24. Hellena

24

HELLENA

W e lie there for as long as we can, wrapped in each other's arms, clinging to each other for dear life. Everything hurts in the best way possible.

But not my heart.

That ache, that deep-seated pain and agony that I felt is fading, dulling to a distant thrum in the background.

It's not gone. The scars still remain, and I still hurt.

But he took some of my pain. He helped me exorcise some of the demons I’ve been harboring in my soul for the past few weeks. It’s not completely gone, but it’s a start.

“Evan?” I mumble, lost in the haze of the afterglow.

“Hmm?”

“That was spectacular.”

“Obviously.”

“Dick.”

“Whatever it takes to get you off, Hell.” He laughs, deep and throaty, a sound I’ve never heard before from him. “I needed that.”

Giggling lightly, I prop myself up on my elbow, looking down at him. “You just wake up every day and resort to violence, don't you?”

“I may be intractable, impossible, and an asshole, but ultimately, I’m a pacifist. Make love, not war.”

“I think we just did both.”

“Agreed. I’ll try to avoid letting things escalate to a fight before we do that again. Deal?’

“No way, mister. The last deal I made with you ended up with me getting shot!”

That laugh again, and he’s lunging up to embrace me, pulling me into his arms, laying me across his lap. There’s a softness to his gaze, a faint sadness. “No more deals, then. Just this.”

His lips are fire as they brand my neck, sending jolts of shimmering light through my frame, along my skin. When they find my mouth, it’s all over, my brain melting into him as much as my body.

But we can’t stay like this. We both know it.

“We really should?—”

“Go again?”

“Soon. Tell and Gavin will be waiting.”

“I hate sharing.” He grins as he says it, taking any of the edge off the words. “Mostly just time and space. Evan needs quiet time.”

“You’ve gotten spoiled living alone. Don’t be selfish.”

“Fine. But I want to do more than watch next time with either of them.”

“That could be arranged…” I feel prickling tingles rush down my spine at the thought of not just one of them, but two of my lovers with me, kissing me, touching me…

More.

Settle down, girl!

Must. Focus.

Or I’m going to need to take a cold shower, STAT!

I keep my thoughts from drifting into that territory and drag my focus back to the present. To Evan.

We both sigh, grasping and teasing all the way off the bed and into the bathroom where we quickly clean up our spectacular disaster and dress. The silence between us now is full, but lacking any apprehension. It’s pleasant. Peaceful.

That reverie follows us all the way to the car, across the neighborhood, and out onto the roundabout road that will get us to the meetup spot. We dodged a few patrols on the way here, but out this far, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of action. Probably because there are dozens of back roads and this invading force doesn’t know the area as well as we do.

The parking lot of the old general store is empty when we arrive, as expected. Gav and Tell have a much longer route to take to get to us from the Block.

A little over a half hour later, they show up, waving for Evan to lead the way on to the address from my father’s journal.

Just as Tell described, it’s at the end of a long, overgrown driveway that looks like it was meant to be lined with houses, now congested with trees and vines. Leaves cover the street, making the effect of our passage eerie in the faint dim of the last bits of dusk.

The gate itself is almost invisible in the tangle of ivy and leaves. Still, I manage to spot the keypad and punch in the code. Nothing happens for a few moments, and I look back at the car, shrugging.

CLUNK .

With a light screech, the gate tugs inward, tearing the foliage and clearing a path. The darkness beyond feels heavier, obscured by the branches of the denser trees lining the curving road.

“Anyone else getting 80s horror vibes?” Tell hisses from the other car.

“Shh! You’ll wake up all the ghosts.” I snicker, getting back in the car.

As Evan eases us in, it doesn’t get any less creepy.

The road winds back through old lots, most empty, until several unfinished houses start to fill out the landscape, all clogged with undergrowth. I start to wonder if we’ll ever find the location we’re looking for when we clear the last building, crunching to a halt at the edge of the forest, a wide, circular cul-de-sac.

“Is that…?” Evan squints, looking off into the woods at a looming shape.

The four of us are out of the vehicles, flashlights in hand.

At first glance, it looks like a rocky outcropping sticking up over the trees.

Until we shine our lights onto the front of the building. The brush obscures the path up to it, but it almost appears to be on purpose, to conceal the house from almost every angle. And the way the rocks form around it, a cleverly carved side of a small mountain, it’s likely impossible to see from above, too.

My brain is having hard time reconciling what we’re looking at, even as we head up to the front door, a wide, smooth, deep red entryway nestled in a nook of the front of the reflective glass along the front. It’s modern, yet something about it tells me it’s extremely safe.

A veritable fortress.

“Your dad left you a castle, Hell,” Tell huffs.

“My dad left us a base of operations.”

Clicking the key into the lock directly in the center of the door, I watch as a blinking light just inside the paneled windows around it blinks red twice, then green.

A low hum accompanies the click as the door swings open, preceding floor lighting along the entry hall popping to life in sequence, guiding us in.

Everything about the house is stunning, elegant, but simple.

A faint film of dust is the only sign that no one has been here in years. Otherwise, the house is pristine. Almost like Dad never had a chance to use it.

“Where’s the damn light switch?” Gavin grumbles, stumbling over an empty planter.

“Maybe it’s a clapper?” Tell tries it, the sound echoing loudly in the high-ceilinged room. “Nope.”

Evan sighs, giving me a look as he grabs a remote off the long entryway table and presses a button. “Smart house.”

“You know, not all of us have fancy toys like you,” I point out, immediately distracted by the slowly growing illumination.

The main room is enormous, a great room housing a living area, dining room, an open kitchen along the back wall, rustically set against natural rock, blocked off by a long bar with stools. Stairs lead up to another level in the center, overhanging a hallway with several doors, presumably bedrooms.

I lean back against Evan’s chest behind me in wonder, completely stunned by the scope of the house. The fact that it’s… mine.

Evan’s arm loops around my shoulders, squeezing me lightly.

“PDA…” Tell teases, shouldering Evan as he passes.

“I can hug my girl if I want to,” Evan mutters defensively.

“Yeah, I suppose you can hug my girl if you want to,” he retorts, grinning and wagging his eyebrows.

Gavin rolls his eyes, joining us in the middle of the room, acting bored with our antics. “Well, at least it looks like you finally made amends with my girl, Ev.”

His mouth curls in a self-satisfied smile as he leans in and steals a kiss, claiming my lips as I arch my back into Evan.

“HA!” Tell exclaims, looking from Evan to Gavin and back at me and throwing an arm over Gavin’s shoulders. “Our girl, then.”

His fingers find mine, intertwining as we take in the moment.

No one has said it until now, really addressed our situation, and I’ve avoided naming it.

But there it is.

“Our girl.” Gavin nods, letting his gaze linger on mine for another second before drifting back to our surroundings.

“I’m not saying it,” Evan asserts, aloof as usual.

With a sharp elbow into his ribs, I pull away, leaving him huffing a soft gasp and chuckling.

Leaving all three to their own exploration, I set out to check out my new digs. This place is unnerving, despite the sense of home I instantly got when I stepped foot inside.

It’s the fact that my father built it. That someone designed it with me in mind.

That he left it for me, as per the notes in his journal. Even if he wasn’t sure I’d ever make it here or find out about any of this.

“The security is impressive from what I can see so far. High-tech as all get-out,” Gavin muses, inspecting the panel by the door.

“Couches are comfy too!” Tell flops down.

“Independent power supply. Water, too.” Evan flicks on the monitor in the foyer, looking through the specs on the smart controls for the building. It’s all there in impressive detail. He looks incredibly pleased with the level of gadgetry, as expected.

This place can sustain itself for years.” Gavin pops out of a door at the end of the hall. “Generators, back ups…”

“Three TVs!” Tell shouts as the units slide up out of the floor.

“Boys,” I grumble, heading for the hallway to check out the living situation. “You’d better not pay more attention to my new fancy house than me!”

None of them respond.

Nerds.

The multiple sleeping quarters are all furnished, stocked with sheets, towels, each room sporting its own bathroom. It’s almost barracks-like in some ways, only luxurious. Spacious. We could house at least ten or twelve people here pretty comfortably.

Not that I have a reason to.

I’m already planning which room I might want to claim as I head upstairs to the loft area. Clicking on the lights reveals a game room, entertainment center, pool table. Gotta give my dad credit. He pulled out all the stops. Not just to make a safe place, but to make it livable, fun.

Of course, it’s all glaringly designed by a dude, but ‘A’ for effort, Damon.

With a little work, this place could be truly cozy.

Especially when I discover the master bedroom at the back of the second level. I didn’t know they made beds that big.

I’m skipping out of the room before I can let my imagination get too carried away with what we could all do on that comfy monstrosity.

Like snuggling. Yep. That’s what I was thinking.

Not that I have any business thinking about things like that when we are under siege.

This fortress gives me hope, though, makes me feel like we might stand a chance.

The concept of having my own place adds another layer to my confidence.

It’s something I’ve never really had.

And even if it was handed to me on a silver platter by my mysterious predecessor, I won’t look that gift horse in the mouth

Over the next few hours, we get to know the workings of the house and settle in. We’ll need to buy food, stock the kitchen. Retrieve more of our things.

But each of my guys finds plenty to do. Gavin takes it upon himself to examine the house top to bottom, making sure he knows everything about how it works.

Tell is unusually quiet, ticking away on his computer, digging through the flash drives and compiling lists of allies, exploring surveillance across the city. He’s a whiz at computer stuff. It’s an edge I hope we have over Marco and the Ghosts with his knowledge of hacking and his previous infiltration into systems all over town.

Then there’s Evan, who I haven't seen since he disappeared into the office off the main room. He’s a natural when it comes to research, administration. Numbers, money. He knows how to pick out patterns. Look for trends. Figure out exactly who was doing what with whom and when.

I know he’ll be assessing our resources, organizing our supply chain. And tracking Marco’s paper trail.

And then there’s me, standing in the kitchen, a million thoughts racing through my head and getting nothing useful done. So I pop open my dad’s journal and get to reading.

He was adamant, my father, about helping his people. It’s why he ultimately came back here.

He felt a responsibility to make this city what it was always meant to be. A sentiment that is growing stronger in me every day.

Unfortunately, the more I read, the more heartbreaking his story gets.

He was up against a failing system, against other members with just as many resources and know-how, all fighting for their own agendas.

“You look cheerful.” Gavin interrupts my concentration, leaning on the bar. Tell stretches, yawning from his spot on the couch and smiling at me.

“He was so alone, trying to do the impossible, all by himself.”

“That was his fatal flaw, I think. He pulled all of us together as a merc team, but he always veered toward doing things himself. When it was said and done, he couldn’t help going back to that, I think.”

“It just seems so hopeless. If he couldn’t do this, how can I?”

“Main difference is that you aren’t alone. You don’t try to do it alone, either.” Tell joins us, running a reassuring hand down my back.

“True. And from what I’ve read so far, we may not have any Sinful left to worry about.” I flip through, showing them the references Damon made to the members he suspected had been killed or had each other killed.

“She’s right,” Evan’s voice echoes from the office. It’s a cue for us to file into the room, the three of us staring around wide-eyed at the disastrous mess strewn across the conference table and the desk. Evan has been busy .

“I’ve zeroed in on a few key deaths over the years. They don’t seem connected at first, but cross-referencing them with ancestry and property deeds, I think I’ve got a pretty good picture of what’s left.”

Evan rises, a bit of a wild look on his face as he waves us over to the table. “Sparing you the long-winded details, I’ve narrowed it down.”

He points to several separate piles in sequence, all topped with old photos of men and women, some simply cutouts of obituaries.

“Avarice, back in the sixties. Alaya’s grandfather shot him at his Egret Ridge mansion. No successor. Ire, or Fury, the police commissioner at the time, offed several years later. Unknown cause of death. Jump ahead a couple of decades and we have three in a row, who I think might be Voracity, Hubris, and Spite.”

“That matches what my dad said. He suspected he was running the ship by himself for a short time, or that only a couple of other members were left.”

“So who the fuck has been giving us orders?” Tell scoffs. “And are we certain that Devonde isn’t one of them?”

“Good question,” Evan mutters, guiding us back to the mountains of research splayed out before us. “We know Damon, Sloth, is dead, and that someone hired a shooter to kill him.”

He clears his throat, pausing. “Sorry, Hellena.”

“Don’t be. It's the truth. And I didn’t really know him.”

Although I am starting to, slowly, through his journal.

“So that leaves us with one left. From several references I’ve found, Ardor, or Lust, as it were, sort of fell silent over the years. Like the whole line just faded back out of sight. Huge public events, entertainment type events seemed to show some signs of their handiwork, but nothing concrete. Which makes me think they could still be around, lying low.”

“And that doesn’t factor in Rachelle or her role in any of this.” Gavin rubs his jaw, his eyes tracking over the information laid out in front of us.

“Too much we don’t know, as usual,” I sigh, pacing.

“It’s fair to assume that Sanctum Harbor has just been drifting for a few years. It makes sense that it would take time for a lack of leadership to show, for holes to develop. Especially with a fairly capable city council running everyday life. At least until now. Every member including the mayor vanished over the past two weeks.” Evan gives Tell a concerned look as he says it.

“Not MIA. At least not the mayor. He’s dead,” Tell confesses, lowering his eyes. In a heartbeat, I’m at his side, wrapping my arms around him. “It’s okay, Hella.”

“No. It’s not. He was your father. What happened?”

So they fill us in on the details of their escapade with Ora, where the Block stands, infiltrating Vanderberg’s mansion. I try my best not to lose my shit when they let slip how close they came to getting caught.

“Where’s Ora, then?” I let the question distract me from the clenching feeling in my chest at their reckless endeavor.

“She headed back to the compound for now to relay the news to Clive.” Gavin is sitting with his arms crossed, unreadable throughout the retelling.

“Speaking of which, has Xavier said anything about the Sinful or his dealings with them?”

“Ora said he’s cagey about that. But he's not keen on anything Sinful, either.”

“I guess we’ll have to take her word for it.” Evan grimaces. “In the meantime, I can keep digging. I’d like to read your dad’s journal, Hell, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure. But where does that leave us on what to actually do about Marco, about any of this?” An overwhelming sense of dread starts to tug at my stomach. All of this info and we still don’t have a plan of action.

“Well, what do you want to do, Hell?” Gavin asks, crossing his arms. At first, it almost seems patronizing, a rhetorical question.

But then I look around at each of them.

They’re looking right at me. Waiting for an answer. Tell nods to me, encouraging me.

“I… don’t know. Ora mentioned that Devonde was making a move, too, right?”

“Sounds like it.”

“Then we’re already looking at the start of a war. Unless Devonde and Marco are working together, those two forces are going to clash with people, regular people, caught in the crossfire.”

“Clive is working on setting up blockades, security,” Gavin offers.

“That’s great, but it doesn’t help the families with nowhere to go, with no clue about what’s really going on, does it? We’re just barely going on defense. There has to be more we can do to be proactive…”

I let the questions flow, the line of thinking guiding me out of desperation at first, but it’s forming into a solid picture in my mind as I progress.

“What are you thinking, Hell?” Evan rises, joining us as I lead them into the living room, to the dining room table. They spread out, letting me gather my thoughts.

“We start small. Grow from there. But we need to move quickly. Each of you has a specialty, and we need to capitalize on that. Not just for us.”

Tell smirks. “Tell us what to do.”

I hesitate, looking across the table at the three powerful men waiting for orders. Who am I to give them?

Who am I, period?

“I–I hate asking or demanding that you all do any of this.”

The look the three of them give me in response would terrify anyone else. It makes me want to shrink back a bit myself. But it’s also hilarious. Incredulous.

“We have your back to the end, Hellena.” Evan says it so calmly.

Tell and Gav just nod in agreement. Even though they all see my misgivings, the doubts eat at me.

“Gav, you’re so much more qualified. Maybe you should?—”

“No. There's one thing that I've known for a long time, Lena. And that’s that you are meant to do something great. To lead. To change things here. You're not your dad. You're a lot like him in a lot of ways, but you're better than he was. You're stronger than he was. And you trust those around you. You love openly and accept everyone for who they are. Sanctum needs someone like that, now more than ever.”

Evan tilts his head. “I could see it right from the start.”

“And you’ve had me since the second I met you.” Tell grins.

“You're a force to be reckoned with when you want to get something done, Hellena.” Gavin pins me with a stare, bolstering my confidence.

A thrill of excitement, nerves, and something a whole lot like absolute terror zip through me as I meet each of their gazes. But it feels right.

“Okay. Then listen up. Tell, get out there and put your people to work. We need eyes everywhere. And we need to inform people about what’s going on, how to stay safe. We have to create a network of communication, lifelines to one another. An underground that Marco and Devonde have no knowledge about.

“Next, I need players. Leaders. Evan, call in every fucking favor you have in the bank. See who’s willing to step up, business owners, doctors, nurses. Supply lines and safe houses will be crucial to evacuating the danger zones and clearing any useful materials to keep them out of Marco’s hands.

“Last, we need weapons. We need gear. And we need the ability to lock this place down. Gavin, you're our armory. Make sure Tell, Evan, Ora, the Block have anything they need and see how we can get more. Vehicles. The works.”

And just like that, the three of them are off and we’re making strides.

The next few days pass in a maelstrom of phone calls, info flowing in from all over the city.

The people have been waiting, holding their breath.

They’re terrified of losing their homes, their children. They want to fight back.

And they want the leadership we’re offering. They’re desperate for it.

For the time being, we’ve taken on the role of the Sinful in our own way.

A group leading from the shadows, moving behind the scenes, using every person willing to step up to further the cause, to get people to safety and raise a defense force that is starting to rival Marco’s forces.

A week blurs by.

We’re back around the table, the four of us exhausted but feeling hopeful, full of purpose.

It’s time to take our city back.