(Formerly known as "When Our Paths Crossed")
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A tale of two lost souls brought together by pain, grief and trauma.
Atlas tries to find a place in a world he's worked so hard to escape. Elijah struggles to balance the life he's building and the...
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THE HOSPITAL ROOM is dark, with no light and the curtains drawn. I let the stranger pull me inside, instantly locking onto Atlas lying on the bed. He's not awake, his chest rising and falling softly in the blissful slumbers of sleep. My heart aches at the sight of him, but aside from the usual flush of caramel skin and the limpness of his usual gravity-defying, curly hair, he's okay.
He's okay.
That one sentiment is a huge relief, and despite the situation, I'm facing, I can't help the small smile that forms on my lips.
I want to rush to him, but the hand wrapped around my arm prevents me from moving any further. I glance over Atlas to where June sits. June sits forward, her fearful eyes glued to her son with one hand wrapped around the bed's railing in a vice-like grip. I might have believed she doesn't even notice I'm here if not for the way her shoulders tense as I step closer to the bed.
"He's here now," she says, standing, "let me have my son."
"You mean our son, Junebug," the man smiles. He strokes Sam's hair back affectionately. June pales. "I think I'll hold onto him for now while Elijah and I have a conversation. Sit down and be patient. We're going to have a nice, calm conversation and not draw any attention, isn't that right, Elijah?"
He looks at me and cocks his head to the side in a wolfish manner. This time I manage a nod, my cheeks flaring hot. "Now, I know your name, but you're probably wondering who I am." I can't even muster a nod, but he doesn't seem to mind and ploughs on anyway. "I'm Jason, the man your brother stole some goods from."
As the floor tilts, I'm amazed I don't fall with it. My look must be pretty blatant because Jason chuckles darkly and moves to the chair beside Atlas' bed. I move closer, too, mainly because I don't want Jason closer to Atlas.
"You recognize the name. Good," Jason continues, balancing Sam on his knee. "Your brother was tricky, I'll give him that much, but you, you are proving to be just as difficult. I thought you'd be smarter and do what I ask." He turns to me with those icy eyes that send a ripple of shivers down my spine. "And yet, here we are."
"I don't know where my brother kept the drugs," I whisper, and Jason rolls his eyes.
"That's not my problem, though, is it?" he points out, "I have a business to run, and your brother was stealing from my goods and using it to make a profit of his own. Now, he's dead, and I'm still out fifty thousand dollars. So, who do you think that responsibility falls on now, hm?"
Fifty thousand dollars? I barely keep myself upright this time, needing the support of the bed's railing to keep me standing.
Dan stole fifty thousand dollars from Jason? I never really thought about how much money Dan had stolen but never believed it more than a couple thousand at most. But, fifty thousand?
"I can see Selena failed to relay that information," Jason sighs. "It might have been a better motivator if you knew exactly how much money your brother stole from me."
