#7 The Twins of Satin Moon

Chapter 22: Maizey

“Who does that abominable creature think he is!” I screamed as I threw myself down on our sofa.

“The Abominable snowman?” Nicky asked from the kitchen.

“No, Mr. Greyback.” I was seething.

“What did he do now?” Matt asked, sitting beside me on the couch. I told them everything.

“He didn’t?” Matt looked as enraged as me.

“Oh, he most certainly did.” I sighed, feeling a little better after my animated rant.

“Let me go talk to him, Maizey, I’ll straighten him out.” Matt had been begging me to let him face Hunter for weeks now but I kept saying no.

“No, Matty, I don’t need help, but thank you.” I pat the top of his head like he’s a small child and not a 5 foot 11 inch giant.

“Good thing I don’t ask for permission.” Nicky stormed towards the front door but Matt was quick to stop him.

“Stop it, Nick, this is Maze’s problem.” Matt nudged Nicky back into the kitchen and handed him a beer to cool off.

“There is way too much testosterone around here. I need a girlfriend.” I pulled out my phone and texted Melody for the first time in weeks. She eagerly agreed to meet me at the coffee shop where we first ran into each other.

“I’m so glad you reached out, Maizey! I hope you know that I’m totally against my brother here.” She hugged me tightly.

“Do you know why he’s doing this?” I asked, eager for some sort of explanation. We sat down at a small table in the corner of the shop.

“It’s about his twin brother, Archer.” Mel admitted. I gasped,

“I didn’t even know he had a twin.”

“He doesn’t talk about him. Archer has….anger issues. He went to a….boarding school for….troubled kids at a young age where he found a…career that helped him work through his anger. He hasn’t been home since he was 15 years old.” I wasn’t sure if it was emotion that was making her struggle with the explanation or something else, but she was definitely hiding something more.

“What does that have to do with me?” I asked.

“Hunter is afraid to let anyone get close to him because of Archer. He thinks that Archer will come back and steal whatever is good in his life. So, he’s decided to remove happiness from his life altogether. That’s why he’s with Carmin now. It’s so obvious he doesn’t really love her, so he doesn’t think Archer will bother with her.” Mel said.

“That is so stupid, Mel.” I sighed, not even pretending to be sympathetic.

“He’s just doing what he thinks he has to do to keep you safe. It’s coming from a good place, the best place actually, he’s just going about it the wrong way. Maizey listened,” Mel reached across the table and grabbed my hand, “You can’t tell him that I told you about Archer and you can’t try to get him back. He won’t change his mind.”

“I have no desire to change his mind, not after how he’s been treating me.” I said stubbornly. Mel sighed but didn’t defend her brother,

“Yeah, he’s a d**k, I’ll give you that. Just promise me that you won’t tell him that I told you about Archer?” She really looked worried.

“I proisme, Mel.” I assured her, “So, is Archer the reason he has bodyguards on me?” I knew damn well that Hunter still had bodyguards on me even after I warned him to stay away. I was almost positive that Ryker was one, too. Mel looked guilty but she nodded,

“Yeah, that’s why. He has bodyguards on all of us, all of his siblings.” She said, “Everyone he cares about most.”

“He doesn’t care about me.” I shook my head vigorously.

“He cares about keeping you safe. Have they been bothering you?” She asked.

“No, but they aren’t very subtle. I’ve picked most of them out.” I shrugged smugly. Mel laughed,

“That doesn’t surprise me. Hunter tries to change mine weekly so I won’t ditch them, but I always figure out who they are and I always ditch them.” Mel giggled but then her eyes got huge, “That doesn’t mean you should ditch them, though.” Double standards much?

“I can look out for myself, Mel.” I sighed.

“Just, humor me.” She mumbled.

“There’s only one person who has ever scared me and he….well he can’t bother me right now.” I admitted in a small voice. Mel looked like she wanted to question it, but didn’t.

“Hunter will be insufferable if you don’t keep the bodyguards. Please, do it for me.” She begged.

“Why should I care if he’s hurting or not? He doesn’t care about my pain.” I snapped.

“Don’t care about him then. Like I said, do it for me and my suffering.” I couldn’t help but laugh at her expression.

“Okay, okay, fine, as long as they stay out of my way.” I said and Mel breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank you!” We shared a laugh.

“We have to do this more often, Mel. Just because I hate your brother doesn't mean we have to be enemies, right?” I smiled. Mel sighed again,

“Do you really hate him?” She asked.

“I’m starting to, yes.” I answered honestly. Mel fixed her face,

“Well, screw him! We’re besties no matter what.” She grinned wickedly.

Melody and I started to hang out all the time after that. She was good for me, she got me out of the house in the evenings and on the weekends. She was a huge partier and encouraged me to let loose. I hadn’t found any guys who made me feel numb the way Gabe did or alive the way Hunter did, and I was honestly thankful for that. I didn’t need any of that mess in my life right now. Instead, I shamelessly flirted with random strangers and drank whatever Mel handed me to stay relaxed.

It was the morning of Halloween and she was begging me to come to a costume party with her that night.

“I don’t do Halloween, Mel, I’m sorry.” I frowned, feeling bad for disappointing her, but I knew there was no way I could go out tonight.

“What will you do then? Stay in by yourself. Your brothers are going out!” Mel whined.

“I’m going to go to the lab and get caught up on some work.” I shrugged.

“It’s Saturday!” Mel whined very loudly.

“Leave her be, Mel, she really hates Halloween.” Matt put his hand on Mel’s shoulder and shook his head, encouraging her to leave it alone.

“Fine, party pooper.” She pouted but gave me a hug anyway.

“Have fun, Mel, and call me if you need a ride.” I made her promise to use me as her DD if necessary. She agreed and pecked me on the cheek before running out of the house.

“You sure you’re okay, Maze?” Matt leveled me with a worried stare.

“Yes, you and Nicky handle today by getting drunk and I handle it by wallowing in my science lab. All's right with the world.” I faked a smile. Nicky came up behind me and squeezed my shoulders,

“You know where to find us.” He kissed my cheek and Matt gave me a tight squeeze before they let me leave.

I drove to Greyback’s in silence without even the radio on to fill the empty void. I rubbed the scar on my hand until my skin was tender and red. I pulled into my parking spot and swiped my badge to enter. No one was on duty today besides the janitors so the lobby was quiet and nearly dark. I rode the elevator to the robotics department and got started in the lab.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't even hear it when the elevator doors dinged open and someone new opened the doors to the lab. I screamed at the intruder.