The Claiming

Chapter Thirty-One

We spend the next week trekking down the mountain with Gus beside us. Gus willingly hunts for us as we provide him what shelter we find and all the love we can give—which is quite a lot. I pray that Vain has given up his search for us and has gone back. I also pray that Alec's and Chance's families are okay. I wish I could see Riah again...

You will.

We've been following the broken up road that curves with the mountainside. Weeds poke up from the ground as if they're waving hello, and vines drift down from above and brush against our coats. The atmosphere is eerily quiet as we walk hand in hand, nearing the city. Every now and again, Alec will give me a sideways glance. I feel as if he is checking my expression to see if I'm about to break. But I refuse to. We've come so far in the midst of all this chaos. I'm beyond breaking point.

By nightfall, we reach the abandoned city. Doorways are empty, dirt pouring in and covering all the floors. The streets are nearly unrecognizable, for foliage and the jungle of the mountains has taken over. We watch morosely as Gus trots around the vicinity, sniffing for something edible, or maybe somewhere to mark his territory. I hold onto Alec's arm.

We spend a couple more hours—but what is a few more when we've been traveling days upon days—searching for a neighborhood to hide in. We discover a two-story house near the end of a quaint little street with a decently clean upper floor. The three of us pile into one of the bedrooms decorated with broken furniture and their dusty surfaces.

Alec shuts the door as much as he can, and we start to tidy up the room enough to live in for a night.

We lay out the blankets on the floor and sit closely to each other. Gus guards the door with his head resting on his front paws and his back legs out to the side.

Alec gazes at me. "Belle..."

"Hm?"

I watch the corner of his mouth curl up in a smile. "Let's get married."

I blink at him, surprised.

He shifts his weight and kneels in front of me. "Belle, we were going to get married in a few months... why not now? We can just have our own ceremony or something! I just want to be able to say that we are a family... and I want you to finally have one, too."

I take his hands and smile weakly. "It wouldn't be 'legal' if we just did it ourselves, though."

"Who cares? It's just you and me out here now. If we say we're married, then we'll be married!"

I grin. "You know I love you, right?"

He chuckles. "I figured something like that."

Forgetting how cold we are—how lost we are—I launch myself at him and hug him tightly. His arms lace around my waist as he holds me on his lap. I kiss him forcefully, stroking his cheeks with my thumbs as I cup his face. After all we've suffered, we deserve a little happiness—somewhere in this darkness.

Alec pulls back for a moment. He brushes a piece of my loose, stringy, dirty brown hair behind my ear. "So you'll marry me?"

I touch my forehead to his and smile. "Just say when, and I'll be ready."

***

The following morning, Alec is gone.

Gus sits attentively beside me, where Alec had been sleeping with me tucked into his arms. I sit up quickly, in a panic. "Where is he?" I yelp.

Gus tilts his head quizzically. Then he stands and starts to wag his tail with his tongue lolling out. A drip of drool hangs from the tip. Gus barks and then heads to the door, scratching at it with his long nails.