Chapter 26

Chapter

Twenty-Six

Ana

C rusher stays a few steps behind me as we climb the stairs from the lake to the cabin, and my gratitude grows. The tension between us is palpable, and when he was next to me, I could sense Crusher's muscles twitching as if it was a great effort not to touch me.

I am still attracted to Crusher and know where unnecessary contact might lead. Know where I might have wanted it to lead.

I'm glad he resisted. I will not open myself to Crusher again. He killed Timur and kept it a secret. Kept it a secret even as I gave myself to him, gave him everything, let myself be vulnerable not only physically, but emotionally. I trusted Crusher with so much, while he kept something huge from me.

"These stairs look new," he says from behind me.

"Yes, they do." The stairs climb over a rocky surface leading up from the water, and the forest is so thick the branches form a dome above us. But the moonlight and some glimpses of stars still shine through. The air is so fresh up here, not a hint of the machines that took over the world this past century, and I inhale deeply, recalling our family's trips to the country or seaside in my childhood.

At the top of the stairs, we discover a path made of rocks, and it leads toward a spectacular structure with a large, covered porch stretching across its front. But the word cabin does not begin to describe what I'm looking at, and the sight of it stops me in my tracks.

"Wow."

Crusher steps up beside me. "Nice."

I stifle a laugh at his understatement. My utterance wasn't exactly eloquent either. The cabin is shockingly beautiful. Its natural stone foundation seems to emerge from the granite of the island, and from there, the building rises three stories. The exterior is formed from thick wooden planks, but a huge portion of the cabin's facade is glass. Through the massive floor to ceiling windows, we can see the others lounging on sofas in front of a roaring fireplace that casts such a warm glow, I feel its warmth penetrating me out here.

"All this glass is treated?" Crusher whistles low through his teeth.

"That's what Ember said, although she and her mates can walk in the sun."

"So you say." He shakes his head as if he'll have to see it to believe it.