Page 34 of Bear Haven
“There’s not going to be anything. Just look at it, baby.”
She didn’t want to. She didn’t want to see the flames licking at it. She didn’t want to see ladders with firemen as they tried to put the flames out and prevent any additional damage. She didn’t want to see it, but she looked and watched and bore witness to someone’s hate for her, for something she had no control over.
It broke her heart and fueled her rage. It cemented her resolve to continue fighting. “I’m staying.”
Gus nodded, resigned. “Okay. We’ll stay.”
“We’ll take Beck with us,” Martin said.”
“What? Where? Why?”
“Back to our mountain. You’ll be safer away from here. It’s what your father wanted.”
“I can stay.”
“No, He’s right. You should go. And Marcel should go with you, too.” He’d been on a cot in the back of the ambulance, an oxygen mask covering his face along with several bandages on his wrists and one on his ankle. “He’s still recovering and he doesn’t need to be out here.”
“Bex?”
“I agree, Beck. Getting you out of here is the only way to protect you. We’ll come as soon as we can.”
“And I would only slow you down, is that it?”
Bex didn’t want to tell the truth and hurt him, but she didn’t want to lie to him, either. “Yes. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“Okay.”
“We’ll go as soon as the paramedics say he’s okay to leave.”
“I am,” he stated with a healthy dose of defiance. Bex had to bite back a smile. Maybe she came by her stubborn streak even more honestly than she first thought. Seems she may have gotten a double dose of it. “Believe me, I know me better than they know me. Maxine can tell you, if you want a professional opinion.”
“I trust you.” Bex kissed him on the cheek. ‘Now y’all go and we’ll figure out what we’re doing until we can join you.”
