Truth: A Valkyrie Saga Book 3

Chapter 17 - Truths

I knew my brother better than anyone else in this world, so when I walked up the stairs I knew for a fact that he had been eavesdropping on Ray's and my conversation. So in classic sibling logic, I decided that meant it would be fair for me to listen in on his conversation. I also was starting to believe that there was more to Ray and the hunks that she was hanging out with than met the eye.

But if I had one guess as to what Ray was, I would put my money on an angel. Either that or she was my fairy godmother.

-Amy Huntsville

Amy was in her room, sitting up in her bed, and clearly trying to listen to the loud conversation the guys were having downstairs. But the moment that she saw my tear-stained face and my 'try to be brave for those that you love' expression, her features fell. She didn't cry as her brother had, but I knew that she felt my departure just as deeply as Jack did. Amy didn't demand explanations or beg me to stay either. It was like she understood better than even I did and knew that this was the right thing to do.

I told her that if she ever needed anything that she should go to Luna for help, and she just smiled sadly at me making her look years older than her real age of fourteen. Life had put Amy through the wringer in the last month or so, just like it had me, and both of us were stronger and different people than we were six weeks ago. When I felt like we said everything that we were going to say, I laid down next to her and she rested her head on my chest and together we just existed side-by-side for one last time.

Eventually, Amy fell asleep and I carefully extracted myself from underneath her. Then I just watched her sleep for a while as I gathered enough courage to walk away from my family. I pushed back into the void and found Blake and Connor waiting for me in my room. A huge part of me wanted to go find Jack just because I couldn't stand the idea of actually walking away from him, but the very real idea of them getting hurt kept me moving forward. I pushed back into the physical plane and almost instantly I was engulfed in a twin sandwich. But even their unwavering support and clear concern weren't enough to fill the gaping hole in my heart that was only growing.

Silently, I pushed away from the twins and grabbed my old duffle bag to collect my things. In all reality, I hadn't spent much time here and it never felt like a home as my bus had. But this move was different, not because of the stuff or the location but because of the people I was forcing myself to leave behind. Even if I was willing to risk the secrecy law and tell Jack and Amy everything, that wasn't the only thing at play here. I had been thrown into some really dangerous waters and things were only getting worse. This morning's tribunal was a prime example of how I wasn't in as much control as I thought I was. I really believed that walking away from Jack and Amy would protect them from potential blow-back that I was going to have to face in my near future. That was the real reason I was leaving, Jack just gave me a reason to do it right now.

When I was all packed up, I pushed the twins and myself back into the void and we found both Max and Jack sitting on the porch. Neither of them was talking and when I glanced at Jack's face I saw that he looked really upset. I couldn't blame him for that and I didn't want to prolong his pain. I pushed free of the void but kept myself invisible. Then I reached out and grasped my best friend's hand and squeezed with everything inside of me. Jack's head snapped up but when he didn't see me, actual tears started to form in his eyes. There was so much that I wanted to tell him, but my throat was too clogged with tears to do so.

"I love you. I will always be here for you," I choked out before the knot in my throat became too large to overcome.

Jack just stared down at my hand, squeezing back to the point of pain, and replied in a broken voice, "Love you too. I am so fucking sorry."