Page 34 of Unnatural (Men and Monsters #2)

She looked over at him and paused as though he’d surprised her with the question. “Yes,” she said. “Yes, that’s exactly why.”

“Hello?”

The sound of a man’s deep voice startled Sam, and he stood quickly, moving his body in front of Autumn’s.

“It’s Bill,” she said, moving around Sam and heading for the back door that led inside the house. “Come on.”

Sam followed warily. Autumn had told him that her adoptive father, Bill, had retrieved the medical supplies for her and brought them to the cottage so she could help Sam.

He’d also dropped off a phone, some food, and the clothes Sam was wearing when Sam had been unconscious.

He seemed to be helping them, but still, Sam remained cautious.

The man obviously cared for Autumn, and it wasn’t good for Autumn to be helping Sam.

He knew that and wouldn’t blame her father if he reported Sam to get his daughter away from him.

Autumn was giving the man a hug as Sam stepped inside, and she quickly let go and stepped back. “Sam, this is Bill. Bill, Sam.” She looked sort of nervous but also excited, as though she was showing her father something she wasn’t sure he’d approve of but hoped he would.

Bill stepped forward; his forehead creased with worry. He held out his hand.

Sam knew what a handshake was of course. But he didn’t think anyone—not one single soul—had ever offered. He reached his hand out and took the other man’s in his.

“Sam,” Bill said very seriously. “I’m glad to see you looking well.”

“Bill,” he said. “Thank you for the pants.”

Bill gave a short laugh that turned into a cough, but he nodded.

“Well, they’re not mine. We’re not exactly the same size.

I picked them up at the… Oh anyway, I’m glad I could help.

” He glanced at Autumn. “I trust my girl, Sam, but you have to know how dangerous this is for her. The police have to be looking for you.”

“What is the news saying?” Sam asked.

“They’re saying witnesses described a Good Samaritan who stepped in to help.

They say you saved a lot of children.” Bill peered at Sam for a moment, assessing.

“But they also think you’re involved and may have known that man.

Some are wondering if you went there together, and you changed your mind while he didn’t. ”

“That’s not true,” he muttered.

“You might want to consider contacting the authorities and letting them know.”

“No,” Sam said. “I can’t do that.” He paused. “Was there a…description put out of me?” If so, someone in the program would put two and two together. How many scarred, six foot six, muscular young men with white hair and tan skin were there in the world?

Bill’s gaze moved to Sam’s hair as if he was considering the same thing. “No,” he said. “Whoever reported your actions apparently didn’t get a very good look at you.”

Sam frowned, wondering how that was possible.

His hat had come off, he remembered that.

And he couldn’t have hidden his size no matter what he’d done.

But maybe the person who saw him had been too traumatized by the scene at large to recall any specifics.

A knot of tension loosened inside him. If they didn’t have more details on his appearance, then maybe he had a chance of disappearing again without worrying every day of his life that he’d be spotted. Reported. Imprisoned. Killed.

And that meant Autumn was probably safe too. There was nothing to connect them. “I’m leaving soon,” he murmured. “And then Autumn can get back to her life.”

“Well…okay. All right. Where will you go?”

Sam shrugged. He didn’t know, but even if he did, it was better that he not tell Autumn or Bill. “What is the news saying about Autumn?”

“Nothing. They reported a woman who may have witnessed the shooting but nothing more than that. No description. Nothing. They don’t seem to think she was involved, only that she may have seen something that might help investigators.”

Sam let out a breath of relief.

“So there’s no way for them to have traced Sam here?” Autumn asked.

“I don’t think so,” Bill answered. “Unless you don’t own that red truck and the owner reported it missing.”

“I don’t own it,” Sam told them. “It belongs to the man I was working for.”

“Even so,” Autumn cut in. “I don’t think the truck could be connected to the shooting in any way. It was parked pretty far away.”

That was true. Of course, Adam might have reported it stolen, but police would just think the old man was naive for trusting an unknown vagabond with his truck. Others would tell them Adam had a long history of being too trusting.

“What about the shooter?” Autumn asked, her eyes darting quickly to Sam and then away. “Have they identified him?”

“Oh yes. They know who he is. It was obvious he was planning the shooting.”

For a moment, Sam wondered who Amon had died as. Who had given his life so they could pin the crime on him? The question made his guts twist.

Bill looked at Autumn. “Have you thought any more about telling Sheriff Monroe about this? He might be able to help—”

“No,” she said. “No, I won’t put Ralph in that position. And I don’t think there’s anything he can do. We’re still talking things over, but I’ve been thinking about next steps, and I might have some leads.”

“Leads?” Sam asked. “What leads?”

“There was something in my chart. It’s about me, not you, but it’s something I want to look into.”

“Now’s not the time to—”

“I know, Bill,” Autumn said, laying her hand on his arm.

“I will lie low for a while, I promise. There’s not much I can do out here anyway.

At least until Sam gets well and we’re certain no one’s looking for either of us.

I told the clinic your great-aunt Hortense had a medical emergency and I’m caring for her. ”

“ Hortense ? Who would ever care for that hateful old witch?”

“ I would,” Autumn said. “Apparently.” Autumn looked at Sam. “Will you be okay in here for a few minutes while I talk to Bill outside?”

Sam nodded. He was feeling sore anyway and needed to lie down and rest. Autumn and Bill headed outside, and as Sam reclined on the bed, he could hear their voices floating to him through the glass.

They were speaking low, and he could only make out snippets of what they were saying.

He thought Autumn was giving Bill instructions on… visiting people? Her patients?

“She’ll tell you to go, but be persistent. She doesn’t mean it,” he thought he heard her say. And “…encourage him, but if he resists you, lay off or he’ll get annoyed and go out of his way to…”

He had no idea what any of that meant except that whatever it was she was instructing Bill to do, it was because she couldn’t do it herself.

Because of Sam. He also thought Autumn and Bill might be arguing a little, and it made him feel bad that he was causing trouble for her. It was the last thing he wanted.

Sam dozed off for a while, and he woke to the sound of the door closing and Autumn’s footsteps as she came inside. “Is everything okay?”

She nodded, looking slightly troubled. “It’s a relief to hear that the authorities don’t have a description of us,” she said, though that worried look remained. “But…the program covered for the shooter, didn’t they?”

“Yes,” Sam said.

Her shoulders dropped. “They’re very powerful,” she murmured, obviously considering what a cover-up of that magnitude would take.

“What about Dr. Heathrow, Sam? I keep thinking about him. You sounded…grateful to him for healing you, but he’s part of this too. The program. The treatments. He knew about what was happening to us in the woods. He stayed silent about that at the very least.”

Sam stared at the wall. Yes, Sam knew that the doctor was caught up in the web of lies and cover-ups too, just like Sam himself was.

He knew Dr. Heathrow had done wrong and looked away when he shouldn’t have.

But he’d also healed Sam and so many others.

He’d fathered him in the only sense of the word Sam understood.

Loyalty rose up in Sam for the only person who’d known who he was and been on his side.

Before now anyway. “He was used for his skills by the program too,” Sam said woodenly.

She looked away worriedly and chewed on her lip for a moment before her gaze came to rest on him again. “I’ve decided something, Sam.”

“What?”

She raised her chin. “You keep saying you’re going to leave when you get better, but I’m not going to let you.”

He felt a tug at his mouth. “You’re not going to let me?” How would she stop him? Maybe in his current condition, she’d have a slim chance. But once his strength was back, she’d have no way to stop him from leaving. Or doing whatever he wanted to do for that matter.

“No. I’m not going to let you.” She sat on the side of the bed and took his hand in both of hers. “We need to team up. You and me. Once it’s safe to leave, we need to find answers. I’m asking you. Please stay with me, Sam.”

Oh. So that was how she was going to stop him. She was going to look at him with her beautiful dark eyes and ask.

And Sam was completely helpless to deny her request. Completely helpless to deny her anything she wanted. Anything at all.

Autumn didn’t belong to him, but Sam belonged to her. He had for a long, long time.