Adam's Pulse

Part 18

Chapter 18

Sloan sat there, feeling tears fill her eyes.  She blinked, refusing to allow them to fall.  She had gotten herself into this mess; she had trusted them when she knew she couldn’t form any relationship, because as much as she hated to admit it, she would sell them out.  If the men holding her brother called, if they demanded answers she would tell them everything.  She would tell them that the easiest way to get to Ally was to kill Adam first.  The man might not have said anything, but Sloan knew that the bond went both ways.

Earlier, she had watched as Ally clutched her head, looking as if in pain.  Before Barron had taken that pain from her, Sloan saw the sadness flash in Ally’s eyes.  It was the same sadness she saw in Adam’s as he walked into the room earlier.  The man had tried to hide it with his words, just as he had tried to hide exactly what type of creatures these people were.  Leopards.

She repeated the words in her head a couple of times, trying to let it all settle.  It couldn’t be true, couldn’t be happening, but even as she tried to deny it, she knew it to be true.  She had heard Noah growl, had seen the leopard in the woods, and she had seen the sharp teeth Zeke had snapped in her face. They were what they said they were, which only made this scarier.  No matter what she did, she was shit out of luck.

The thought made her laugh.  It was what her brother said, every time they got in trouble, he’d just smile and say, “Well, I guess we’re shit out of luck, Sloan, but at least it’s you and me.”  The laugh died down as the tears she had been fighting fell down her cheeks.  She liked these people, she really did, but if it came down to them or her brother, she was sticking to her family.  He had been all she had for a long time, all that could make her smile.  She wasn’t going to give that up, even if that meant having a dozen or more leopards out to kill her.

Leaning forward, she pressed her face into her hands, but the tears still ran unchecked.  They probably wouldn’t even let her go.  If she were them, she wouldn’t.  It was clear as day that she wasn’t in this for the long run, and Zeke could easily pick through her mind to learn her thoughts.  She had to face it, she wasn’t going anywhere, and to her, she didn’t mind if her life was forfeit, had accepted that chance long ago.  She cried for her brother.  Without her, what would he do?  How would he live if she was not there to keep him safe?

If she were honest, it wasn’t only her brother she let tears fall down her cheeks for.  Adam could have become more than a friend, she knew that, but after tonight, she knew that her chances were gone.  He would never be able to trust her, and she didn’t blame him.  She had made a mistake, but at the same time, she had hoped he would understand.  They all protected Ally with such fierceness that she had hoped Adam would know where she was coming from.  Her brother was their Ally.  No one in the world, not even herself, mattered as much as he did.

She sat up straight, wiping angrily at her face.  Her eyes were probably swollen and red, snot most likely ran from her nose, but she didn’t care.  She had never been a pretty crier, thought that the word pretty and crier shouldn’t even be put together in the same sentence.  At that moment, she didn’t care what she looked like though.  What she cared about was getting out of there.  If she wanted to keep her brother alive, she had to stay alive herself.  Standing to her feet, she only stumbled once before she made it towards the door.  Her hand reached towards the knob, but nothing happened when she tried to turn it.  With an angry yell, she beat on the door.  Still, nothing happened.