Page 24 of Not Even A Mouse
“She will appreciate seeing you tonight for dinner, then. I was uncertain I would extend the invitation, given my anger, but it sounds as if you need family around you.” Compassion and understanding blurred the edges of Bones voice, and Myron didn’t dare look at him.
Fortunately, he didn’t have to,becauseon the screen, viewsnow synchronized since the second drone had made the trip, they saw a group of bikes approaching on the highway. “Looks like Jailbreakers are headed in. Things are gonna get interesting.”
***
“Soup istoosassy.” Ester’s irritation showed in her tone as she refuted a statement from Bones. Myron had to admire the man’s willingness to rile her up, but as easy as she made it, clearly the affectionateteasing wasn’t something that bothered her.
“How can soup be sassy, Ester? It is merely soup. A meal to be eaten when one needs sustenance.” Bones didn’t look up, kept his gaze pinned on his bowl where he was casually stirring the steaming liquid with precise movements of his spoon.
“Sass is in the making when you take water and demand it become the more it is in the pot now.”
Myron lookeddown at his own bowl, seeing the noodles and spices floating in the translucent liquid. A wide hunk of homemade bread rested on the edge of a plate nearby, covered in a broad swath of butter.
“Sass is in the air when you breathe it inside, letting the goodness become you.” She huffed out a breath in what he understood now was a mock frustration. “That means you have to let the sass out, so thesoup is sassy in the end.” Not yet done, Ester thudded the butt of her spoon on the table. Myron glanced at her, then at Bones just in time to see the tender look that passed between them. Adoration highlighted the beauty of her features and Ester’s face softened as Bones’ did the same. Shared jokes, shared lives…shared love.
His gut twisted painfully as any hunger fled. Just that one singlelook between the two of them that meant everything was something he’d lived his wholelifeknowing would never be his. Knowing and accepting, telling himself that what he had was good enough. That the brotherhood filled him up in ways that were sufficient, if not satisfactory. It had never been enough, but he’d only known that in the abstract. Now, he knew in his soul how it felt to share a looklike that with someone you loved.
I was okay with it once. Myron stared into the soup again, throat tight.I’ll get past this. He lifted hisspoon,and a torrent of drops fell, disturbing the surface of the soup, little ripples racing across the liquid. They slowed and faded, the soup absorbing the energy created by the disturbance. A final droplet clung stubbornly to the edge of the spoon, growinglarger as it collectedminisculeamounts of soup spread thinly across the metal surface. It clung and clung, resisting the pull of gravity, even though Myron knew it would lose the fight in the end.Can I really stay away? Don’t I deserve to have what Ester and Bones have?Finally, the droplet fell, and the ending was anticlimactic, ripples ending far sooner than he would have predicted.Dropletand soup reunited at last. Myron snorted at his thoughts, dipped the spoon in and lifted it to his mouth.
“Yes, eat, my Ronnie. You deserve somesassyin your life.”
I deserved Andy.
***
“You should simply tell me what is wrong, Myron. If you would let it out of your mouth, then someone can help you sort things to the best outcome.”
Bones’ voice came from behind him. Myron didn’t turn, juststared out into the dark garden beyond the kitchen windows. He shook his head and lifted the beer in his hand, drained the bottle and placed it on the table alongside the other three already occupying the space.
“Are you asking me to guess, then? Apply my deducing skills to determine the issue?”
Myron shook his head again. “Couldn’t sleep. Found your beer.”
Bones laughed. “I am not concernedfor the beer.” A pause, filled by the scuff of bare foot soles on the floor. “I am concerned for my friend.”
“How’d you do it? Convince Ester you were worth the chance? She was so afraid all the time, and then shit happened right outside her bedroom door. Yet, she’s still here.” Myron shrugged, still staring at the glass but now watching Bones’ reflection instead of the dim view of the yard.“How?”
“Is that the crux of the matter for you? Your bartender got a taste of the club and didn’t like it?”
“See—” He stood and turned, reseating himself on the chair, arms crossed on the back. “—that’s the thing. I don’t think he even got a ‘taste’ as you put it. He read a goddamned article in the paper. It wasn’t even about the RWMC, just another club. But he lumped us all in the same boat,and—” He chuckled, the dark sounds ripping his throat raw. “—set fire to that damned thing.”
“He cut you loose? No explanation beyond pointing to the newspaper as the bearer of unwelcome tidings?”
“He called me over to talk.” Myron scoffed. “Like he wanted to talk. He’d already made up his mind, just needed permission to pull the trigger on breaking what we had.” He shook his head. “He neverwanted to talk. Just wanted to throw accusations around.”
“Are you so certain of that, Myron?” Bones opened the refrigerator and pulled out two bottles, removed the caps and set one in front of Myron. “Or did you do like you sometimes do, as you did today for example, and retreat before understanding what was asked?”
“No, he was done. The conversation was all about ‘can you assure me Talya andI are safe?’ All of which meant he didn’t trust me. Without trust, there can’t be…he was just done, Bones. Believe me, I know.”
Bones stared down at him, lifted his beer and drank deep, pulling at the bottle for several long swallows. In the shadows, it was hard to know for sure, but it looked like he was scowling. His next words told Myron he’d been right in that assumption. “Allow me a momentto get this straight, if I may. A man you were seeing, who is a single parent to a daughter, and who has already lost one partner in an unexpected event, asked you if his daughter was safe. Myron.” Bones shook his head. “He was within his rights to ask that question. The life is not kind to all, and citizens cannot easily understand why we thrive on living outside of the law, yet within the rulesbinding us together. Especially not if you do not explainwhatwe are.” He shifted and leaned a hip against the counter. “What is one of the most important things to the Rebels? I know it, and you do too. So tell me, what comes first after the brotherhood?”
“Family.” Myron didn’t even have to think.
“So why is this man asking you to assure him you would keep his family safe out of line? Whywould you consider it an insult, and from the look on your face, it was a grave affront, but why would you not consider the depth of love and trust it took for him to voice the question?” Bones lifted his bottle and drained it, placing it in the bin near the garbage. He turned to pluck the other empties from the table, and took the still full bottle from Myron’s hand, upending it over the sink, theamber liquid pouring out in a rush. “You need to ask yourself why you do not trust him.”
***
Andy
