Losing Nuka (Litmus Book 1) (25 page)

“I don’t suppose Uncle Brett’s taught you how to fight?” I ask quietly.

“A little.” His voice is shaky and unconfident. Not exactly what I was hoping for.

“I’ll take the guy on the left, he’s bigger.”

“Your stitches,” he whispers, but we’re out of time. The goons are on us.

Everything happens so fast.

It’s clear they’re not experienced fighters when my guy goes to attack and I dodge him easily. I struggle with my broken wrist and ribs, plus my operation site, but I’m able to keep my guard up. He’s unable to get a hold of me; he can’t even hit me, no matter how many times he tries.

I turn and kick him in his happy place, and he hunches over.

A rippling pain shoots down my left side, but I have to push through.

Gritting my teeth, I step forwards and elbow him in the back of the head while he’s still hunched over. He collapses to the ground—just where I need him. Turning and kneeing him in the back, hard, I punch the side of his head with my fist, effectively knocking him out.

My first knockout.

I glance around to find Paddy. He’s being dragged by the other guy and is almost at the front of the house.

Running after them, I’m quick to tackle them both to the ground, the pain in my side now throbbing.

Paddy and I scramble to get away from our attacker, but all three of us freeze when we hear a gunshot come from inside the house.

“No!” I yell.

Shane’s henchman gets off the ground and starts running for the front door. Now’s our chance to get to the car, but neither of us can find the strength to move.

“I have to make sure Brett’s okay,” I say to Paddy. “You get to the car. I’ll be there soon, okay? Lock the doors, and don’t let anyone in but me or Uncle Brett.”

He nods. “Okay,” he says, his voice cracking. “Nuka—”

“Everything will be okay,” I lie. If I go in there and Brett’s … I can’t even think about it. I have to have hope that he’s okay.

As we get up, I push him in the direction of the car as I start to make my way to the front door.

What if Brett’s dead?
This makes my feet stop moving. I’m sure less than a minute has gone by since the shot went off, but it feels like hours. Neither Brett nor Shane have come out.

What if Shane comes out…
I should go to Paddy. We need to get out of here.
You can’t leave Brett.

I almost collapse when the henchman from before steps out of the door, his eyes boring into mine with hatred and disgust.

“No,” I whisper to myself.

Brett’s gone.

Tears flood my cheeks, and my breath comes in sobbing gasps.

I’m expecting Shane to follow his man out. Relief consumes me when he doesn’t.

“Brett.” As soon as I see him, relief takes over me and I propel myself forwards.

I push the other guy out of the way and grab a hold of Brett as tight as I can, tears flowing freely. “I thought you were gone,” I whisper frantically.

“I’m still here,” he says, kissing the side of my head. “But we have to go. Now.”

It’s only then I realise why the other guy’s still standing behind me. Brett’s arm is stretched out, training his gun on him.

“Is Shane …” I don’t want to ask.

“Not dead. I shot him in the leg which is only going to slow him down, not stop him. So start moving.”

He doesn’t need to tell me twice. We rush to the car, Brett never once taking the gun off the other guy.

Paddy unlocks the car for us, and it only takes a split second before we’re speeding off into the night.

-20-

GOODBYE

We’ve been driving for a while now, all three of us completely silent. My side is aching, and I’m pretty sure one or more of my stitches have either come out or ripped or something. I’m too scared to look down. The pain tells me something’s not right, but I can’t worry Brett about that now.

“What are we going to do?” I ask.

“I don’t know.” Brett shakes his head. He looks in the rear-view mirror at a terrified Paddy. “I really don’t know,” he whispers.

“You have to leave—for good.”

“We can’t, Nuke. There’s no way.”

I let out a sigh, as I reach into my back pocket, holding onto my side as I do. I go to hand over my money card, but he eyes me sceptically.

“Take it. Take my trust fund.”

His eyes widen. “We can’t do that.”

“It’s your only option.”

His jaw clicks as he contemplates it, but he doesn’t take the card from me. “Are you going to come with us?”

Dropping my hands to my lap, I shake my head as my eyes start to fill with tears. “I can’t,” I whisper.

Brett pulls over to the side of the road, coming to a sudden stop. “Stay in the car, Paddy.” He gets out and walks around to open my door, holding out his hand for me to take.

As I climb out, he shuts the door behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist. He pushes me against the car door, his body blanketing mine as he takes my mouth with his. Tears streak my face, as I hold onto him like it will be the last time. Because I know it will be. I can’t leave, but they can.

He pulls away, breathing heavily, his forehead still pressed to mine, his arms still wrapped around me. He’s just as reluctant to let go as I am. “
That
was for offering us the world. But I can’t let you do it. If you were going to come—”

“I can’t. I can’t leave Sasha, I still don’t know my mother … I can’t turn my back on what I set out to do, which is find out who I really am.”

“You’re the most amazing person I’ve ever met.” He wipes one of my tears away with his thumb while he cradles my face. “And I’m not going to leave you. If Cade and Jonas were to find out what you did—”

“I can handle them. You have
no
other option, Brett.”

He steps away and runs a hand through his hair. “You still have no idea who Cade is, do you?”

“What do you mean?”

“The reason we’re paid to follow you and Sasha around? It’s so you can’t get out. None of us can get out. Cade doesn’t care about you, Nuke. Trust me, I know.”

“What did she say?”

“She saw you as a target the minute I brought you home.”

“A target?”

“Their next money-making venture. They’ve been fairly good to you so far because you’ve done all they asked. If they know you’re the reason I’m gone … I don’t want to think about what they’ll do.”

“Cade’s my mother. She may not be a good one, but she is. Surely there’s some mother instinct buried deep inside her that won’t let Jonas hurt me.”

“Fighters aren’t the only ones Jonas owns.” His tone is dejected, sad.

“But—”

“Once Jonas has you, you’re lost in Litmus forever. I can’t take off and leave you, and I especially can’t leave with your backup source. It may just buy your way out one day.”

“Buy my way out?”

“You still haven’t read your contract, have you? They’ve kept it hidden from you, right?”

I nod.

“It basically states—in a whole lot of confusing legal crap—that you belong to them for as long as they want you to be. The only way out is to pay out your contract, or serve your time. The only other option is running. This is our only chance for both of us to get out.”

“If what you’re saying is true, isn’t Sasha just as trapped? Am I just meant to leave her there? I’ve already abandoned my other siblings—am I just going to do it again? There’s also not enough money in my trust fund for the three of us to live. It’ll get us by for a while, probably a few years even, but then what? Like you said—we’re undesirable. We’d need jobs. Even with just the two of you, you’re going to have to find work.”

He shrugs. “I’ve always had to scrounge for work. It’s nothing I’m not used to.”

“But it is for me. The string of odd jobs I’ve had never worked out. I wasn’t groomed for hard work. At least Litmus is easy. I can do that.”

“I’m not leaving without you, Nuke. If you don’t go, we don’t go. Simple as that.”

“And when Shane comes to kill Paddy, or you? You think I want to lose you that way?”

“You’d rather send me away knowing I could never come back? Have me leave you voluntarily?”

“I’d rather know you’re out there somewhere, living the life you deserve, hoping with all hope that you’re happy, and that I did the right thing.”

“We can protect Paddy. I’ll add a few more years to my service, and get Jonas and Cade to take Paddy in. With Nanna gone, there’s no one else to look after him. Jonas and Cade have paid off my debts, I just need to finish out my service. If I leave now …”

“How long do you have left?”

“Five years.”

“Five?” I screech.

“Well, it was two until I had to take the advance for Shane. And it’ll be more now if they take on Paddy, too.”

I shake my head. “Not going to happen.” I shove my money card at him again. “You and Paddy are leaving. You won’t be able to draw money from the actual bank, so you’ll have to use ATMs. There’s a limit to how much you can take out each day, but it’s pretty high. It shouldn’t take you more than a week to empty it. You can’t use the card forever, they’ll be able to track you. Pin number is zero-one-two-nine.”

“Nuke—”

“Stop. You’re selfless to a fault, and a pain in the ass. You’re cocky, arrogant, and piss me off with your erratic behaviour … but you’re also someone I will do anything for, because I care about you more than I ever thought possible. I’m giving you your freedom. You deserve it. And if what Uncle Drew said about my dad embezzling this money is true, then it’s not mine to begin with.”

“I can’t—”

“You can, and you will. You told me once that you would do anything to save your family. I’m not going to be the person who stops you from doing that. You tell me I’m stubborn, so you know there’s no point in arguing with me.”

“You are stubborn. And I will never be more grateful, or thankful, for that. For what you’re giving us.” He kisses me, his mouth covering mine, his hands embracing me. When he pulls away, his face is wet with tears. “We have to get going. Shane might be right behind us.”

He pulls me off the car, but as I go to take a step, I feel lightheaded and almost collapse.

“Are you okay?” Brett asks, before catching a glimpse of my side. “Shit, Nuka. Why didn’t you tell me you’re hurt?”

“I’ll be fine. Let’s go.” I go to take a step, but Brett stops me, lifting up my bloody shirt. “We have to get you back to the hospital.”

“Not until I know you’re gone and safe.”

He doesn’t bother arguing, even though I can tell he wants to. I guess he realises how counter-productive it’d be.

We make our way back into the car, and as soon as Brett puts the car in gear, he starts talking a million miles a minute.

“There’s so much to do. We have to go to Drake’s.”

“Drake’s?”

“I have some stuff stashed there. Clothes, things Paddy and I’ll need. I’ve always had it in case we needed to leave suddenly or I finally got enough money to get out. We can’t go back to the house, Jonas and Cade will know something’s up. Speaking of which, when you get back to the hospital, you have to pretend you never left. No one saw you leave last night, right? No one saw you at Litmus?”

“I … I don’t know. They could’ve.”

“Just deny it. You need to convince them you have no idea where I am, you had nothing to do with me leaving, and you can’t let them know you funded it.”

“Okay.”

“I mean it, Nuke. If either of them suspect …”

“What? What will they do?”

He shakes his head. “There’s a lot they could do. They could hurt you, punish you, make you fight more than you’re able just to make you earn more money for them. Hell, for all I know, they could kill you. Jonas isn’t above doing something like that. I think the best you could hope for would be they make you take over my contract. Be promised to them for five years. If they find out you’re the reason they lost me … yeah … that’s best-case scenario.”

“Okay, got it. Don’t let them find out.”

His left leg starts hammering against the floor. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

“Yes, you should be. You need to.”

“There has to be another way. What if Shane comes after you?”

“He doesn’t even know who I am.”

“Yeah, okay. That’s true.”

“I know you’re doubting this, but I’m not. It feels … right.” I shrug. “It’s hard to explain.”

“It feels right that I’m leaving you?” I don’t miss the rejection in his voice.

“It feels right that I’m the one to save you. I hate that you’re leaving, but everything inside me is telling me that this is what I need to do. I saved two lives today.”

He grabs my hand and brings it to his lips.

“Why aren’t you coming with us, Nuka?” Paddy asks from the back. He’s been so quiet, I almost forgot he was there.

“I’m not done saving people. I’m going to get Sasha out of there.”

Brett smiles, but it’s a tight-lipped, unsure smile.

***

It’s still dark when we arrive at Drake’s, but it’s nearing 5:00 AM, and the sun will be coming up soon. We all file out of the car, letting ourselves into the house with a key on Brett’s keyring.

I head straight for the bathroom, hoping to find some painkillers or something to dull the aches and pains I’m feeling all over. I only need to last a little bit longer, and then I’ll be back in the hospital. They can give me the good drugs again then.

Reluctantly, I lift my shirt, revealing a bloody, oozing scar. Two of my stitches are loose, and the wound smells gross.

I’m a mess. I’m dirty from the scuffle on the front lawn, the bags under my eyes suggest I haven’t slept for days, and my pale, pasty skin lets me know I’m not in good shape.

I clean my wound as best I can and cover it with a bandage I find in a first aid kit under the sink. It’ll do until I get back to the hospital.

Squashing down the temptation to throw up, I gulp some tap water and splash my face with the coolness.

When I leave the bathroom and enter the living room, Drake’s out of bed. He’s wearing only boxers and is holding a gun.

A small smirk plays on my lips.

“I thought someone was breaking in,” he rationalises. “What’s going on, guys?”

“Remember how I told you that one day I may have to take off?” Brett says. Drake nods for him to continue. “That day’s come.”

“But … you’re still locked in for—”

“I know, but something’s come up. I have to leave this morning. Like right now.”

Drake runs his hand over his hair. “Okay. So what’s the plan?”

I’m a little surprised Drake’s taking this okay.

“I need to leave the car here. We can’t take it with us, it’ll attract too much attention, and we’ll be easily tracked.”

“Wait … are you saying …” Drake’s eyes light up.

Brett shakes his head. “Don’t get too excited. It belongs to Nuka now.”

“What?” I ask, stunned.

“It’s the least I could do,” Brett says. “Maybe you can get some of your money back by selling it.”

“If all I had to do was sleep with you to get the car, I would’ve done it ages ago,” Drake says.

I actually find myself giggling despite the situation.

“You need to take the car back to the hospital and leave it in the parking lot. It’ll make it look like I went missing from there.”

“What do you need me to do?” Drake asks.

“I need to borrow your car, and you’ll have to pick it up from the train station later. You also need to make sure she gets to the hospital safely. She’s not looking too hot.”

“Thanks,” I say sarcastically.

“You know what I mean.” He looks between Paddy and Drake, his eyes telling them to leave the room without him actually having to ask.

“Come on, Paddy, we’ll get all your stuff together to leave,” Drake says.

They don’t even make it out of the room before my tears start. It takes even less time before Brett has me in his arms.

“I don’t want to say goodbye,” I whisper. “Do you think … will you ever come back?”

“There’d be a lot of people after me if I did. But if you ever asked me to—”

“I can’t do that to you. I care about you too much.”

“I’m only going to say this once, and you don’t have to say it back. In fact, I’d probably prefer you didn’t, or I don’t see me walking out that door, ever. But, I—”