Nothing Without You | Eric Coulter [2]

twenty-one

ERIC

Rage was boiling in me as I watched Four take off in the car with his fucking girlfriend and her stupid-ass brother.

What kind of brother leaves his sister behind like that?

As if reading my thoughts, Nessa sighs and touches my cheek to gain my attention.

The anger settles a little as I meet her gaze, and immediately, my arms come up around her waist to hold her close to me.

"It's not his fault," She defends, "Tobias wanted me to go, but we talked it through and agreed that it was best that I stayed behind."

"And who was the one who suggested you did?" Was my question.

Nessa frowns, "I did."

"And why the fuck would you do that?" I say with no real bite, bending down to meet her eyes.

"I needed you safe," She confesses, "And I might not recognise my mother any more, but I don't think she'll hurt me. It made sense."

"Nessa...the next time you ever have to choose between my life and yours again, you pick yours. Do you understand?" I tell her, hoping that it sinks in. "It's your life over mine every time, okay?"

Squeezing her eyes shut, she shook her head. Then, scanning to see if the coast is clear, she takes my hand and rushes back through the hallways that we exited through.

Nessa didn't stop until we reached the familiar stretch of halls that led to the glass room.

When she unlocks the door, I'm pleased to find that the space looked mostly untouched, apart from the mattress that I was sure Nessa somehow managed to get here with crumpled sheets and unorganised pillows thrown over it. I quickly discovered that I liked the lived in look that it gives the place.

Locking the doors behind us and dropping the keys onto the coffee table, Nessa turns to face me with a serious expression.

"When are you going to realise that your life is just as important as mine?" There's a tinge of sadness in her voice that everything screams to want to get rid of, "I need you to stop trying to sacrifice yourself for me. It's not what I want. Don't you get it? My heart doesn't beat without you, Eric."

I didn't think it was possible, but her words chip away even more at whatever's left of the armour I have so carefully built around my heart.

Reaching up, I cup her cheek in my hand, taking in the breathtaking sight before me of the woman that I love and leaned down to kiss her.

Her arms snake around my neck as she melts into me, letting out a contented sight against my lips.

It feels like we can't catch a break though. Too soon, I feel a presence with us and pull away from our kiss, quickly pushing Nessa behind me only to see that it's Zeke.

Nessa's infuriating friend raises a brow at us in amusement.

He looks from me to Nessa and back again with knowing eyes. His expression bears not even an inkling of surprise seeing me still here as if he knew all along that this would going to be the outcome.

"Thought I'd find you here," Zeke stated as he shut the door behind him,  and a part of me felt slightly annoyed that he was in a place that I had started associating as being mine and Nessa's. "As much as I love seeing you lovebirds back together again, we're going to have to get moving." He gives me a pointed look, "Unless you fancy being back behind bars again."

Nessa snorts, "Fancy. What are you? British?"

Zeke chuckles at Nessa's rebuttal and gestures for us to follow him.

Not wanted to risk getting caught, we both follow after him with hurried steps.

He leads us down several hallways before stopping in front of a large black door that I knew held a conference room behind it.

Zeke raises his fist to rap his knuckles against the door in one short knock, followed by a five-second pause and then finished with another two knocks before he swings it open, holding it for us to pass through first.

Immediately, his little brother bounds up to Nessa and envelopes her in a big hug.

There was a time when the exchange would have sent me into a jealous-filled rage, but I realised now that I trust Nessa and her friends enough that seeing them together sparks contentment in me rather than anger.

I looked around the room to see that Lynn, as well as Harrison, Kang and Johanna, were all gathered here as well.

"We're glad you made it," Kang says kindly, drawing my eyes to him.

I looked over my shoulder to see that Nessa was now getting ambushed by Lynn.

"Do you guys have a plan?" I asked, instead of thanking him for his help in my escape like I should have, but old habits die hard.

"I'm not sure if even the best planning would be enough for us," Johanna chimes in. "Evelyn is volatile. Even if we had a solid plan, we wouldn't see what she's got up her sleeves coming. Right now, the best we can do is stay united. If we work together, we can her off."

"That isn't good enough," Nessa voices my thoughts before I can. "I know my mom, playing defence isn't going to work on her." And while her voice didn't waver as she spoke, I could still hear the hint of hesitation in it when she said, "It's time we fought back." Like even though she still loves her mother despite everything she's done, she knows it's what needs to be done.

I reach out to her, gripping her hand in silent support and her fingers immediately close around mine, holding onto me as if I were an anchor keeping her from drifting out into an open ocean.

Just then, the door bursts open and in runs a Dauntless member who I recognised but didn't remember the name of.

"The factionless noticed that their prisoners are missing," He reported, "They're ordering a shoot-to-kill order for them and the people that are helping them escape..." His words drifted as his eyes landed on Nessa. The way that he shifts nervously on his feet tells me that what he's about to say next isn't anything good. "Including Tobias and Vanessa Eaton."

I feel Nessa stiffen beside me. One look at her face and I could see the hurt that the information had inflicted on her and I inwardly cursed her mother was causing her such pain.

Even though she has every right to be upset, Nessa straightens out and shakes it off, raising her chin and looking every bit like an amazing leader and says, "So, it's settled then?" She looks to Kang and Johanna, "We're taking them down?"

Johanna and Kang exchange a look before the former nods, "It seems she's not giving us any other choice."