Max's Faith & Fury [COMPLETE]

Chapter 8

Max was slowly regaining her strength. She would barely pick at her food when it was placed in front of her. Both Nicky and Jane stared with concern. The old women seemed to always talk to each other about her, in front of her. There was never a dull moment. Their chatter didn't help with her appetite though; not that she ever had one.

"She needs sunlight." Nicky suggested.

"Mia will be here soon to check on her." Jane reminded, and they went on and on, and Max couldn't care less. She hadn't seen the sun in days though, and the thought piqued her interest. She glanced over her shoulder at the front door. What was on the other side of it?

"I want to go outside." She said, and the women stopped and stared. "What?" Max scowled with confusion.

"She talked! Hallelujah!" Nicky cheered loudly with her arms up in the air.

Her happiness made Max want to take back her words and never say anything again. She didn't know why. It was a stupid thing.

"You take her out back to the fountain," Jane suggested. "I'll bring Mia back when she gets here."

Nicky was already waddling her way toward Max and telling her if she wasn't going to eat her food anyways, might as well get some sunshine. She helped Max stand; the woman wasn't much taller than Max herself. She was a support to her, not that Max needed it, but she didn't argue with the woman coddling her.

The back door was through the kitchen near a garage entrance. This surely was a home. She'd already figured that out though. As far as she could tell, no one seemed to live with these women. But it wasn't like Max was ever out of her room when people were there making noise. She purposely avoided it.

Nicky opened the back door, and the warm breeze brushed them out of the kitchen, embracing Max and pulling her forward. She was walking faster than Nicky now and inhaled the clean air. The smell of roses and the nearby flower garden wafted to her nose, helping her relax. Her senses were slowly awakening, appreciating the peacefulness of the garden surrounding a trickling fountain of cherubs pouring water from jugs. Cobblestone laid on the ground in place of cement, making the patio and path through the garden beautiful.

What is this place? Max let herself be enveloped by the rattling leaves on nearby trees, and the sweet smell of the flowers carried up in the warm breeze. Birds tweeted near the fountain and Max watched a leaf get carried away with the wind. It danced high in the sky, and she turned to see a mountain behind the house.

She was on the west side of the valley. The mountains themselves had dryer foliage and rocks covering their surface. The cliff faces were not as majestic as those of the Wasatch mountains across the valley, but there was still something beautifully calm about this place. She slowly spun back around until she was facing Nicky again.

The woman was smiling from ear to ear. She looked like she could burst into tears. Happy tears. She giggled at the sight of her, as if sharing some kind of joy that Max had found in this place. Max only sighed before breathing in clean, clear air and filling her lungs. Her ribs didn't try suffocating her this time.

"Mia's here." Jane was halfway out the backdoor. Her gaze left Nicky and found Max. Something in those brilliant blue eyes told her don't you dare try anything before she said, "let's leave them alone. Maybe she'll talk if it's just Mia." She glanced back at Max.

There wasn't anything threatening about Jane, but Max liked the woman's fierceness. Not to mention it would be foolish for those women to trust her, even if Max didn't do anything to them. If her lips remembered how to smile, she might have smiled a little at her. Their eyes met, and Max let her eyes smile for her before Jane and Nicky went inside, and a tall, beautiful woman with tanned skin and dark hair came outside.