a slight but strained smile. I return my gaze to my brother. “This is my home now. And your home away from home.”