Page 80 of Consumed By Fire
I half-smile. “It was wrong of me since he was never really mine in the first place, but yes, I named him Wilson, and I still think of him from time to time. Cute little thing.”
“I’m sure you do since you had to feed him every couple of hours for weeks. You looked after Wilson until he was ready to go back into the wild, and then you had the courage to let him go. You’re good at doing the right thing.”
“I guess so.” I wish it wasn’t the case. I’d be lying in Octane’s arms right now.
“So, I take it you left him…Igor, that is?” She cocks her head.
I snort. “I left him the same day he pretended to use a condom. I couldn’t stay with someone like that.” I shake my head.
“Does he know about the baby?” She looks down at my belly.
I nod. “Of course. I wouldn’t keep him from the baby.”
“I would. He’s an asshole. You don’t want someone like that in your baby’s life.” She takes a sip of her drink.
I smile and nod, but I don’t say anything because Igor is dead. He isn’t going to be a part of my child’s life anymore, and I’m glad for it, too.
“I’m here to ask a favor,” I blurt before I lose the courage.
“Of course…what do you need?” She takes my hand, squeezing. “I’m still your friend. That hasn’t changed.”
The show of affection causes my throat to clog and my eyes to sting, so I blink a couple of times, trying to get myself under control. I sniff.
Nova scrutinizes me, her eyes clouding with concern. “You’re scaring me. What’s going on?”
“I met someone.” Why did I say that? What the hell is wrong with me? I hadn’t planned on telling her about Octane.
“You did? Someone who isn’t Igor?” She claps her hands.
I smile. “He’s the opposite of Igor. He’s sweet and kind and wonderful. He loves this baby more than his real father ever could.”
“Who is he, and where did you meet him?”
“His name is Octane.” I know I shouldn’t be telling her this, but I can’t help it. “We can’t be together.” A hot tear falls from my eye, trailing down my cheek. Dammit! I’m so sick of crying.
“Oh, hon’,” she whispers. “Why not? What’s going on? Is Igor standing in your way somehow? You don’t look happy, even though you’re telling me you’re in love.”
“It has nothing to do with Igor, and I can’t tell you. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“Of course you should have told me. We’re friends. We haven’t seen each other for a few months, but nothing has changed. You can tell me anything. It wouldn’t shock me or scare me off, I swear.”
Hmmmm…I have a feeling she would take it back if I disclosed everything.
“Nah, he isn’t in my life anymore,” I choke out the words. “It didn’t work out. If I’m a little sad, you’ll understand why.”
“Thanks for telling me. I’m so sorry it didn’t work out.” She gets up and comes and sits with me, putting her arms around me. “You said you needed to ask me a big favor; what is it?”
I pull in a deep breath. “Can I stay here for a few days? Just until I get back on my feet.”
25
Octane
The next day…
I step out into the sunshine, pulling in big gulps of air. I hate the tunnel. It’s dangerous and a liability. I’m going to find a way to get my hands on some explosives, and I’m going to close it for good.
My reasoning is two-fold. Firstly, it’s selfish…I won’t be able to make this trip again if the tunnel is sealed. Make no mistake, I will be sorely tempted knowing that Trinity is here, so it needs to go. Secondly, and more importantly, neither side will be able to use it as a weapon against the other. It’s the biggest reason. The most important reason. Even though Titan and Igor are out of the way, there are more of these vigilante males on Mistveil. I also don’t want HQ finding out about the tunnel. I doubt it would ever happen, but they might want to launch an attack on the Reds using it. It would be a disaster. So many innocents would get caught in the crossfire.