Broken [In Revision 2023]

Chapter 17 - The Threat

Maddy cried all the way to the house. Tears robbing her of vision as she ran blindly to the back door. Her hand fumbled for the doorknob, but her legs refused to enter. She didn't want to do this, to admit defeat, to face the impossible task of persuading her uncle to leave.

There was no leverage left, her aunt and grandmother had stolen it away, all that was left was the ranch and Dezi. She cursed the aged pony under her breath, Dezi would never leave, that had already been proved true. Relocating Moonie wouldn't be an issue, he was happy to move, and her grandma had already invited him to stay so she didn't have to deal with Jake's frequent benders.

It sounded simple, just pick it all up and leave, but the more she thought about it the harder it all seemed. Her studies were almost over, she was weeks away from completion, it would be stupid for her to walk away from it now. Her mother had already gotten over excited and brought an outfit for Maddy's graduation.

Thinking of her mother was another stab in the gut, could she leave her behind? Or would she need to run away too?

"Was he there?" Jake had defied her orders and dragged the coat rack drip stand with him into the kitchen.

"Who?" said Maddy, completely lost in her own thoughts.

"Sunny." Jake's vision blurred at the edges. He stumbled a little, Maddy forced him to take a seat at the table.

"Oh, yeah he's fine, the stranger must have put him inside for safety." Maddy's anger had dissipated, now an overwhelming sense of tiredness clouded her head. She wanted to tell her uncle the truth, perhaps it would be enough to persuade him to leave, but Jake's pale and clammy look worried her too much to chance it.

"He's okay?" Jake's body shuddered, the fading adrenalin leaving him cold.

"Not even a scratch." Maddy tried to push the image of Caleb's pale skin from her thoughts, but she wasn't quick enough to stop her cheeks from warming.

"So what happens now?" Jake gestured to his makeshift drip stand and looked longingly out of the window at his horses.

"They're going to come back," Maddy said matter-of-factly, trying to keep attention away from the fact his horse wasn't out in the field with the others. She didn't want to have to think of an excuse.

"I killed one of them, they'll think twice before coming back here," said Jake, he didn't sound too convinced by his own words and glanced up at the hill half expecting an army of animals to be charging towards his home.

Maddy shook her head, it took her a couple of attempts to find the correct words. Her mouth opened and closed a few times before she eventually found her voice. "He'll recover in a few days." She couldn't hide her uncertainty and fear in her voice.

Jake looked at her, puzzled, "You saw him didn't you?"

Maddy focused her attention out of the window to hide the colour in her cheeks. She fiddled mindlessly with the water and coffee-stained magazines strewn over the table.

"Do you know which one he is?" Jake asked.

Maddy shook her head gently, not able to make eye contact in case he should see the deception in her face. "He was already human when I got in there."

Jake screwed up his face in concentration, his theory was quashed so he needed to find a plausible alternative.

"He said we need to use this head-start to leave before they regroup, we are a threat to them." Maddy steeled herself for the explosion of rage that was due to explode out of Jake.

"I don't get it, why does he care?"

His calmness took Maddy by surprise, "Because they screwed him over, he's just trying to stop others getting hurt." She wished she could reel the words back into her mouth as soon as she had said them. They had piqued Jake's interest, she could almost hear the cogs whirring in his head.