A is for Aiden (Men of ALPHAbet Mountain)

“You can trust me or not trust me. That’s up to you. My past is my business,” he said, his voice growing louder. For the first time, emotion was slipping in, but now I was angry.

“I trust you,” I said. “I just need to know more about you.”

“I’m not ready,” he said. “Either you trust me, or you don’t, but I’m not ready nor am I willing to tell you about my past.”

“Fine.” I said, brushing by him as I stood up.

“Where are you going?” he asked as I marched down the hall.

I didn’t answer, slamming the door of the guest room instead. I threw myself onto the bed, too angry to cry and too scared to sleep.

23

Aiden

It had been a few days since we arrived at Brett’s cabin, and so far, there hadn’t been any indication they knew where we were. Brett had gone into town a couple of times for supplies and said the coast seemed clear. He hadn’t been able to stop by my cabin since it would have alerted anyone there to our whereabouts if he had, but in the drives past my place, he had scanned as best he could while driving and hadn’t seen anyone. The door was closed, and my truck was still parked around back, he could see that. Otherwise, crickets.

Thankfully, I had my credit cards loaded into my phone and was able to order a number of things to be delivered to Brett’s house so he didn’t have to pay for all our supplies. It was a huge favor, what he was doing, and I wouldn’t forget it or take it for granted. If we survived all this, I would make sure to pay him back and then some.

I had to stop thinking like that. We were going to survive this. We were going to bring these people to some kind of justice. We just needed a plan.

I opened my phone with the intention of setting an alarm. Putting alarms up on my phone helped remind me to check perimeters more often than I would normally think about. Brett had invested in a camera system that routed to his phone and given me access to it as well. If someone drove up the driveway, we would see them coming in enough time to be ready.

As I navigated to my alarm, I noticed the date. Four weeks exactly had passed since Desiree first showed up at my door. Four weeks since my life changed so completely that I barely even recognized it anymore. So far, in the short time that I have spent with her, she had become so important to my everyday life. This had to mean that she was meant to be there.

Time had been flying by, but I couldn’t help but worry that something bad was about to happen, a gut feeling that I couldn’t shake, like the one I used to depend on to survive while deployed. There was tension, a feeling of impending change clouding my mind, forcing me to face it, to think about it and prepare myself. Shit could go sideways fast. I needed to be ready.

Sammi’s dad had called back earlier that day. I let Desiree take the call, and she had only spoken to him for a few minutes. It upset me and gave me a vague feeling of relief at the same time. Knowing he was coming meant that I would have a team again, people to lay down cover fire as it were. But knowing they were coming also meant I wasn’t going to be in charge anymore, either. I was giving up the lead in protecting her in order to have backup. It wasn’t a decision I enjoyed, but I knew it was the right one, as much as I hated it. As helpless as it made me feel.

I was the protector. I always had been even when I failed, I failed because I was trying to do more than I could trust anyone else to do. I should be handling all of it. Not hiding in my only friend’s cabin, subjecting him to it as well, and waiting on someone else to come fix it. None of it was sitting well with me, and the sense of impending change was making it worse. What if they came before Sammi’s father got to us?

I didn’t have to wait long for the answer.

“Aiden,” Brett shouted from the living room. I had wandered into the kitchen, grabbing a bottled water.

“Yeah,” I called.

“I got an alert. Someone’s coming.”

I ran into the room, Desiree right in front of me. We crowded around Brett, who stood with his phone open and a live feed of the camera half a mile away at the entrance streaming.

“That’s not Sammi’s dad,” Desiree said.

“Alright then,” Brett said. “I think we should get you guys hidden now.”