Underground Secrets (The Underground #1) (33 page)

We walk out through the front door and I grab her hand. She flinches a little, but then relaxes. “Sorry, I’m not used to holding hands.”

“Don’t be sorry.” That makes me sad for her. He really did do a number on her, didn’t he?

She squeezes my hand tightly, letting me know she’s coming around.

We walk to the side of my house, where my shed is, I open it up and we walk in. To the left of my shed is my snowmobiles and to the right, my ATV’s. I have four of them. I don’t know why I have so many, but it’s kind of handy having them now that I have someone other than Jesse to possibly ride with.

I pull off the covers off the ATV’s, “Pick whatever one you want.”

Her eyes light up with excitement. “Really?” she asks, already heading towards the one I figured she would pick. One thing I have noticed is she likes black and the one she’s eyeing is almost completely black, with a minimal of green striping. It’s also the fastest and the one I usually ride.

She brings one leg over and straddles it looking so damn hot doing so. “This one,” she tells me in that voice she uses when she’s one-hundred percent certain of something.

“Alright.” I move to one of the others and get on.

We ride for a good thirty minutes, slowly riding up the mountain. I’m leading, so she stays behind me as we make our way over rocks and through the Aspen trees to get to where I want to take her. When we finally reach our destination, I get off and walk towards her.

“Wow.” she whispers as she places her helmet on her lap. “This is an absolutely breathing taking view, Wes.”

It is a spectacular view. We are at the highest point of this mountain and have reached a flat spot to where the trees are sparse and we can see everything perfectly from here. In the distance is St. Mary’s Glacier. No city buildings, no cars, smog, people, or distractions. Just us and nature at its best. Down below, you can see small creeks that flow throughout the mountains, a waterfall, and one large spring to the left nestled between two big ranges, but this view doesn’t compare to the one I woke to this this morning.

Not taking my eyes off her, I reply not talking about the same view she is, “I know.”

Her cheeks redden and she gives me a playful look.

I take her hand and help her off while grabbing the bag I had hooked to her ATV. I walk us towards my ATV and grab the insulated backpack I brought with on mine. We move towards the ledge of the flat and I start unpacking the things I had brought.

“Wow, you are going all out aren’t you?”

She bends down to her knees and helps me unload the items. I lay out a thick blanket on the ground and I sit patting my hand at the vacant spot between my legs for her to sit. She comes down and rests between my legs and I wrap my arms around her.

We sit in silence for a while before she speaks, “This is amazing, Wes. Thanks for bringing me up here. Do you come to this spot often?”

“Yeah, when I have a lot on my mind and want help to clear it.”

“Well, this seems like the perfect spot. I could definitely use a spot like this to help clear my head.”

“You can come up here anytime you want.”

“But it’s your spot, I don’t want to take that from you.”

“I brought you up here because I want to share it with you, Marlie. I want to share everything with you.”

I go to look down at her and that’s when I see it. I remove my arms from her to get a better look. “What. The. Fuck. Is. That?” I grab out her arm and look at it even further. There are goddamn fingerprints bruised on her fucking arm.

She doesn’t say anything as she looks at exactly what I am looking at. She just sighs and leans her back onto my chest.

“You going to say anything or do you want me to assume some shit and go on a killing spree? Cuz’ let me tell ya’, I’m fucking itching to tear someone, and anyone who gets in my way, apart limb by limb.”

She still doesn’t move, but speaks in a quiet and calm tone, “It was Carter. He did that to me yesterday when we were alone.”

It’s taking everything in me not to hop on the ATV and go find him right now and blow him the fuck up. “How?” It’s all I can manage right now.

“It doesn’t matter. It happened and there is nothing to be done about it now. I am here and safe with you.”

“To hell it doesn’t matter, Marlie. Why didn’t you tell me about it yesterday when I asked if he hurt you?”

She leans forward now and turns to look at me. “Because the look in your eyes when you were near him scared the hell out of me. If I had told you about it then, you would have hunted him down right then and there.”

“Damn right.”

She doesn’t saying else. She just nods her head, huffs and turns back into me.

My blood is boiling right now and I need to figure out how the hell to calm down. I take a couple of deep breaths and slowly let it go. It’s hard as shit, but I manage. There will be a time and place where I will kill Carter Murdock for even thinking about Marlie. That day will come soon. Maybe even tomorrow.

Silence meets us both again before she speaks, “What are we?”

I’ve been waiting to talk about this, the famous talk most adults have and I have no doubt what we are. “You’re mine and I’m yours.” I tell her confidently.

“So, if we go out and I introduce you to people, I would say that you’re my…”

“Boyfriend,” I finish for her. “Or sex god.”

She chuckles to that and then grows quiet again before she leans forward and turns around so she’s facing me. “Why Wes? Why would you want that? Why would you even want to be with someone as messed up as me? I ask myself this all time and I just don’t get it. I know you’ve said it’s because you have feelings for me, but that can’t possibly be enough for you to stick around. I know I am not the easiest person to be around, especially now. I am all over the place with my thoughts and feelings here lately, and I can’t seem to process half of them. I’m a disaster. A nightmare all wrapped up into one vile bundle of misery.”

This is not what I wanted to talk about. I wanted to help get her mind off of everything. Not sit here and discuss it. “Because Marlie, it’s way more than just my feelings for you, that keeps me around. You and I are a lot more alike than I ever could have imagined and it finally feels like I have found someone who I can be with and not have to hide my true self. I am dark, I do dark things, I feel dark things and somehow you seem to be excepting them. Whether you know this or think it’s possible, you bring light to my darkness and I have never experienced that before. Don’t you think I ever wonder why you stick around? Especially after I told you what I have done? What I do?”

She looks away and whispers, “Because I have darkness too.”

I grab her face and bring it towards mine, pressing our foreheads together. “You and I were made for each other. I can feel it in every part of my being. I told you my darkest sins and you stayed. You stayed, Marlie. And now, I’m never letting you go.”

“I don’t think I would ever want to go.”

I brush the pad of my thumb across her bottom lip and she closes her eyes. Slowly, I lean in and kiss her lips. She parts her mouth to let my tongue in, but I don’t want to add my tongue, no matter how much I want to taste the velvetiness of the inside of her sweet tasting mouth. I want this kiss to be different. I want her to feel how much I care for her, how much she means to me. I feel like I am on the verge of loving this woman and it scares the hell out of me. I don’t think love is something I have ever truly experienced. The three words that most people use so carelessly are on the tip of my tongue, but I can’t bring myself to say them.

I suck and nibble on her bottom lip before pulling back. I stop our kiss because I feel wetness damp my cheek. I peal back from our slow kiss and I look at her. Her eyes are still closed, but they’re streaming with tears falling to my lap.

“Hey, what is it Marlie? What’s wrong?” I wrap my arms around her once more and hold her tight, letting her know she can tell me.

“This-”, she gestures her hand between her and me, “You and I, isn’t going to last.”

My body goes stiff, “What do you mean it isn’t going to last? Of course it will, I’ll make damn sure of it.”

“Because, he’ll kill me.”

“What the hell, Marlie?”

“It’s true.”

She looks down at that ground pulling at her fingers. I stand up and start to pace. “I don’t get it, I will protect you. What do I need to do show you that, to make you believe me?”

She lifts her face so she is no longer looking at the ground, but up at me, “I got the invite for the race. Carter left it on the table the day he came over. I opened it this morning in the bathroom.” She reaches into her hoodie pocket and removes a small card. I hold out my hand and she places it into my palm. I flip it over and read it.

July 31
^st

Where the mountains separate, but only to make a path.

When the sun sets and night comes out to play.

“Do you know what it means?” because I sure as hell don’t. I get that the invite is meant for those privy to the knowledge of their world, in case it falls into the wrong hands, but I have no idea what it means.

“Yes.” she laughs, a bitter laugh. “He’s taunting me.”

“How so?”

“Because, that place, where the mountains separate, but only to make a path, is where Carter taught me how to race.” She laughs some more. I have never known her to laugh with such hate. It sends chills down my spine to hear her do so. “It’s about five hours southwest from here. He’s doing it to taunt me. I know how he thinks. He thinks by doing it at that place, the place we spent so much free time at, he’s going to psych me out. Make me feel the memories that I don’t want to feel, but it’s not going to work, because the only memory I feel, is the one that left scars.”

I look at the card again, July 31
^st
. That’s less than three weeks away.

“I’m going, Wes. I have to. I’m dead either way, I know it. If I don’t go, then he’ll come after me and everyone else that I care for. So I am going to go. That’s the deal.”

“You don’t know that for sure, Marlie.”

“Yes. I do. That was the deal that I had made. The only reason I am still alive today, is because Olin left my death in the hands of Carter. Carter isn’t going to just let me walk away. If I wasn’t positive before, I am now after he showed up. He’s more of a monster than he ever was before.”

I can’t lose her, not after I just got her. She’s mine. She’s finally mine. “I will protect you, Marlie, and everyone else he tries to hurt.”

“How, Wes? You can’t be with me twenty-four seven. I can’t run and hide and neither can Gemma, my brother, or anyone else that means something to me. Even if you think so, it won’t be possible. Carter and Olin have ways, they always do.”

“Then I’ll go after them myself and make sure they never hurt you or anyone else ever again.”

She sighs and puts her face into her hands. “You can’t do that.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“Because I can’t have you killing them on my behalf. It’s not right. It will affect us, whatever us is.”

“I told you, you are mine and nothing will change that and it won’t affect us, Marlie.”

“It will. You have to promise me you won’t take this into your own hands. Promise me.” she’s pleading to me and I hate that she’s doing that, but I’m desperate to make her see there is another way. I just need the time to figure it out. Three weeks in fact.

I come down to my knees and face her. “I will only promise to not to go after them as long as you promise not to go.” She starts to speak, but I stop her, “It’s in three weeks, give me that much time to figure something out, to save you.”

“You’re not going to let it go until I agree will you?”

“Not agree Marlie. Promise.”

She looks back down to the ground and considers what I have asked. She looks back up at me with the saddest eyes I ever seen her wear, “Fine. I promise, but if we don’t have a solution, then I have to break my promise. It’s the only way. I know them. I know how they think. I know what they are capable of and trust me when I say this, they won’t stop until they’ve hurt everyone.”

“Then I’ll make damn sure that we find a solution.” I have never been more determined in my life to do something like I am now. Not even like I was with my father. Even if it means breaking my promise to her. She may think I am doing it for her, but I am not. Well, not just for her. Killing monsters that the world fears is what I do. So if I have to break my promise to her, then I will. I will be helping others and doing them a favor by ridding the world from Olin and Carter Murdock and I will do it with pleasure.

TWENTY-FIVE

Marlie

I
AM PREPARING MYSELF FOR WORK
and it sucks, for many reasons. For one, I don’t want to leave Wes. After our talk yesterday, my feelings for him have grown to where I almost can’t contain them. He says he’s mine and for the first time in a long time, it makes me happy to be someone’s girlfriend. I want to stay here with him and bask in our new relationship.

Another reason I don’t want to leave is because I am tired. So, so, tired. Not only did I not get much sleep because Wes and I couldn’t keep our hands off each other until almost three a.m., after sleep finally overpowered our desire to keep going, but I had to get up extra early to get ready for work. I am not used to that. I am not used to having to drive to work, and the morning commute on a Monday. That means it’s most likely going to take longer than usual to get there. People, including myself, are always slow moving on a Monday.

The last reason is, I am afraid. After the other day, I don’t know what to expect. Right now I am okay, minus feeling slightly sick to my stomach. I am nervous and I’m paranoid just thinking about it all. Wes says he’s going to have at least three of his men on us at all times, but they are just regular security guards, right? I am sure if anything were to happen, they wouldn’t know what to do, but Wes assures me they are all equipped to handle such situations. Since he runs the company that employs men who protect mayors, senators, athletes and many more, I should have a little more faith. But still, I can’t help but worry.