Ruin - By N.M. Martinez Page 0,52

held hands. She resisted slipping into his arms only out of respect for both him and Brandon. Because the move would possibly make both of them uncomfortable even if it was very clear how she felt after so many years. Mary shut her eyes to listen to the water driven on by the wind and running on the land.

For a moment, she became dizzy with the weight of this new idea that her world did have an end and she'd lived near it this whole time.

On the other side of her, Brandon slipped his still small hand into hers so that she held the hands of both brothers on either side of her. "It's not fair that you're stuck there all the time."

Mary shrugged. "I have it better than most." And it was true so far as she was concerned.

Jimmy squeezed her hand again, his low voice cutting through the wind easily to make its way to her ear. "We better head back."

She nodded though it was one of those moments she'd prefer to either not end or end completely differently. If Jimmy would see reason and take her home with him and Brandon, she would go with them. No one would say anything to him. No one would stop him if that was what he wanted. But he hadn't asked and she knew it wasn't proper for her to ask him. It had been discussed once, and the one time, Jimmy had made it clear that it would never happen. It would never work.

As they walked up the hill, Brandon dropped her hand, but Jimmy didn't. The sand gave way under their feet and Jimmy practically pulled her along. When she looked up at him, he met her glance with a smile and a chuckle the wind swallowed up. For all the time they had known each other, a smile from him was still a rare thing, and she absorbed it knowing she would most likely never see it again except possibly in passing when he stopped by to "inspect" the care centers, or when he started stopping by with his own children.

They crawled through the hole in the barrier and made their way carefully through the thorny plants and bushes guarding the fence. Jimmy held her hand until they reached the edge and were back in the open again. Then he gave her fingers another squeeze before he released her, letting the cold air prickle her skin.

As they walked through the village, the sun slowly fell behind the hills surrounding the village. It was just past the large and noisy market that she heard the voice that made her pause.

"Jimmy." It was a smooth voice and deep. On anyone else it might have even been pleasant, but on the man walking towards them with his smile and narrowed eyes, it didn't sit right. Mary stepped back even as Jimmy stepped forward. "Brandon too. And who's this?"

The man tilted his chin at her, his sharp eyes narrowing even as a smile spread across his lips. Something about him unnerved her. He was taller than Jimmy, but skinnier. Tattoos and wiry muscles were exposed on his bare chest. There were many small tattoos that didn't look nearly as dark or as crisp as the tattoos of the Southlands. She caught the sight of one tattoo of a frightening creature with a sharp tail poised over its body as if to strike.

Jimmy's voice was clear and strong. "Killer, what're you doing here?"

Mary shuddered at the sound of the name on Jimmy's lips. The man rested his hand on his belt where a crude sheath fashioned from some sort of animal skin held a large knife.

"Just out looking for supplies." Killer's smile hadn't disappeared and it only seemed to grow with Jimmy's obvious annoyance. "So are you going to introduce us? Is she another sibling? Or maybe she's just a pet of yours."

Strands of her hair tickled her cheek, but she didn't dare make a move to push them out of the way. The man reminded her of the Ghost who had visited her so many months ago, but there was a difference. Both were possibly equally dangerous, but there were no ties of friendship between this man and Jimmy. Every glance of his was a threat.

"What the fuck do you want, Killer?" Jimmy folded his arms across his chest. Mary could easily stay behind him protected from view, but Brandon slipped his hand into hers and gave her a tug.

"You have