Page 13 of The Hollowed

Alex looked over his shoulder. “No, I’m not,” he said with a warm smile. “I’m just waiting for a moment you’ll remember.”

Then he slipped out the door, leaving her with the promise still hanging in the air.

Chapter 4

Alejandro

By the time the sun began rising over the horizon and Grayson woke for his morning patrol shift, Alex was still lying in bed with his eyes fixed on the ceiling. It had been impossible to sleep with his mind replaying last night on a loop. He couldn’t stop thinking about the way Luci had looked at him, the warmth of her hand against his jaw, the softness in her touch. He’d imagined moments like that for longer than he was willing to admit, wondered countless times how it might feel, and yet, when it finally happened, he’d pulled away.

It had been the right thing to do. She’d been drinking and she deserved more than a moment blurred by too much wine. Still, a selfish part of him ached for what could have been if she’d been sober, if there had been no excuse to stop.

But even in that imagined version, he knew the truth. Lucilla Castillo was not his to have. Even if Doc kept his promise and freed her from the reproduction program, his superiors would never approve of someone like him being with someone like her. A mind like hers was a resource they wouldn’t waste on a soldier like him.

“You came in late last night,” Grayson’s voice cut through his thoughts, teasing as he tugged a plain black t-shirt over his head. “Care to share the juicy details?”

Alex smirked, shaking his head. “I’ll spare you.”

As Grayson turned back to the closet for the rest of his uniform, Alex’s thoughts drifted back to the boy he’d been when he first came to the Prometheus Collective. Fourteen years old, scared and angry at a world that had already taken too much from him. They’d thrown him into the physically gifted sector where his recklessness was both a liability and an asset. Back then, trouble clung to his name like it was branded to his chest.

Grayson had been born into the program. His mother had been deemed unfit to raise him, so he’d grown up entirely under the Academy’s care, molded by their rules from the start. The Academy had paired them together as roommates, probably hoping Grayson’s good behavior might temper Alex’s stubbornness. In some ways, it had. But more than that, they’d given Alex a brother.

And no matter what else the Collective had taken from him, that was something he was still grateful for.

“C’mon, you’ve gotta tell me something — anything,” Grayson pressed, threading his belt through the loops of his pants while dodging Luna’s playful nips at his ankles. “You’ve been after her since we were kids. At least tell me you finally made a move.”

Alex chuckled under his breath, sitting up straighter on his cot and swinging his legs over the side. There was truth in Grayson’s words. Back when they’d still been in the Academy and attended intramural events, he’d stolen glances at Luci whenever he could. But girls had always been off-limits, especially the smart ones like her. Luci had always been in a league of her own, far above all the other petty distractions they were warned to avoid.

Sure, there were ways around the rules and those workarounds had never stopped him, but Luci was different. She wasn’t a fling to sneak around with. She was the one person he couldn’t risk hurting or losing.

“We kissed,” Alex admitted finally, a small smile tugging at his lips. “Sort of.” He stood, raking a hand through his hair before crouching beside Luna’s bowl to scoop in her morning kibble.

Grayson’s head snapped up, his grin spreading rapidly. “No shit?” He let out a low whistle, shaking his head in disbelief. “About damn time.”

Alex’s smile faded into something softer, almost apologetic. “She’d had some wine. More than a little so I…I couldn’t kiss her like that.”

Grayson groaned, throwing his jacket over his shoulders. “Fuck…I mean, that was the right move. But if there’s something there, another opportunity will come. I promise.”

Alex didn’t respond right away, just busied himself with rinsing Luna’s water bowl in their tiny sink. The truth was that that exact thought had repeated itself over in his mind since she’d kissed him.

He was afraid to hope but unable to stop himself from doing so.

Grayson moved toward the door, slinging his gear over his shoulder. “Look, I’ve known you a long time, Alex. You don’t wait around for anyone. But for her? You’ve been waiting years. Sooner or later you’re gonna have to decide if you’re just protecting her or if you’re gonna fight for her.”

With that, Grayson left, clicking the door shut behind him. Alex glanced at Luna.

“Well, you were there. What do you think?” he asked, but she didn’t respond. Instead she simply tilted her head and waited for Alex to extend his hand and scratch behind her ears.

Alex had just stepped back into his room after heading to theshowers, steam still clinging to his skin as the intercom in his room turned on.

“Alejandro Ramírez, report to meeting room one in thirty minutes,” said the precise but emotionless artificial voice. The green light from the transmission box stayed lit until he confirmed he’d received the orders.

It was too early for anything casual so he guessed it had something to do with the emergency meeting Doc had promised to call that morning. Why Alex was needed, however, was another mystery entirely. He’d never been formally named head of security, but the role had been his all the same. It didn’t matter, titles were meaningless here. In the security sector they’d all been trained to follow orders and to do it well.

Which was exactly why, half an hour later, Alex was riding the elevator to the fifth floor, his blurry reflection staring back at him from the metal doors until he stepped out. He rounded the corner and stopped.

Luci sat alone outside the meeting room, perched in one of the chairs. At the sight of him, her gaze fluttered upwards and their eyes met for the briefest moment before she turned away as if the contact burned.

It was clear she remembered everything from the night before.