Free Rage Within by Jeyn Roberts Page B

He’d been left blind and suffering from terrible migraines. No one knew if the blindness would last forever or if it was temporary. There weren’t exactly doctors around to give a proper diagnosis.
    “Is that a beautiful woman I hear?” Jack said. “I’d get up but I’d probably get lost trying to find you.”
    She came over and sat carefully down beside him. Covered in blankets, her pale friend didn’t look nearly as strong as he had a few weeks before. It was really hard. Jack was handlingit well; he was the first to make all the dumb blind jokes. There was always a smile on his face but Aries could see how he was forcing the edges of his mouth to turn upward. His eyes were dull. They stared off into space, seeing only blackness. Sometimes he’d blink, squeezing the corners of his eyelids tightly as if trying to block out the pain. He’d always insist he was fine if Aries tried questioning him, though. But no matter how hard Jack tried to remain positive, Aries knew the reality of the situation wasn’t lost on him. Having a blind person around made things that much harder. If the time came when they’d have to leave quickly, it wouldn’t be that simple. Jack couldn’t run.
    Every time she looked at him, she couldn’t help but feel it was her fault. She hadn’t saved him. And she knew for certain she’d never be able to leave him, no matter the consequences.
    “How are you feeling?”
    He smiled. “Good. Head hurts a bit, but I’m used to that.”
    “Do you want some pills?” On the bedside table was an assortment of painkillers. Tylenol. Advil. Aspirin. There were other brands with long unreadable names that packed more of a punch, courtesy of Nathan raiding a pharmacy a few weeks ago. None of them really worked well enough, but Jack had tried them all just the same.
    What Jack really needed was an MRI or an X-ray or some other sort of treatment that only came from a hospital.
    “No pills,” Jack said. “But you can tell me how your day went. And don’t try to lie. I can hear your voice. I know you’re hurting.”
    “If it’s just the same, I’d rather not talk about it right now,” she said. “It was hard. I should have known better. Can we leave it at that?”
    “Fair enough.”
    That was the great thing about Jack. He never pushed or prodded. He accepted what was.
    She stayed for a few minutes longer and then left for the bedroom she shared with Joy and Eve. They’d moved extra bedding from other rooms so the floor was wall-to-wall mattresses. Kicking off her shoes, she sat down on the bed and pulled a pillow close to her chest.
    She had a new family now. But knowing for certain she’d lost the old one still hurt.
    Closing her eyes, she waited for sleep.
    *   *   *
    When she woke up it was dark. No one had called her for dinner, or perhaps they had and she hadn’t heard them. Rolling over, she checked the small alarm clock that was half hidden under the mattress. It was a little after ten. She’d slept just over four hours.
    “Great,” she mumbled to herself.
    She picked her hoodie up off the floor and pulled it over her head before heading out into the hallway. She checked in on Jack and found him sleeping. Then she went down to where everyone was in the living room sitting around a small candle. The light flickered and shadows bounced off the walls. When they first moved into the safe house, they’d covered the backs of the window blinds with blankets. From outside no one could tell the extra covering was there. This way they could have a minimal amount of light in the evening and still be safe.
    “Why didn’t you wake me?” she asked.
    “Because you looked so cute,” Joy said. “And no one could make themselves heard over that much snoring.” She giggled and ducked as if she thought Aries might take a swing at her. “It’s not like my meal was anything to write home about.There are some leftovers in the kitchen. Jack wasn’t very hungry so he only ate a few