Hidebound

Chapter SixtySix

The drive home is silent. Hex keeps his hand on my thigh as he drives, squeezing it every now and then, using it as a stress ball.

I eyes occasionally flick over to the speedometer, watching it climb as Hex drives five, ten, fifteen over the speed limit. My hand grips the door handle as he turns a corner too fast and my other hand digs my nails into his hand holding my thigh.

"Hex" I whisper over the sound of the engine. He understands because the next second I'm watching the speedometer go from fifteen over to only five.

I had tried to be subtle as I check the side mirror for any cars behind us every now and then but I don't see anything. Hex seems to have the same idea as I catch him multiple times looking in the review mirror and the way he had bristled when there was a car behind us but they turned off the road miles back.

The lights from our apartment complex come into view and I breathe a sigh of relief, happy to finally be in a safe space.

Hex pulls into our carpark far too quickly but luckily there's no one around.

"Wait" he murmurs when he sees me reach for the car door but I'm not taking second chances and open it enough so that if he tries to lock me in again it won't work

I watch him closely as he gets out and walks around the car; he's still on edge and searches the carpark for any sign of Ace. His eyes hyper-focusing on everything that moves.

He reaches my door and pulls it open, scowling at me when he finds I had already opened it myself.

I say nothing but give him a look that shows exactly how I feel about being locked in the car.

He stands close to me as we walk, his chest bumping into my back multiple times before we stop at the front door. His presence is suffocating and the emotions from tonight have drained me, I want to go to bed.

He practically pushes me through the door and locks it behind us and only then is he not right on top of me and I can breathe.

Even though we're now in the safety of our apartment, he's still on edge.

"Stay here" he mutters as he pulls his arm from around my waist.

Even though I'm sure Ace isn't hiding somewhere in the apartment, if it helps Hex relax by checking under beds and in closets then I'll let him do it.

He disappears down the hallway and in the direction of our bedroom. I can hear him looking around as he moves objects and opens the closet doors. He checks mums old room too before he's happy and comes back to the lounge room.

Finally the aftermath of tonight hits us like a wall of bricks. I sink into the couch and watch as Hex stands in the doorway of the lounge room. His hands grab at the beam on the ceiling above him and he looks over my head and out the window.

He's stressed and as much as he tries to hide it I can see the panic showing on his face.

I sigh and stand on shaky legs as I make my way over to the window and grab the curtains, pulling them closed roughly and breaking the gaze Hex has on the outside world.

"What are we going to do?" I whisper and take a seat on the couch again. Even though the windows had been closed, he still won't look at me.

He shakes his head "don't worry, I've got it under control" he states as he drops his arms from the ceiling and crosses them over his chest.

Under control? The last thing tonight was is controlled.

"Hex-."

"Poppy" he finally looks at me, his voice serious. "Don't worry about it" I sigh and rub my eyes.

"Okay" I breathe "okay."

*

Hex had turned all night. I must have done a good job at pretending to be asleep because he hadn't once spoken a word. But he had failed to realise that his emotions were flooding me and keeping me awake too. The worry was the worst. What's he worried about? Worried about Ace? Worried about his mother? Worried about me?

Finally at 4am he rolled out of bed. He had done it twice more earlier but this time was different. The other two times it had been a quick walk around the house before coming back to bed. This time he was gone for longer.

My heart stops in my chest when I hear the front door open and click closed. I untangle my legs in the blanket and kick it off before grabbing it and wrapping it around me messily as I jog down the hallway.

He's not in the kitchen or the lounge room.

"Hex?" I call out, my voice cracking from the early morning hours.

He doesn't answer and the panic grips my chest, my first thought being that he had gone to track down Ace Pollar.

But I see a shadow move behind the curtain, lit up by the street light outside. His familiar silhouette makes him easily distinguishable to my tired eyes.

The orange glow of a cigarette catches my attention as he brings it to and from his mouth.

My heart sinks a little bit. He hadn't had a cigarette in a while and I had hoped that he had dropped the habit completely. I knew he kept a pack in the kitchen drawer because I see it every time I open it and the amount of times I had the urge to throw them away was ridiculous but I thought it would be best if Hex did it himself. Maybe I should have just thrown them away now.

That's not the only thing that worries me though. Hex only smokes when he's under significant stress. Combined with the fact that he couldn't sleep makes me think more is going on than I'm aware of.

I debate calling him inside. I can't help but worry that he's in danger being outside instead of in the safety of our home.

I tug the curtain back, revealing him and pull the blanket tighter around me, its cold in here and I look over at the front door, seeing it cracked open.

Hex's shirtless back faces me as he leans on the rail. I can only see the side of his face from here and it seems blank, no emotion visible as he surveys the area.

Smoke trails from his mouth as he blows it into the cold air. Even though I would prefer he stop smoking all together, I can't help my heart racing and my legs becoming tingly at the sight of him smoking. The days of Hellbound flash to the forefront of my mind.

I'm pulled from my thoughts as a car pulls into the carpark.

Hex's back tenses and he stands a little straighter. I want to knock on the window and wave him inside but my hands don't move.

The car parks and then shuts off, the person sits inside for a moment, their windows too blacked out to see who it is.

I hold my breath as the door opens and a man steps out. I can't see his face from here but Hex relaxes and takes up his previous position of leaning on the rail. The male walks across the apartment complex and unlocks the door of an apartment before disappearing inside.

My breath fogs up the window as I breathe out again. I bring my hand up and wipe it away.

The coldness of the glass chills my skin and I knock on the window softly, not wanting to startle Hex.

He turns his head and I wonder if he had known I had been there this entire time because he doesn't look surprised.

I wave my hand towards myself to call him in. He gives the area one last look and takes one final puff before standing and dropping the cigarette, squishing it with his shoe and walking towards the front door.