He woke me up shouting "No!" and thrashing around. I thought someone was in the room, and almost had a heart attack. But I quickly realized it was him having a nightmare. I shook him, enough to wake him without making him feel more threatened. "Reed," I tried.

He was tangled in the sheet, and fighting it. Then he opened his eyes but he was still caught in the dream. I kept my hold on his arm. "Hey, it's me, you're dreaming." 

He focused on me finally and relief crashed over his face. He wrapped his arms around me like I was an anchor. He was panicked. All I could do was hold him.

There was a rap at the door. "Intou?" Dane asked.

"He was dreaming," I said, over his head, which was against my chest. Unfortunately, not so romantic as I would otherwise like.

Dane didn't just take my word for it, which I somewhat respected. "Can I come in?" He didn't wait but opened the door, and peeked at us before averting his eyes. "Right then, sorry."

Work wifey appeared behind him, looking around him, but he shut the door. I heard him say something to her and her response but their voices went away and I was busy.

Reed hadn't even noticed. He was trembling, and it just about killed me to see him so broken. "Shh," I said, completely at a loss. "It's okay, sweetie. You're okay."

"I cannot believe I'm here," he said shakily, still clinging to me. "I cannot believe I'm here." His eyes were desolate. "Am I here?"

"Yes, of course." I rocked him, instinctively. It calmed his tremors. "You're here. You're okay," I said again. "See? You're here with me."

He took a deep, shuddery breath but didn't release me an iota. "They were a long three nights, chérie," he said, his voice steadier now. "My only saving grace was the fact I'm too old for that sick bastard."

My stomach turned over and I swallowed bile back down. We had long ago established that I would rather he be honest with me about terrible things rather than try to protect me from knowing, but it sucked sometimes hearing about it. "Fuck," I said helplessly. "I'm sorry, so sorry that happened to you." Now I wanted to go along and kill this guy myself. 

He didn't say anything, and I had nothing else to say, so we just stayed that way until his body was still again. He was wet with sweat, his shirt sticking to him, and now so was I. I brushed his hair back, though it was too short to need it.

Finally he let go of me, rubbing his face with both hands. "He had others," he said, his face open and raw with the memory. "Boys. In cells. We have to help them." He said this last in almost a whisper but it was so urgent the hairs stood up on the back of my neck. "Quelle horreur! I can't, there wasn't . . . " He shook his head and looked at me and his eyes were terrible. "We have to go back. He's moved them for now but he'll return, he doesn't fear us. Mon Dieu, Addy, the memories I thought I had put away, they're . . . " He shook his head again. He was in a bad place. "They have crept out to try and drown me."

"Consider me your life vest then." I got up and got his cigarettes from his pants and came back to sit close to him, steadying his hand when he tried to light one. "We'll go back. We'll get them."

He inhaled deeply, coughed a little, blew out the rest. He got up and opened the window a few inches, and in my distress I could barely appreciate the boxers view. He further improved it by stripping off his damp shirt. Getting quickly back in the warm covers, he slid close to me again. "No child should ever be put into such a position," he said thickly, rubbing his face again with one hand. 

"We'll save them, Reed." I took his hand from his face, held it in both of mine. "Look at me." He did, and his anguish was consuming. "We'll save them. We can't do anything until they go back to the house, right? And your secret spy buddies will let you know, right? So lie down with me, now. C'mon." I pulled him back, and he put the half smoked cigarette in a soda can.

"I do not want to sleep," he said, but his body said otherwise, and he obediently stretched out again. I pushed him so he rolled away from me, onto his side, and snuggled close so we were like spoons in a drawer. It enabled me to give him some semblance of protection, which seemed to help because he grasped my hand and his breathing deepened.

"I love you," I said, and it was soft, but he responded anyway.

"Love you too, Addy," he said, matter of factly.

We left the next day, and wasn't it a fun trip. The Jeep was vetoed due to the rough ride, and Dane's truck didn't fit all four of us. That left Arianna's Camry, which she made clear she was used to Reed driving while she rode shotgun. Too bad for her, because instead Dane drove and Reed and I sat in the back together. 

Ha, ha.

He was bending over backwards to make her feel included and pacified, though, which was somewhat sickening. He was always like that; a people pleaser. A lot of abused people turn out that way. We just want people to be happy so they don't turn on us. Logical.

She wanted to listen to country but I had earbuds and my computer so I was able to suffer through it. My rookie mistake was letting her know I didn't care for it, because it made her play it more, naturally. Fortunately, the drive was only ninety minutes, to a small airfield.

"Wait, what?" I'd never flown before. "We're flying?"

He looked at me and winced. "I didn't even think about it. No worries; you'll like it. It's not as though you're afraid of heights."

Arianna was getting her stuff together in the front and made a rude noise. "You've never been in an airplane?" From her tone it was a cardinal sin.

I ignored her. "Okay," I answered Reed. Better I hadn't had time to be anxious about it, probably.

"It's a short flight, anyway, and just for us." He smiled and the difference between this him and the one the night before was night and day.

"It's cool; you know I trust you," I said, mostly for Ari's sake, and got my purse and backpack.

We all got out and I followed them toward the little camo painted airplane sitting on the runway. From a small building nearby, two men emerged. I looked at Reed to gauge his reaction, but he knew them and waved, which they returned. 

We all met up at the plane, and now I was having some anxiety. It was not a large piece of machinery.

"Flown in 'er more times'n I could count, Addy," Dane said jovially, patting me on the back and then patting the plane. "Real gem, she is. And Rudy's the best pilot this side of the Ozarks."

Ari shoved him. "You sound like a jackass, stop it."

He caught her in a hug and did quick bunny ears behind her head when she turned away for a moment. I stifled a laugh. Then we were meeting Rudy, and hustling into the belly of the beast, and buckling in. 

 I was more excited than nervous. I loved being up in the air, and this would be by far the highest I'd made it. "Don't suppose we get to jump out of it?"

Reed smiled at me. "Not this time," he said, and my mind added chérie. But he didn't say it around her, which irked me even if I got it.

Lifting off the ground and getting into the air was one of the single greatest feelings of my lifetime. We were immediately above the trees and then in the sky and I felt like a bird that had been taken out of a cage. I wanted to put my hands up in the air like the holy rollers do at church and just soak it in.

I looked at him and he knew. "You're flying," he said just to me, fondly.

"Right?" I turned my attention back out the window in wonder. Amazing.

Poor Dane, on the other hand, was not enchanted. He was, in fact, obviously scared half to death, his easy smile turned into a grimace as he clutched the arms of his seat when turbulence struck. "Least we'll all die togevva," he tried to joke.

Ari was next to him and she put her hand over his. "Don't puke on me."

We landed too soon for me, though by then Dane had vomited into a bag from the anxiety. We were kindred anxiety spirits for sure.

For the first time I was out of the country. In the snow, which I'd never seen. A woman dressed for the weather, which we were not, met us and showed us where we could pee and get warmer clothing if we needed it, which I of course did. I kept my jeans and Reed's hoodie on for the time being.

There was an SUV at our disposal, which Reed had obviously driven before because he was familiar with it as he got in the driver's seat.

And here I was stuck. I wanted to claim shotgun but then everyone would be on my left. And I'd made that promise to be nice to what's-her-face. And I'd already ridden in the back with him before we flew so technically it was her turn.

So, because I am incredibly mature and a fucking adult, I opened the door behind the driver's seat and got in.  

Reed turned around to his left to give me a grateful look, and Dane got in next to me. "Jus' us, then, roughin' it in the back."

"I prefer sitting in the back if I'm not driving," I said for her benefit, which was absolutely a huge lie, which Reed absolutely knew, but sometimes my mouth does things without my consent.

I could almost see him biting his lip to keep from smiling. He put some music that wasn't country on the stereo, too, and we drove, through mountainous terrain. The piles of snow and the chill in the air and the wonder of being somewhere new, regardless of the circumstances, elated me.

"Not bad for your first time out of the country, and seeing snow, Addy?" Reed asked, messing with the radio as the station faded out.

I was loving it, despite the circumstances. "It's awesome."

Arianna turned to look at me. "Never flown, never seen snow, never left the country?"

"That's a lot of nevers," I deadpanned, as I'd said to him the night before, and he cough-laughed, meeting my eyes in the rear view mirror as his face turned red. Even his ears. So cute.

She caught something of that. "How'd being that sheltered work out for you?" Spite was strong in her words. She wanted me to get pissed.

"Pretty well, actually," I said blithely, refusing to let her goad me. "I'm an introvert so, yeah."

Dane winked at me. Damn, he was fine. Maybe they only allowed beautiful people in the program. Another strike against me.

"God, how many times have we been out of the country?" she asked, him or them or whoever. "A million?"

I reminded myself she had saved his life more than once. It helped, minisculely. I still wanted to slap the shit out of her.

"A 'undred at least," Dane said agreeably. "And I frow up each an' every time from the nerves. You're anuvver climber, Addy; is that right then?" Nice subject change.

"Oh yes," I said with relish. "You, too?"

His expression turned sheepish. "Not so much. Scares me 'alf to deaf. Afrai' of fallin'. And landin', actually."

"Understandable," I said, and thank God I didn't feel that way. I couldn't imagine life with my feet on the ground all the time. Perish the thought.

"Ari, too," he added cheerfully. "Terrified of 'eights."

"Shut up, Dane," she said scathingly, but I was already grinning.