Chapter 481: He’s not here
With that confirmation, it was a slight weight off of his shoulders. He still had a lot remaining, but he was glad that at the very least, Brent wasn’t in here. He was outside.
Kellen stared down at his sleeping sister, his chest aching, and he turned to Bree.
"We’ll move once the night sets. You get some sleep, Bree. I’ll keep an eye out for all of us." Bree looked like she was going to protest, but Kellen’s glare told her she had no legs to stand on. Bree gave in, letting Kellen take over so that she could rest.
Why would she resist? She knew who Kellen was, trusted him. He was the man who had made sure that she made it this far. She wasn’t going to put up as much of a fight, and Kellen knew that.
So, he stayed, leaving every once in a while to deal with a threat that was getting too close, his knife in hand, and would return, watching over the girls as they continued to sleep. He also made sure to check underneath them so that a plant wasn’t harassing them that way, or hurting them.
Kellen was glad that he had, since a sneaky fucking vine was trying to hurt his sister while she slept. The knife ate well.
Soon, the night came, and the forest grew quieter. It was about two hours into the night when Gwen stirred, and Kellen held his breath.
He watched her quietly, noticing as she began to wake up. She started off quiet, normal, like she was back at home, before jerking suddenly, worry and fear on her face as she looked up at Bree, checking on her. She was asleep, as Kellen had told her, and Kellen watched as Gwen checked her pulse, checked around her, not even realising she was wearing a new mask, and began to panic.
Kellen spoke up then.
"She’s fine. I told her to rest." Gwen froze at Kellen’s soft spoken words. Then, she jerked, turning, and when she saw Kellen, really saw him, she started crying. His baby sister crawled over to him, wrapping her arms around him and Kellen held her. Just held his baby sister as she sought comfort from her older brother.
Kellen squeezed her, holding onto her. Everyone had told him that it was a lost cause. The look on his Dad’s face, the lack of light in his Mom’s eyes. The way that the others had dismissed saving them, all validated in this one moment.
Kellen fought back tears, his throat so constricted he could barely breathe. He just held her as she sobbed, his senses still on, still observing so that they could have this moment safely. So that no one else was in danger in this moment.