Crushed (9 page)

"So." She began softly, taking a deep breath. "Did I pass?"

The tense silence lingered a moment more. Then, without warning, Robert smiled.

"Yeah, you passed."

Sophie felt all the anger in her chest begin to disappear.

"You're an asshole." Sophie commented, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, I know that."

"What you did was cruel and uncalled for." She continued.

"I accept that."

Sophie nodded, knowing this was as much as she was going to get.

Throwing her parents' murderer at her like this was one of the worst tests he could've given. However, it was effective. In the moments leading up to facing Max, Sophie had had to come to terms with her desire to work for Cleo. Had her determination been any weaker she wouldn't have been able to do it. Robert's challenge had been cruel, but it had also given her a strength she didn't know she had.

"No more tests." Sophie's voice was level. "This one should've proved without a doubt that I'm not going to back out."

Robert considered it for a moment, then nodded his head. "Fine."

"So when does my training start?" She asked, feeling like he was about to leave her alone. She still wasn't sure where they stood with one another.

"Follow me." He turned and headed out the front door.

Sophie had to jog to keep up with his brisk pace, and her frustration was evident.

"Slow down!" She tried to order, but he ignored her command without flinching.

Robert walked across the lawn until he came to a stop under the large oak tree that was positioned in the center of the yard. An old tire swing hung from one of the massive branches, and he carefully climbed on top.

"I didn't like the atmosphere in the house." He explained, grinning.

Sophie hadn't seen him smile so much since she'd come to live here.

"You like messing with me don't you?" She asked, leaning against the tree, glaring up at him.

"I need someone to mess with. The kids take everything too seriously." Robert paused for a long moment. "You've seen a side of me over the last few days that I don't enjoy showing people."

"What would that side be? Your real self?"

"Not even close." Robert's grin turned mischievous. "No, that's something no one will ever see."

Sophie rolled her eyes, wondering if he enjoyed being dramatic. "Why is that?"

"Does anyone ever know who they really are at the core? For someone like myself, who takes on various roles, "True self" is just an illusion." He shrugged his shoulders as if brushing off his concerns. "If you're good at this job, one day you'll know what I mean."

A part of Sophie already understood him. Only a few minutes ago they'd been fighting, though now it was like they were almost friends. Their roles had switched automatically, and she knew enough to realize it was because of Robert. He could switch from serious to playful in a matter of seconds, as well as change the atmosphere around him.

He'd even been right about the tense atmosphere of the house. Now that they were outside the tension had vanished, having been replaced by an unexplainably calmer feeling.

"So I guess the part about not trusting you is still valid?" She asked, glancing away from him at their house.

"Only if you value yourself. I mean if you would like to get disappointed, then certainly, trust away."

"Just when I thought we could be friends." Sophie sighed, and pushed away from the tree. "Call me when you're going to train me."

"Leaving so soon?" Robert asked, with mock disappointment.

Sophie turned and was momentarily struck by the handsome features of his face. His curly blond hair had blown into his eyes, but for a second his smile seemed genuine.

"I have more to tell you." He called out to her.

"You can tell me later." Sophie replied. "I think you have some damage control to do."

Robert's smile turned into a frown. "What kind of damage control?"

"What Rylan said got to you, didn't it?"

Robert didn't have a reply to her question.

"You might be good at pretending, but there are some things you cannot hide. For example, the way you keep scanning the neighborhood to see if Rylan's around." Sophie shrugged, trying to hide her amused smile. "This is a just an observation, but I think he really did get to you. For all the boundaries you put up, they are your family in the end. You need to fix it before it gets worse. Don't just use me as a distraction."

Sophie turned and waved behind her as she walked towards the house. When she reached the front door, she glanced around and realized that Robert was gone.

A small smile crept unto her face.

Meeting Max had been difficult, and there was a part of her that wasn't over Robert's cruelty. However, that part of herself was growing smaller by the minute.

It didn't matter that he'd tried to hurt her, because she'd overcome it, just like she would overcome all obstacles in the future.

Robert was going to be just as big of a challenge as the rest of this family, but she would push through. More than just needing to be here, Sophie was beginning to want to be here. She'd proved that she deserved this job, and now all that was left was learning the ropes.

Today was a small victory, but that didn't make it any less sweet.

*  *  *

"So, what you're saying is that you like Rylan?" Sophie concluded with a grin.

"What?" Gwyn jumped to her feet, a blush covering her face. "N...no way!" She stuttered in embarrassment.

"I understand." Sophie motioned for her to sit down again. "I've been there."

Gwyn sat down nervously, looking all the more flustered.

A few hours after Max had left, Gwyn had softly knocked on Sophie's door. After spending the morning playing with Teddy, she'd had time to cool off and decide that she wanted to apologize to Sophie.

What was supposed to end at "I'm sorry," had eventually grown into a full-blown rant about the stupidity of Robert and Rylan. However, as Gwyn's speech progressed, it gradually became more about Rylan.

Sophie had listened patiently, understanding immediately why Gwyn was so hurt. On one hand she had trusted Robert, but she had never expected Rylan, who she obviously idolized, to stoop so low.

"You know, it wasn't his fault." Sophie tried to speak up for Rylan, who had seemed extremely hurt that Gwyn had yelled at him. "Robert was the one who decided to force me to meet Max. Rylan was just as much of a victim as me."

"How can you forgive them so easily?" Gwyn asked, her hands shaking.

"Rylan seemed genuinely conflicted, and Robert...well I'm not sure if I've forgiven him yet or not." Sophie wondered how this conversation had turned into her comforting Gwyn. She'd never been good at getting close to others, but speaking to Gwyn was becoming easier.

"Still..." Gwyn narrowed her eyes.

"I think you should forgive them. If not Robert, then at least Rylan. I was very grateful to have both of you side with me."

"It wasn't so much defending you, as what is right and wrong. What they did was very wrong."

"I understand." Sophie placed a hand on Gwyn's shoulder. "Thanks all the same."

For the first time Gwyn smiled at Sophie, brushing her black curls out of her eyes shyly.

"What should I do about Rylan?" Gwyn began slowly.

"Saying you forgive him would be a good start." Sophie offered.

"No, not about that! About liking...him." Gwyn tried to keep her voice under control.

An amused grin spread across Sophie's face. "You should tell him, obviously!"

Gwyn grabbed her arm, and clenched tightly. "No, absolutely not. He'll never talk to me again. I'm too young for him too. I just turned fourteen."

"Age is just a number." Sophie was bad at giving advice, but she was eager to try for Gwyn. After all, what was the point of being older if you couldn't impart any kind of wisdom.

"Not to him. He thinks of me as a little sister." Gwyn scowled and crossed her arms. "We're not even siblings."

Seeing the normally serious girl so candid made Sophie laugh for the first time in a long while.

"I'm sure he doesn't think of you as a sister. He's a sixteen year old boy, after all."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Gwyn asked, looking dejected.

"You'd be surprised." Sophie muttered.

Just as she spoke, they were interrupted by someone opening the door.

"R..Rylan!" Gwyn nearly shouted, turning red again. "How long have you been there?"

"Just now." Rylan looked surprised at the question.

Typical boy. Sophie thought, hiding her grin.

"Can I talk to you?" He asked Gwyn carefully, looking desperate.

When she didn't reply, Sophie nudged her forward.

"Sure." She answered, beginning to return to normal.

As Gwyn walked out of the room, Sophie stopped Rylan before he could follow.

"Are you blushing?" She asked jokingly, watching him carefully.

"No!" Rylan covered up his face with his hands, as if he could brush away the red color. "Why?"

"Never mind. I was just testing a theory of mine."

Sophie watched him leave with a wide grin.

It was amusing to see two kids so obviously in love pretend that they weren't.

"Hey, what was that about?" Robert stuck his head in the door, motioning to where Gwyn and Rylan had just been standing.

"You wouldn't know." Sophie replied, sighing. Typical male. She thought, feeling the urge to laugh. "So, I guess you solved everything?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Robert answered with a serious frown. "Anyway, are you free tonight."

"Sure." Sophie felt wariness creep into her chest.

"After such an interesting morning I was wondering if you would like to join me on a mission this evening."

"A mission?"

"I have a job to do, and you wanted to be trained. The best lessons are learned through experience." Again there was a flicker of challenge in his eyes. "Unless you don't think you're ready."

Sophie scowled, hating the cocky look on his face. "I know I'm not ready, but if you're willing to have me, I'll come."

"Great." He answered, looking even more amused.

"Great." She repeated, closing her door in his face.

"Be ready at five." He called out, laughing.

Sophie stuck out her tongue at the door, before she caught was she was doing.

Shaking off her embarrassment, she turned towards the pile of new "boy" clothes that Cleo had delivered.

As she sorted through the pile she couldn't help but wonder how old Robert was.

*  *  *

"It's nice that you don't hate me anymore." Sophie mused as she stared out of the window of Robert's car.

"Who said I hated you?" He asked in surprise.

They'd been driving for only ten minutes, but Sophie felt the need to break the tense silence. Now that Robert was willing to speak to her, she wanted to keep examining him for as long as she could. His personality was volatile, and she had no way of knowing when he'd push her away again.

"I inferred it from the way you treated me." She answered coldly.

"Oh, well I didn't hate you. I just think you're an idiot."