Page 47 of Fate
“Yeah, I know.” Talon sighed. “The man has no kindness in him from what we know. But if you hadn’t asked…” He left the conclusion unsaid as we all knew Ma and Jarret would still be gone if she hadn’t asked for their release.
I wrapped my arm around Briget’s shoulder and stated proudly, “We all had our weapons out and our threats made, but all it really took was a little blossom.”
Most of the group stared at me with blank looks on their faces.
Knowing why I said it that way, Belle and Scarlet laughed.
“That was adorable as all get out, boy,” Ma said as she chuckled.
“Adorable?” Liberty asked me. “What the hell does it even mean?”
“It’s all in a name,” I said with a smirk on my face.
He looked even more confused by this remark. “Are you even speaking English, baby brother?”
“It’s my last name, Liberty,” Briget explained.
“Your name is Briget Blossom?” Liberty exclaimed as he looked astonished. Then he laughed loudly. “That is a helluva funny name.”
Belle smacked his arm as she shook her head.
Briget crossed her arms over her chest and retorted, “So says Liberty as he chose Belle for his girl. Ever heard of the Liberty Bell?”
The group all laughed at the pun.
I leaned in, kissed her on the cheek and said, “That was very clever.”
“Or very corny.” She rolled her eyes.
“Ok, so we need to have a discussion about how to proceed,” Jarret said.
Talon looked over at him and said, “We go ahead with our plan.”
“But he seems to know where we all are already,” I broke in.
Looking frustrated as usual, Talon pushed his fingers through his hair and replied, “That may be true. Although, he might not know where all the Walkers are. We need to keep with the plan for no other reason than the fact that he will have trouble attacking or going after fifteen different groups and locations. That is about how many are relocating.”
I paused at this smart conclusion and shook my head. “Damn, so the numbers game, huh?”
Ma nodded in agreement as she stated proudly, “We are so lucky that Deacon isn’t the only Walker strategist.”
Talon looked weary and not proud of her compliment. “We can only do our best. In the end, he has to die. If he remains alive, no Walker will be safe or anyone who is with a Walker.”
“It’s just so sad,” Briget said.
We all looked over at her.
Looking around, her cheeks went pink as she realized she had drawn the group’s attention again. “You have to admit that he is wasting his life with all of this. Like does he get up everyday and eat his Wheaties while saying,how many Walkers can I terrorize today?” Briget then snorted at her own nervous joke.
“Just don’t waste your time feeling sorry for him,” Talon stated as he looked angry. “He could have just gone on with his life after O died and left the country or at least, left Louisiana. But he didn't. He chose to stick around and make us all go into hiding. Threatened our lives and our home. He had to know that his mother was a horrible criminal who killed his father and his uncles. But he didn’t care.”
“I’m not sure he knew that she’d killed them,” Belle spoke up with doubt in her voice. “But I do know what he told me. He said he made a promise to her. That his mother made him swear to see this through to the very end. Then after she died, he stayed to fulfil his vow to her.”
“I just can’t drum up any sympathy for him or this vow,” Talon stated. “Not after he bombed that estate, thinking we were in there. You were present for that, Belle.”
She nodded her head. “But did he know back then that you were all really at Connor House? He could have? He sure seems to know more about where we are and what we are doing than you think, Talon.”
“So you're saying, he sent that army in there and the bombs just for kicks?” I asked her.
