Page 62 of Anathema
Derek and Atlas remained quiet, watching Eli closely in case he decided to bolt.
“What did you tell her, Eli?” Madison questioned, stepping up beside me and crossing her arms over her chest. It was in his best interest not to fuck with or lie to either one of us right now. We were out for blood.
“I told her the truth: who they were and what they did. I tried to scare her off, but you know Alexis. She doesn’t back down from a challenge, no matter how fucked up it could be.” He scoffed, throwing his arms out wide. “Honestly, I could have told her they were cannibals, and she still would have accepted their offer.”
With a deep growl in frustration, I pinched the bridge of my nose between my fingers and sighed.How did we get here?
“If you want my opinion—” Eli started.
“I don’t.” I interrupted to shut him up.
“—Derek was the one fucking her; he had more responsibility than I did. Dude, how the fuck did you not know she was involved with them? Is your dick that blind? Aren’t you supposed to be some big-shot CIA Agent?” Eli finished.
Derek and Atlas turned their attention from their side conversation to Eli, and he smirked.
“Seeing as my dick doesn’t have eyes, I would say so. But Lex never gave me the impression she was working for them. Never brought up Anathema or left evidence of her involvement out in plain sight.” Derek’s response was cold, but I could tell that underneath his calm facade, he was reeling over her being missing and in danger.
His hands slid into his front pockets, and as his eyes met mine, I saw everything his face didn’t show. Derek was in love with Alexis.He cared for her. No matter how much I wanted to hate him, I didn’t doubt his intentions for a second.
“I know where their hideout is located,” Derek added with a sigh, pulling his phone from his pocket and unlocking the screen. Atlas looked down at the screen and raised a brow.
“How do you know where they are?” I asked, stepping towards them as Derek began typing on his phone.
“A couple of weeks ago, Dean and I were investigating the headrace system under the Twin City A-Mill, and we came across a passage that was marked with their symbol.”
“Why were you investigating the headrace system in the first place?” Madison walked over and aggressively took Derek’s phone from him.
He blew out a strained breath and ran a hand through his hair.
“Conrad put us both on an assignment to look into Anathema and see what they were up to. Rumors were circulating that they were planning some ‘big’ event and had recently established themselves in Minneapolis.”
“Do you think Lex is part of thismaster planthey have in the works?” I asked, peering over Madison’s shoulder to see what she was looking at.
“We never got that far.” Derek gestured to Eli. “He was the information resource that we brought in to assist with the case, but he couldn’t deliver on his end of the bargain.”
“Fuck you, Derek. I gave you the entire layout blueprints. You’re the one who had to barge into my apartment and beat the shit out of me for no goddamn reason,” Eli hissed.
“And I’d do it all over again if I could; you put your hands on Lex when she wasn’t yours to touch. She was mine. I should have ended you right then and there, but she protected your sorry ass.” Derek growled, his words laced with malice for all the things he wanted to do to Eli at that moment.
“And who’s protecting her now? Sure as fuck isn’t you.” Eli snapped aggressively.
“Enough with the pissing contest. We get it. You two can figure your shit out when Alexis is back home and safe. Until then, suck it up, both of you.” Atlas cut in, stepping between the two of them. “We need to work together if we are going to get her out of this alive.”
Eli piped up, and all of our attention gravitated to Atlas, who now stood in the center of our group.
"We know where she is, we know how to get to her, but what we can't do is run in there like a bunch of emotionally charged parents." He started. "We need to have a plan and weigh all of our options for the best possible outcome. Derek and I have been discussing these details, and I believe we have a solid idea of what we should do…"
Atlas's voice faded to a muffle as my mind raced with all the horrible things that could have happened to her while we just stood here and bickered. This whole night was getting out of hand, and we were running out of time.
Wearguedforagood hour past Derek getting the coordinates to the hideout. I didn’t want to delay our search further, but Derek and Atlas suggested it would be wise to go in under the cover of the night.
Pulling up to the Twin City A-Mill, Madison and I climbed out of Derek's truck, shoving Eli out of the way, and headed to the main doors together. It took everything in me not to open the door and push him out of the truck on the highway.
Madison equipped herself with a gun and a knife, and I had brought two knives secured to both of my thighs. I never had a solid aim, and while I could use one when necessary, I was always better with hand-to-hand skills. It was honestly refreshing to be back here with her; Alexis was the only person missing in this long overdue reunion.
Dean pulled up shortly after on his electric green Kawasaki Ninja ZX6R, and Madison stiffened beside me when he reached us.
“Something wrong, Mads?” I asked with concern, elbowing her arm lightly to grab her attention.
