The Soldier's Hostage

Chapter Twenty-Six

We both took a little time to think. Then a little more time once I found out that Max had run for the hills and left Katty and Jason. Arthur showed me the way to where he was staying now and let me talk with my friend, but Max couldn't be convinced to rethink things. He seemed quite convinced that he was better on his own.

I could really only let him figure it out for himself.

Finally, Arthur must have reached an impasse, unable to continue working through things on his own without some input from me. He did some uncharacteristic picking at his food and fumbling before managing to spit it out over dinner.

"Tell me exactly what you want out of this."

I stiffened under the intense look he had turned on me. But I licked my lips and moved forward. I didn't need to think about it. I already knew. "I want to wear your mark and be yours. I'll willingly give you anything you ask for in exchange for a permanent place here and you to continue to take care of me. I want you to control me."

He studied me, then frowned down into his dinner as he started eating again. I bit back a sigh and shoved food into my mouth, more focused on getting it down than the taste. Arthur scraped up the last bite and took his plate to the sink, then he was heading for the door.

I jumped to my feet. "Arthur?"

He hesitated, his hand on the door. "I'm going out for a bit."

Nodding, I moved a little closer to him. "Can I go talk to Max? He said he would be here tonight for a date."

Arthur nodded and held the door open for me. "I'll walk you up."

Katty thought the whole situation was funny. Max didn't have any advice for me now that it was in Arthur's hands. Until he made his move, I was stuck in limbo. It wasn't a pleasant anticipation, but I found it was better than when events were hinging on me.

I didn't like being in control. Which was why I had happily turned the mantle of leader protector of our little group over to Max when he had arrived at Sophia's manor. He wasn't exactly a born leader either, but he handled it better than me.

We talked about how things were going with Max after it was clear I had no further information until Arthur made his decision. Max was dealing with his own confliction. Katty had told him point blank on his way out the door that she and Jason loved him.

I resisted the urge to say 'I told you so'.

Max was also trying to deal with nightmares on his own when before he had had a pair of Vampires around to beat off his monsters. He was slowly getting better, he said. He told me he would be able to get through a night on his own in a week or so if he kept slowly extracting himself from Katty and Jason's control.

I wondered if that was simply wishful thinking.

About the only thing we could agree on was that he missed them. The whole dating thing was just an excuse so he didn't have to admit he had made a mistake in leaving. But I knew Max had his pride and I wouldn't strike at it. I was sure he was coming to the same conclusion as I had some time ago.

He could live on his own without a problem. He could probably even flourish. But he had finally found someone who loved him, flaws and all. Two someones. And he cared very deeply about them despite himself. As soon as he stopped letting the fangs be an issue, he would have found his dream.

We glanced up when Arthur walked back in. Arthur quietly greeted Katty and shared a few words with her while I said goodbye to Max. Then I was quickly moving over to Arthur with nervous anticipation.