The Price of Love

Chapter 25

Alex's PoV

The ride home was hard. I ended up riding with John on his horse, but I kept nearly falling off. Massive blood loss really messes with you, it seems. A few hours later, and I see the familiar buildings of my beloved Manhattan. I feel my face split into a relieved grin, dried blood and tears cracking on my skin. The moon hangs right over the buildings, casting its pale light over my hometown. "Almost home." I whisper.

"Just a bit longer." John says. I nod, my cheek pressed against his back. No one would look at us odd for being in this position for many reasons. The first being they know we're very close, the second being they hold great respect for me, and the third being that men often are very close, but not as close as we secretly are.

"Almost home." I breathe, craning my head around his body to get a better view of Manhattan. "Almost home. God, I need a drink."

"We can get you a drink once your dad knows you're okay. You know how fast word travels from the bar, everyone will know you're back and you're alive in hours." John hums. "But first you're taking a shower. You need to badly, dear boy."

"Can't argue with that." I say, stifling a yawn.

"When was the last time you slept? Besides falling asleep on me?" He asks. I shrug.

"Not for a long time. I didn't sleep much in case I heard something that could have been useful to us." I reply. "Unfortunately, they never discussed anything where I could hear."

"Close your eyes Alexander. Sleep a little. I'll make sure you don't fall. I'll wake you when we arrive." He says softly.

"No, I-I can stay awake John." I murmur. "I can stay awake." But despite my protests, my eyelids drop down over my eyes, and I fall into the unwelcome embrace of sleep.

---

I wake myself up about an hour later. "We home yet?" I croak groggily. He jumps slightly.

"Just about. We're back in Manhattan, almost to your house." He says. "I was just about to wake you up."

"I can walk the rest of the way. You take the horse back to the stables, then come meet me at my house." I instruct, jumping off the horse and rolling into the landing. I stand up and dust off, feeling some wounds open up again. I glance around to get my bearings, then limp off in the right direction. Blood oozes out from about a dozen half-healed cuts that have been reopened, but it doesn't bother me. Ten minutes of walking and feeling pretty light-headed, I finally make it back home. Home. I laugh a little in relief. I grab the doorknob and half fall inside, grabbing onto the doorframe to stop myself. "Dad? I'm home!" I call, regaining my balance and closing the door. I swear, he teleported or something because he pulls me into a tight hug before I even turn back around.

"I'm so glad you're home safe." He whispers. "You're right, it was Hell without you."

"Since when am I wrong?" I smirk. He squeezes me tighter. "Ow." I mutter as more pressure is applied to my wounds. He releases me and quickly inspects me, noting my blood-soaked clothes and the dozens of rips and tears in them from the knife, my blood-matted hair, my much thinner body.

"Go take a shower Alexander." He orders when he's finished. I just nod, not going to point out that's why I came home.

"Yessir." I go to my room and grab a spare shirt, pants, and undergarments before walking into the bathroom. It takes about half an hour to scrub all the blood off of me and to clean all my cuts. I step out of the shower, feeling much better now that I'm clean. I dry off and get dressed, my damp hair hanging annoyingly in my face. I hear my father's and John's voices from the kitchen. I walk in to join them and grab a cup of water. "Please allow me a minute, I have had barely anything to drink in the past, how long was I gone?" I ask, filling up the cup.

"Almost two months." Dad says.

"Almost two months. And I should probably get some food as well." I say, draining the cup in a few seconds. I drink three more cups of water before I feel that my thirst has been satiated.

"Here." John tosses me a ration tin and I grin at him, tearing it open and scarfing it down. Dad kisses the top of my head and ruffles my hair.

"I have to go, I'll be back in a few hours. Stay safe. I love you." He says, then leaves.

"See you in a little bit Dad. Bye!" I call after him. It's good to be home.