Human Nature (Book 4): Human Nature IV by Borthwick, Finlay (book recommendations website .TXT) 📗

poses a danger to the rest of us?” When she phrased the question like this, it had put Alek in an awkward position.

“Hold on,” Emile read Alek’s expression, “I know that look… Are you—Protecting someone?”

Alek neither confirmed nor denied this.

“Unbelievable!” Emile threw his hands up in disbelief, “Somebody tried to kill you and you’re—”

“It wasn’t like that! She didn’t mean to hurt me!” Alek refuted, though in doing so, he had given the game away.

“…She?” Emile’s heart began racing with fear, beginning to believe that Adela may have had something to do with this, and thus, exposed their secret.

“Alek?” Marianne further prompted an answer.

Now, there was no doubt in Emile’s mind that Alek somehow knew the truth about Adela. An unconquerable trembling came across him as he made this realisation.

“Alek!” Marianne pushed him once more.

“Tia!” He blurted out amidst all the pressure.

“…What?” Emile was not expecting this answer in the slightest, and the connotations of this now made him even more afraid.

“The plane crashed, she was deluded—She was having flashbacks to her and Adela’s parents deaths…” Alek explained with a guilty lump in his throat, feeling it was beyond his jurisdiction to expunge such information, “She wasn’t even a preteen when they died. She had to watch on helplessly as they were murdered—And during her episode after the crash, she was completely disoriented.”

“How does that equate to her trying to kill you?!” Emile was furious.

“You can’t control yourself when you’re in a flashback, Emile!” Alek defended his assailant, “In her mind, she saw only the gun and the people who killed her parents. If you could back and save your parents, you’d do anything, wouldn’t you?”

Marianne nodded understandingly, “That girl loves you, Alek.” She caressed Alek’s hand sympathetically, “If you want this kept a secret, I’ll forget that you ever said anything.”

“Thanks Marianne.” Alek nodded to her appreciatively; for he had no ill-will towards his goddaughter, and therefore, neither should anybody else.

But Emile was not as understanding, however, “She’s dangerous, Alek. Who’s to say she won’t have another flashback and shoot someone else? Or worse?”

“She won’t.” Alek bluntly stated without any doubt in his voice. “She’s a child who had just walked out of a plane crash… I’d have been more surprised if she were perfectly normal!”

“And you thought the best way to protect her was to tell no one that you’d been shot and just let yourself die?” Emile was baffled by his lover’s choice of action.

“Yes, well, I’ll admit it, I hadn’t considered the death part,” Alek confessed, “All I knew was that I had to protect Tia. I knew people would start asking questions about the bullet if it got out, and was I wrong? I mean, here you two are.”

“She can’t be trusted.” Emile was stern about where he stood.

“So what would you have us do?” Marianne butted in. “Banish her and send her out into The Bandits’ grip?”

“No,” Emile shook his head, for he indeed had an idea, “We lock her up.”

Marianne laughed, “What a stupid idea! She’s literally a child!”

“A child who nearly killed my fiancé!” Emile bellowed at her.

“That’s enough!” Alek regained control of the debate. “I’m the one who got shot, so it’s my decision: And I’m telling you, Tia has done nothing! That’s exactly what you’re gonna believe the minute you walk out of this room.”

Emile was disheartened to hear his fiancé talking to him as though he were just another resident of the safe zone and not the man he was going to soon marry.

Wanting to feel useful, Elliot had this time volunteered to take watch duty at the main gate. Ever since he had lost his sight, he become far more introverted. As such, Cora had paired him up with her equally introverted friend, Rylie, in the hopes that they would bond and bring out the best in each other.

“Nice—Cane.” Rylie complimented Elliot on the stick he used to navigate his way around.

“Oh, thank you.” Elliot nodded politely, though was thinking to himself that this was rather an odd thing to say.

Feeling awkward, Rylie tried to erase their remark from existence immediately after saying it, “I like your hair! It’s all long and blowy and, well, it’s just really cool.”

Although Rylie had only said this to break the ice, Elliot was wondering to himself if they were trying to flirt with him, “Well, I’d say I like yours too, but you know—” He pointed to his dull and grey eyes.

Rylie laughed, “Well, I suppose you can feel it if you’d like.” Again, they didn’t mean this in a flirtatious manner, but rather just didn’t know how to socialise with this new friend.

“Oh,” Elliot was feeling equally as awkward, “Well, I don’t mind if I do.” He reached out, as Rylie guided his hand through their short hair. “It’s um—It’s very clean!” Elliot noted.

“The showers here are excellent.” Rylie affirmed.

“Yeah, I remember… I think.” In truth, Elliot was unsure if he had even used the showers the first time he was here.

At her mother’s request, Cora had gone to check in on Alek. Although Marianne had departed from the operating theatre by this point, Emile was still very much by his partner’s side, though had an extremely disgruntled look on his face.

“How’s everything in here?” Cora asked with an effulgent smile.

“All good,” Alek assured her, “I’ve taken my first round of antibiotics and now, using your mother’s advice, I’m just taking it easy.”

“I’m delighted to hear that… Tia sends her regards.” Cora naively informed him.

Alek and Emile looked daringly at each other; the recent revelation of course meaning Cora’s words had multiple connotations.

“I’m sorry?” Alek was the one to prompt an answer.

“Oh, Marianne told her that you’re in hospital, but she didn’t tell her why.” Cora revealed.