Page 105 of Hurt

Weaver Syndicate was attacked.

His uncle had tried to kill himself.

And Luther was coming for him.

Absurdly, it was the last one that terrified him the most. Just the thought of Luther dragging him home was enough to make his chest ache with anxiety. Especially now.

The Weaver Syndicate was under attack. The Vega Cabal had declared a no holds barred war. They would not be observing any form of humanity in their attacks, and every aspect of the Weavers was open to attack. The world around The Sunspot was about to drastically change.

He didn’t want to leave Elijah. Logically he knew the man was more than capable of taking care of himself, but Noah felt this illogical need to be around him. To make sure he was okay. Maybe it was a need to pay him back for all the kindness, or maybe it was that Noah had found a friend for the first time in his life, and he didn’t want to lose him.

Not to mention Kurt.

How could he possibly leave when he was in such a fragile state? Noah knew he had tried to kill himself before. But knowing someone did something years ago and living through it were two different things. And now he knew the reason.

He didn’t know what to say to his uncle, but he did know that he was going to find out who had been hurting him. As a child, there was nothing Noah could do, but he wasn’t a child anymore.

The blood of the Elliotts ran through his veins—and it was screaming for vengeance.

Noah would never be able to look his uncle in the eye until he could bring him the head of the one who had been hurting him. Only then would Kurt allow Noah to stay by his side. Only then would their family be complete.

To do that, he would need to get stronger.

Last night, Roland had arched a brow at him and dismissed him. Pushed aside his inquires as if Noah were nothing. His temper had snapped, and he had acted rashly. Those were not the actions of a strong man. He was ashamed of it, but it had solidified that his education had been sorely lacking.

Throwing his shoulders back, he left the bathroom and moved through the small apartment until he found Elijah on the couch. The man was leaning against the armrest idly watching television. Judging by the glassy way he was looking at the screen, he wasn’t really taking in the show.

“I want you to teach me how to fight.”

Elijah blinked owlishly as he processed Noah’s words. “You want me to what?”

Noah produced one of Elijah’s knives. “I want you to teach me how to fight.”

“Where did you get that?” Elijah jumped off the couch and snatched it from him.

Crossing his arms, Noah refused to back down. “I took it off you.”

“When?”

He shrugged. “Does it matter?”

Stealing came naturally to Noah. It was a habit he developed in his early years at White Sand Mesa. He found out rather quickly that he could get attention by taking things. It didn’t matter what. The item he stole wasn’t the objective. Later, when he was on the run from Luther and needed money to get to the next location, it became easy to sneak a wallet from a woman’s purse or a man’s back pocket.

Elijah looked down at the knife in his hand and then back at the stubborn set of Noah’s jaw. “I’m not going to teach you how to fight.”

“Why not?”

“Why would I?” Elijah sounded exasperated. “It’s dangerous.”

“No shit,” Noah snapped. “That’s why I need to know how to fight.”

Elijah narrowed his eyes at Noah. “You want revenge for Kurt, don’t you?”

He wasn’t aware his actions were so transparent. It was obvious he would want to get revenge for his family. Anyone would. His timing gave it away.

“What if it is?”

“Then absolutely not,” Elijah said firmly. “Your uncle’s attacker is vicious. Whoever he is, he has enough power to not only physically assault Kurt but blackmail him into silence. Let the Weavers handle this.”