Eva

  With Dante’s consumption, she’d completely forgotten her brother was there. Literally two rooms away.

  Running into Dante surprised Lowell at first but his face quickly scrunched in a confused way.

  “What are you doing in here?” His tone was more puzzled than demanding.

  Dante’s shoulders were squared as if ready for a fight, but at Lowell’s tone, they dropped into a less defensive position.

  “I go where she goes,” He replied simply.

  Lowell looked towards Evanora, who was trying to push the arousal down deep where her brother couldn’t see.

  “Not here.” Lowell shook his head.

  “I don’t answer to you.” Again, Dante replied simply and with a shrug.

  The confusion increased on Lowell’s face at the slight pushback. “No, but you answer to my parents, and I think we’d all agree that this is the one room that would be off-limits. So, please.”

  He moved to the side so Dante could exit.

  Dante tossed a sexy smirk over his shoulder towards Evanora and it made her nipples harden again. He complied with her brother’s wishes and Eva was sure he only did so because Lowell had been firm but not disrespectful like Simon would have. It was honestly the most cordial interaction she’d seen between him and her brothers.

  However, as he left the room, a velvety rumble formed in his throat. “If I wanted to fuck your sister, I wouldn’t need a bed.”

  Lowell crossed his arms, as an older brother would when someone said something out of pocket about his younger sister.

  Dante closed the door behind him without another look at Eva, who wished her brother had just gone home the night before.

  “Has he been saying shit like that this entire time?” He stood by her door, shoulders squared like he was trying to use himself as a blockade between her and Dante.

  “No.” She lied quickly but her brother caught it. She saw his eyes dart around the room, looking for anything amiss, but he seemed to find nothing. Still, he narrowed his eyes at her in an assessing way.

  “Eva.” He tried calmly, but she could hear the edge in his tone. It was something that didn’t normally happen with him and it stunned her. “Real talk? Understand me when I say, you are a liar.”

  She tried to come to Dante’s defense again, but before she could get anything out, he was shaking his head at her.

  “No. Please do not lie to me again. Get dressed and pack some of your things.”

  “What?” She asked, confused. “Because you think–”

  “Did I stutter?” He snapped his fingers at her to quicken her pace and she felt her eyes widen at his harsh tone. “We’re meeting everyone at the shop. Pack some clothes. You won’t be coming back.”

  She tried not to freak out, but she felt her heart begin to race, and an uneasiness settled in her stomach. The arousal from moments ago extinguished with a sudden frost. “Like for the night? Or...”

  “Don’t make me lie to you, okay?” His stance eased with her worried tone. “I don’t know, but, um, probably not. Ever. Someone will come for the rest of your stuff.”

  She stiffened and her refusal was barely above a whisper.

  Her brother’s expression was stunned at her defiance before changing to aggravated, his demand becoming clipped. “This isn’t up for debate.”

  The laugh that escaped her was more of a scoff as she pushed past him to find Dante.

  He stood by the window looking down at the road and never looked at her. She knew he’d heard the conversation. He was normally always listening.

  “Please tell him he’s trippin’, that we’re safe here?” Even as the words left her mouth, she knew they weren’t true. Not after last night’s attack.

  Things felt different. She could have died. Like Amy.

  As if reading her mind, Dante spoke. “Think of your neighbors.”

  “Like I’m not?” She questioned bitterly, eyes brimming with angry tears. “She gave me this couch! Amy was nothing but kind to me. And Dontrell? He helped me move! These people have been nothing but nice to me.”

  “And who’s fault was that?” Lowell snapped back. “Don’t blame us because you were moving funny, sneaking around and shit. If you had told us-”

  “Are you deadass making this about us right now?” Her voice shook with how furious she was becoming.“Two people are dead because–”

  “Because they got too close.” Dante opened his hand towards her in a soft gesture. “To you. That is your life. If you stay here.”

  That wasn’t the life she wanted. But she also didn’t want to move back in with her parents. Why was this happening all of a sudden? Suddenly she had a mark on her back?

  “I didn’t mean for it to be like this.” Her words were quiet and nearly a plea.

  “You’re the one who moved out of the safety of the house.” Lowell threw his hands up at her, still on level ten, which brought her anger flooding back as well.

  She looked at her brother and let out a frustrated scream. “Because you’ve all been lying to me my whole damn life!”

  She stormed off to her room, slamming and locking her door, just like the toddler they saw her as.

  “Dammit, you’re being ridiculous!” He banged his hand on the other side of the door. “It’s not like you’ve even been here a month. Pack your things, Evanora. You have ten minutes or I’m coming in and throwing stuff in a bag.”

  “Lowell, enough.” She heard Dante try to be the voice of reason. “That won’t be necessary.”

  “This her fault. She needs to understand that. And her being here is only going to get more people hurt and cause more problems for us to clean up.” He hadn’t been talking to Dante. She knew that his patronizing tone was meant for her, and she couldn’t help the expression that twisted on her face. Or the middle fingers she put up, though her brother couldn’t see her.

  “I’m sure she understands that.”

  Of course, she knew this was her fault. She didn’t need her brother rubbing salt in the wound. Between feeling the overwhelming guilt of the death of her neighbors, and the increasing worry of losing her family next, she couldn’t keep the angry tears from falling.

  She’d been trying to be strong. A badass, like Dante, but this was… hard. Frustratingly hard, and it appeared things were just going to get worse. She couldn’t stay here any longer?

  Was she a prisoner now? Back on her shelf like a porcelain doll?

  She placed her back to the door, resting her head against it, and closed her eyes just for a moment to steady herself.

  This was the inevitable outcome. The plan. She wasn’t sure when Dante was let in on it, or if he was just smarter than her and had come to that conclusion.

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  There was a quiet, tentative knock at the door and she let out an equally quiet and frustrated sigh.

  “Open the door, Eva. Don’t make me break it down.” Dante joked but when she didn’t comply, he tried again, even softer. “Please. Open up? For me?”

  She knit her brows at his softness. Lowell must have been gone, because there was no way in hell he’d be that vulnerable with watching eyes. She was surprised he was even trying to be soft with her.

  Reluctantly, she opened the door and went to sit on the edge of her bed closest to her closet.

  Lowell had been right; this hadn’t been her home for a month. She didn’t even have much to actually pack. Almost all her appliances had come with the apartment.

  She’d used the money she’d been saving from years of birthdays and working at the shop to pay for her first month’s rent and deposit. Would she even get her deposit back since she was leaving literally three weeks in?

  Dante entered behind her and the bed dipped where he sat beside her.

  “Are you going to mope about this all day?” He tried to joke with her again.

  “Are you going to throw me over your shoulder and drag me out?” She shot back, unamused.

  He gave a dark chuckle that warmed her core despite her anger. “Only if you want me to.”

  She shook her head, trying to remain annoyed, but failing. Now she was just sad.

  “You want to be in control.” He nodded. “I get that.”

  “No.” She finally looked at him. “I don’t want the people I care about getting hurt… but I also don’t want to compromise my freedom. But I don’t… I guess, I don’t have much of a choice.”

  She sighed, defeated, and looked around her room. The place she once thought to be a safe haven, turned out to be a death sentence for everyone else.

  “I’m so fucking stupid. I shouldn’t have left.” She put her face in her hands. “This really is all fault. I wanted to be on my own so damn bad, I got these people hurt.”

  He was silent next to her but, after a moment, placed a hand on her back, stroking her reassuringly.

  “You are a smart girl, tesoruccia. You wouldn’t have moved out if you’d known the possibilities. It was very brave of you to try to branch out on your own.” She looked up at him as his hand stopped its gentle stroke to rest on the small of her back. “But you know this is the right move.”

  She nodded with the slightest shrug.

  “Just until we can figure out what’s going on.” He continued.

  “And how long is that going to take?” It wasn’t a question she knew could be answered, and when he didn’t, she stood to remove his hand. “Exactly. Back to my dollhouse.”

  Her tone wasn’t angry, more like settling into borderline numbness again.

  She went to her closet and grabbed her duffle to start packing some of her clothes. It wasn’t like she needed to bring everything. She still had clothes at–

  Home.

  He stayed until she was done packing. Lowell returned in nearly ten minutes, like he said he would, but had definitely calmed some.

  “I’m scared for you.” He tried to explain to her on the way down the elevator.

  She hadn’t spoken to him when he’d entered the apartment but followed him out when he said it was time to leave. He’d told her after they spoke with their parents they’d figure out how to come back for the rest of her stuff, but she knew there really wasn’t a need.

  She had tried to put her duffle on her shoulder but Dante had taken it from her, earning a curious glance by both her and her brother.

  “That’s why I yelled,” Lowell admitted to her while he leaned against the handrail. “I mean, you did yell at me first, but I get it. I’m sorry.”

  She eyed him through the elevator’s reflection and debated if she wanted to answer, but Dante discretely nudged her with her bag. His insistence caused her to roll her eyes with her own apology.

  “Great, one big happy family again,” Dante smirked. “You worried me there for a minute. Thought you had switched places with the idiot twin.”

  They didn’t comment on the insult. Eva knew it wouldn’t change Dante’s opinion, and Lowell probably was wondering why Dante was so cozy with them all.

  Lowell didn’t seem to hate Dante as Monroe did, but Eva could tell her brother was wary of both Dante’s closeness and joking manner.

  Both Lowell and Dante had parked on the street, their cars on the near opposite side of each other. When Dante nearly walked her bag to his car across the street, she stopped him, taking the strap.

  He looked down at her, perplexed.

  “He’s taking me home.” She told him simply, face neutral. He knew the plan had changed, and they were heading to her parent’s place, so his confusion confused her.

  “Yes. And I’m driving.” He looked between her and her brother, his hold never wavering from the bag.

  “No.” She looked back at Lowell, who stood on the curb by his driver’s door. His arms were crossed and his head tilted slightly as he observed their exchange. “You have a job to do. It’s easier this way.”

  Did she want to get in the car with him so they could make out more? Hell yes. But she was afraid of where that would lead.

  She looked at him pointedly, hoping he could read her thoughts and expression. She was doing this for him. They were being too obvious. Too reckless.

  He narrowed his eyes down at her. “My is to protect you.”

  She felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips, remembering something he’d said just days before. “Not during the day. That’s my family’s job.”

  She tugged on the bag again, and this time, he released it easily. It hadn’t been heavy but it was nice of him to carry it regardless. The complete 180 of his chivalry threw her.

  One day, he was letting her almost catch pneumonia, and the next, he was this overprotective pitbull. She wasn’t sure if she liked it. No, that was a lie. She loved the attention he was giving her, but not if it was changing him.

  After opening her door for her, she watched as he watched them drive away and Lowell finally spoke.

  “I’m not sure what’s going on? Between you two, I mean.” His tone wasn’t harsh, more pragmatic. “Because that was not Dante. Whatever it is… end it. Please.”

  She didn’t respond, just watched the cars pass as they made their way to their family’s home on the edge of Twin Peaks.

  It wasn’t long before Lowell was whipping his car up the winding driveway and as the house came into view, the anxiety that had been building in the pit of her stomach increased.

  There wasn’t anything wrong with the place. It was modern enough, well, as modern as an early nineties home could be. It was perched on its quiet hill with a spacious yard that looked recently mowed. Thick trees surrounded most of the property creating a sense of privacy and exclusivity from the bustling city surroundings.

  The view of downtown’s vibrant skyline was visible from the front, even though most days it was too misty to see. On sunny days she’d often grab one of the lawn chairs and lay out, soaking up the sun or reading a book when she’d be left with her brothers.

  Lowell escorted her inside, and the familiar smells of her childhood flooded her senses. Sandalwood incense and fresh laundry detergent mixed with the lavender cleaner used around the house.

  Her parents hadn’t changed much since moving them all in after the fire. Over the years, they’d finally pulled the carpet and laid a warm-toned hardwood or swapped out some of the dated appliances, but for the most part, it was the same house she’d grown up in. Right down to the furniture.

  Adjusting her bag on her shoulder, she nearly headed upstairs to her room but Lowell took her arm to stop her.

  “Hey, wait, I want to show you something.” He nodded down the hall.

  “In the basement?” she asked skeptically.

  “Just come on.” He chuckled. “It’s not just our basement.”

  She dropped her bag by the stairs and followed him while he explained.

  “We get housing from The Society. Most places are equipped with bunkers.”

  “I’ve never seen–”

  “Yeah, I know.” He stopped at the large family portrait across from the basement door. “You’ve also never seen a Serpaxos, doesn’t mean they don’t exist.”

  When he pulled gently at the edge and it swung from the wall instead of crashing down, she mouthed a shocked profanity.

  Behind the five-foot photo was a square door. He pushed on its top right corner and it cracked open.

  “Watch your step.” He motioned towards the step down from the wall. Flipping a light switch, the stairs illuminated and she followed him down to a room she hadn’t known was there.

  The room looked nothing like their other basement, which was more of a furnished game room and catch-all. This was like a tiny apartment under their house, equipped with a tiny kitchen and wood stove, shelves lined with spices and non-perishables, a few cots, and two small but decent-sized couches.

  The walls were made of some type of metal, which wasn’t covered with decorative panels, but she didn’t doubt the metal ran all the way down.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Her breath caught as she whispered the question. “What were they preparing for World War Three?”

  “I mean, yeah.” He shrugged. “The house is protected, there are sigils everywhere. But, you need to know this is here in case, well, if shit hits the fan, this is where you go.”

  She nodded scanning the room, honing in on the little library on the walls. Some of the books had the same symbols, or glyphs maybe, as the bottles Monroe had shown her. She wanted to stay and look around more but he told her they’d show her everything later.

  Later. Whenever that was.

  “Unpack. Grab something to eat.” He escorted her back to the first floor. “I know you’ve got to be starving. I can’t believe how empty your fridge was.”

  He’d mumbled the last part which made her roll her eyes. They obviously didn’t think she’d been able to care for herself.

  And why would they? She had everything she’d ever needed here. Why would she want to leave?

  She opened the door to her room that hadn’t changed since she was fifteen, and went to place her bag on the canopy bed.

  As she sat, she took in everything again, though she didn’t need to. This was her life for the past twenty-two damn years.

  The walls covered in boy band posters. The massive bookshelf by her reading corner with a bean bag chair close to the window. In front of the window was a small desk that still had her doodles carved into it. Sometimes on clear days, she could just make out the Golden Gate Bridge across the horizon when she’d sit there.

  Stuffed animals filled the shelves just below the ceiling and lined all four walls; they’d been gifts from her father every Valentine’s Day, and she never could bring herself to trash them. There were maps, adult coloring books, Arts and crafts.

  She’d taken most of her clothes, but there were still outfits there in her closet.

  The perfect time capsule. Everything her parents thought she’d ever need.

  Except socialization.

  “Back to my box,” she mumbled.

  As Dante’s words replayed in her mind, she decided she was no longer hungry.

  Was she going to mope about this all day?

  It had been a joke, something to get her to smile, but she was finding that hard.

  With a sigh, she grabbed her blanket from her bed and headed to the one place that would normally keep her mind off things.