button on the black wool coat.
“What?” I grinned.
“Got you something.”
He reached into the pocket of his coat pulling out a folded piece of fabric.
I took it from him. “What’s this?”
“A scarf. It’s cold.”
I smiled and unfolded the fine piece of brilliant red fabric. It was the color of a perfectly ripe apple. “It’s so soft. Thank you.” I wrapped it around my neck. On my tiptoes, I hugged him quickly and thanked him again. I wasn’t sure how he’d gotten it, but it was beautiful and I loved it.
“Abby, I need you to listen to me.”
I looked up into his blue eyes. The muscle in his jaw worked back and forth. “Just say it, Ky.”
“I’ll come for you. Whatever happens tonight, just know I’ll come for you. I promise.”
The only thing I could do was nod. I knew he would.
“And, I need you to know that I love you. I love you with every damn cell in my body. Every inch of me belongs to you. And I promise that I’ll do whatever it takes to make this whole messed up situation right by you, and the others.”
I hugged him tight. My voice broke when I said, “I love you, too, Ky.”
He chuckled and his shoulders bounced up and down along with his laughter. “No, you don’t. Not yet. But, you will one day. We were meant for each other, Abby Blue. I was built for you, just as much as you were built for me.” He paused. “Just remember that when you’re alone, okay. I know Gray’s going in with you, but you don’t know what they’ll do. You may be separated. Just... keep me here.” He placed his hand near my heart.
I dared to look up at him. He was serious, and I would remember his words and cling to them in the darkness I was about to enter into. “I will. I promise.”
∞
I pulled on the pair of gloves I’d borrowed from Ky earlier in the week. He insisted I take them. We stepped into the cold evening air, pausing on the porch for a minute. A gust of wind came through swirling snowflakes along the pathway. “Ready?” I asked.
“No. I don’t think I can do this, Abby Blue.”
He shook his head. “You have to. Please, do this for me, Ky. I need you to be strong and go along with the plan. I need you out here. You have to get me out of there, but not tonight. Go along with the plan, okay?”
He blew out a sharp breath. “This is insane.”
I smiled. It was. “Everything worth doing is a little crazy, right?”
“I guess.” He held his hand out for mine and we walked hand in hand up the pathway toward the village square. I could hear the crowd before we even crested the final hill. The square was packed. Every villager was crammed inside it, huddled around the generous bonfires scattered along the perimeter and beneath the fiery torches that lined the edges.
A long banquet table of food steamed, as new dishes were uncovered. Men, women, and children stood in the long line waiting to fill their plates and stomachs. There was enough food here to feed four villages. Perched on the center of the stage was a large screen. At the moment, it was gray and blank, but my stomach began to churn imagining the sickening images that would soon fill it.
A team of Greaters, complete with weird glasses, huddled at the end of the stage trying to shield their equipment from the elements. “The train came in this afternoon,” said Ky beside me, still holding onto my hand, steadying me.
I nodded. We wove through the crowds of people making our way to the end of the line. I wanted a good meal. It might be the last I had in a while. “Stay away from the drinks.”
“Why?”
“I brought something from home. Just trust me.” That was weird.
“Okay.”
He eased a glass jar of water out of his pocket, just enough to show me. I looked around and noticed that a lot of villagers were drinking out of the same. I moved closer to Ky. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing. Just making sure that if they take you, they won’t be too rough on you.”
Go Kyan . I wasn’t sure
“What?” I grinned.
“Got you something.”
He reached into the pocket of his coat pulling out a folded piece of fabric.
I took it from him. “What’s this?”
“A scarf. It’s cold.”
I smiled and unfolded the fine piece of brilliant red fabric. It was the color of a perfectly ripe apple. “It’s so soft. Thank you.” I wrapped it around my neck. On my tiptoes, I hugged him quickly and thanked him again. I wasn’t sure how he’d gotten it, but it was beautiful and I loved it.
“Abby, I need you to listen to me.”
I looked up into his blue eyes. The muscle in his jaw worked back and forth. “Just say it, Ky.”
“I’ll come for you. Whatever happens tonight, just know I’ll come for you. I promise.”
The only thing I could do was nod. I knew he would.
“And, I need you to know that I love you. I love you with every damn cell in my body. Every inch of me belongs to you. And I promise that I’ll do whatever it takes to make this whole messed up situation right by you, and the others.”
I hugged him tight. My voice broke when I said, “I love you, too, Ky.”
He chuckled and his shoulders bounced up and down along with his laughter. “No, you don’t. Not yet. But, you will one day. We were meant for each other, Abby Blue. I was built for you, just as much as you were built for me.” He paused. “Just remember that when you’re alone, okay. I know Gray’s going in with you, but you don’t know what they’ll do. You may be separated. Just... keep me here.” He placed his hand near my heart.
I dared to look up at him. He was serious, and I would remember his words and cling to them in the darkness I was about to enter into. “I will. I promise.”
∞
I pulled on the pair of gloves I’d borrowed from Ky earlier in the week. He insisted I take them. We stepped into the cold evening air, pausing on the porch for a minute. A gust of wind came through swirling snowflakes along the pathway. “Ready?” I asked.
“No. I don’t think I can do this, Abby Blue.”
He shook his head. “You have to. Please, do this for me, Ky. I need you to be strong and go along with the plan. I need you out here. You have to get me out of there, but not tonight. Go along with the plan, okay?”
He blew out a sharp breath. “This is insane.”
I smiled. It was. “Everything worth doing is a little crazy, right?”
“I guess.” He held his hand out for mine and we walked hand in hand up the pathway toward the village square. I could hear the crowd before we even crested the final hill. The square was packed. Every villager was crammed inside it, huddled around the generous bonfires scattered along the perimeter and beneath the fiery torches that lined the edges.
A long banquet table of food steamed, as new dishes were uncovered. Men, women, and children stood in the long line waiting to fill their plates and stomachs. There was enough food here to feed four villages. Perched on the center of the stage was a large screen. At the moment, it was gray and blank, but my stomach began to churn imagining the sickening images that would soon fill it.
A team of Greaters, complete with weird glasses, huddled at the end of the stage trying to shield their equipment from the elements. “The train came in this afternoon,” said Ky beside me, still holding onto my hand, steadying me.
I nodded. We wove through the crowds of people making our way to the end of the line. I wanted a good meal. It might be the last I had in a while. “Stay away from the drinks.”
“Why?”
“I brought something from home. Just trust me.” That was weird.
“Okay.”
He eased a glass jar of water out of his pocket, just enough to show me. I looked around and noticed that a lot of villagers were drinking out of the same. I moved closer to Ky. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing. Just making sure that if they take you, they won’t be too rough on you.”
Go Kyan . I wasn’t sure
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