Page 7 of Ruined

“I was in the military a few years back, and there were sixteen of us. Information got leaked, one of the men turned against the unit, and a lot of the men were hurt. Only two survived.”

I nod my head along with his words, understanding his pain. Someone was close to Jace, and he was betrayed. It doesn’t take a genius to know that he doesn’t trust much either.

“I understand that you’re scared. I understand you don’t trust me and that’s fine. But if we’re being attacked and I tell you to run, I need to know you’re going to do that. I can’t worry about making sure you’re doing what I ask when I’m fighting or doing whatever I’m doing at the moment.” Finally turning towards me, Jace's gaze washes over me. And for the first time, I feel the truth in his words. I might not know him, but the sincerity in his eyes is enough for me, for now.

“Can you do that for me?” he asks.

Glancing over at the window, I watch people get into their cars and drive away. Some get out and begin pumping their gas, others stay in the passenger seat on their phone. A part of me longs to be normal, to have a boyfriend that I fight with for normal reasons. The idea of packing up and going to a college, somewhere far, far away from here. Longing for some type of normalcy. I hadn’t always wanted to be a regular twenty-year-old. I loved growing up in the mafia—I had loving parents, and a brother who would do anything for me. But now? I feel lost and trapped under a cloud I can’t get out of.

“Blake?” Jace mutters.

Peeking over at him, he frowns when I fail to do anything. Slowly raising my hand, I touch my finger to my lip before pulling it down to my other hand.

“I don’t understand,” he frowns.

Taking a deep breath, I bring my pinky between us. Jace’s frown deepens, eyes traveling to my hand before backing up to my face. Slowly he intertwines our pinkies together. My skin ignites and the feeling of his skin against mine makes me stabby. Pushing it down, I focus on the confusion in his eyes.

“Promise?”

Nodding my head, I pull my hand back and repeat what I signed.

“Promise,” Jace mutters, a smile spreading across his face.

Blinking, I give him a tiny smile. It’s not much, but it’s a start and when he brings his finger to his lips, repeating the action, my heart squeezes and my lungs freeze.

Thankfully, Jace saves me from having to sit in the awkward silence when he shoves the key into the ignition and music filters through the car.

I sink into my seat. Maybe Jace isn’t so bad.

4

She stabbed me.

I’m trained to see things. I can spot a shooter in camouflage, or a deer on the side of the road while driving. Point-blank, I’m very good at finding things that are hidden within plain sight. So, Blake having a knife completely shocked me. I hadn’t expected her to have a weapon, let alone use it. And most of all, I wasn’t prepared to be turned on by her stabbing me. Pain isn’t new to me. The look on Blake’s face when the blade slid into my skin, realizing what she had done, was both beautiful and the saddest thing I’ve seen.

In the military you see a lot of men become scared when faced with danger. Unsure if they’ll pull the trigger. Although Blake was scared, she was aware enough to protect herself. It wasn’t until she looked up and saw me, that there was that glint of regret. It was small, but still there, nonetheless.

I couldn’t figure out what caused her to freak out like she had. I had just pulled off to get gas before we drove for a few more hours. Blake had been passed out, twitching against the door but asleep. Now she flinches at every bump we hit and when I lean too far into the middle. She keeps her hood over her head, only glancing at me when she thinks I can’t see her.

It’s kind of cute when she peeks over and catches me already looking at her. She always frowns and rolls those big green eyes at me.

It’s not until a few hours later that Blake throws something at my head, and I jerk the wheel. I wasn’t sure if I was more embarrassed that she spooked me or that I was so caught up in my mind that I wasn’t paying enough attention to my surroundings. So much so that I missed her demeanor change.

“What the fuck?” I growl, glancing over at Blake. She sits to the side, her knees still pressed against the door like she’s mad at me. I have no idea why she would be. Not when a few hours ago we came to a sort of middle ground that when shit hits the fan, because in this line of business how can you not expect it to, she would listen to me. I doubt she would, but I hope Blake would surprise me.

“What do you need?” I growl, focusing back on the road. Thankfully it’s nearing dark, and the roads are beginning to clear.

Peeking over, Blake’s hands move, and I realize she’s trying to talk to me.

“Well, fuck,” I mutter. I’m not sure why I thought I would be able to just read her mind, or suddenly know sign language. “Alright, you’re going to need to slow it down. Like way down,” I mumble, turning the already shut-off radio down.

Blake blows out silent raspberries, glancing out the window. I knew it was going to be difficult with this language barrier, but I didn’t think it was going to bethatbad.

Her hands begin to move slower this time, sticking her arm straight out before pointing to mine.

“I’m not understanding.”

Blake tries once more before I shake my head, confused about what she’s trying to tell me along with the fact I can’t stare at her and try to play the guessing game.

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