chapter 17
Caitlyn pulled out her backpack from Declan’s SUV and slung it over her shoulder, staring at the trailhead that greeted her. Despite the fact that she had not been hiking since she was a young girl, she had been the one initially to suggest the outing. Garrett had been sent on yet another assignment that the Trust had given him with no known date of return, and she found herself itching to get out of the small town, explore some of the mountains that she could always see on the town’s outskirts.
“Thanks again for inviting me.” He said, tightening up the laces of his worn hiking boots.
“Thanks for coming. I wanted a friend to come with me and didn’t want to hike this alone.”
Declan’s grin was from ear to ear. “So, I am a friend now?”
She couldn’t help but scoff good naturedly. “Of course you are. What else would you be?”
He shoved his water bottle into his bag, following her as she walked to the beginning of the trail. “Well, after everything with Garrett, I think I still have a hard time believing that I am not the enemy to you.”
She stopped abruptly and turned to him. “Have I given you that impression?”
“Well… no.”
“Good. Because you are my friend. Any animosity that I had towards you regarding Garrett’s removal as my mentor disappeared quite some time ago. Now,” Caitlyn pointed to a trail sign, “Are you sure you are up for this?”
It was his turn to scoff. “Caitlyn, you are the one who has not been hiking in years. Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?”
“What? With the way you train me? Please. I could probably run up the trail.”
Declan did not argue that fact as they began their ascent. Over the past few weeks, his trainings had become more intense, the workouts more rigorous. He had Caitlyn getting up at the crack of dawn to run four miles a day, five times a week, and four of the five days, lifting weights as well.
But through it all, Declan was there with her every morning, pushing himself as hard as he did her. Together, they pressed each other to work harder, run faster, and move nimbler. Caitlyn had always been fit prior to becoming an Actual, but thanks to Declan’s training, she was seeing a transformation in her body that she had never enjoyed before.
As he moved ahead of her in the trail, she couldn’t help but admire the change in his physique as well, and he was already extremely fit. She felt a bit of pride in that; she knew that if she had not put forth the effort that she exerted into her workouts, he would not be benefiting either.
They climbed up boulders and steep inclines, never stopping unless Declan did first. It was a crazy rule she had; keep going as long as Declan does, see who passes out from exhaustion first.
It was only when they called a break for lunch that Caitlyn wiped the sweat off her brow. Declan’s eyes arched up. “Getting tired?”
She shook her head. “Tired no. Sweaty, yes.” Truth was, she was beyond exhausted. She knew muscles she did not even know existed would be sore tomorrow. This hiking thing was a little harder than she anticipated. Plus, her feet were killing her.
She grabbed a sandwich and an apple from her bag, smiling to herself as Declan admired the partially obstructed view of the mountain range. His muscles had relaxed, the tenseness in his face as of late almost disappeared. She tossed the apple in the air. “You know, I like seeing you like this.”
“Like what?” Declan stole the fruit from her, taking a large bite before she had a chance to protest.
She gave him a look as he sheepishly smiled, and grabbed his granola bar in retaliation. “Relaxed. You have not been on the phone once today. It’s nice. You have been so stressed.”
Declan’s forehead puckered as he absorbed her words. “I’ve seemed stressed to you?”
Caitlyn unwrapped the sandwich, taking a large bite before responding. “Yes. Very. When you are not training with me you are distracted.”
He finished the pilfered apple. “And here I was thinking I was hiding it well.”
She put her hand on his arm. “I’m just concerned is all. You are kind of like a pressure cooker ready to blow. So what’s up? Is this related to when I saw you and Caleb meeting a couple of weeks back?”
Caitlyn could practically see him trying to figure out in his head exactly how much he could disclose to her without getting in trouble. “Sort of. Things have been very taxing as of late. Not only has the Cine Tofa been encroaching on some of the Trusts territory for Potentials, but there are several members of the Trust that are missing.”
“Oh my God.”
“My father has asked me to aid in recovering the Trust members.”
The blonde wondered when he found time to take care of all his responsibilities. Did he ever sleep? “And how is that going?”
“Not well. The Cine Tofa has been denying all our requests for renegotiation or arbitration in order to free them.”
She sat quietly processing what he just told her. “And here I am making you go on a hike with me. Do you want to go back? We can, and I would completely understand. In fact, I can help you if you need it.”
“Thank you for the offer, but no. Besides, you are helping me. I needed a break, even if it’s just for a day. My father assured me that he has our legal department working on this as we speak, so nothing is on hold.”
“Good.” She did not want to have him linger on his unfinished work. “The next mile is supposedly really challenging.”
She stood up and winced, her right foot felt as if a blister were rubbing right against her boot. Declan reached out to steady her. “You okay?”
“Damn new hiking boots. I should have known better. I think I have a blister.”
“Let me look.”
“No, I’ll be okay.”
He looked at her pointedly. “Caitlyn, I can help. Just let me take a look.”
She plopped down on the ground, defeated by her own stupidity. Declan untied the boot, removing it gently. He rolled up the leg of her jeans before stripping her wool sock. Together they examined the angry red welt that was now forming on her heel. “Damn.”
“It’s a blister alright.” He grabbed her ankle.
“What are you doing?” Declan's large hands began to massage her foot, a pleasing tingling sensation replacing the pain. Her heart began to race just a little quicker as she watched him.
“Healing the blister.” She focused on the way that his hands made several passes gliding partly up her calf muscle before trailing its way back down to the arch of her sole. Finally, his fingers rested on her heel for several minutes, and she didn’t speak, not wanting to break his concentration. “There. Done.”
She lifted her foot, twisting the ankle at various angles, inspecting it. The heel was still red, but the welt was not raised anymore and the pain was virtually gone. It was much better than anything she could have done. “Amazing.”
He reached into his backpack, handing her a small package. “Here is some moleskin. It should help prevent the blister from coming back. Let me know if you start getting a blister on the other foot.”
“Thank you.” She wanted desperately to ask if she did get another blister if he could teach her how to heal it herself, but she wouldn’t. Declan definitely needed a day off and truth was, she probably did too. So she bit her tongue, applying the moleskin. “You ready to keep going?”
“Only if you are.”
The trail quickly turned to rock ledge, and Caitlyn found herself scrambling almost vertically up the granite, silently thanking Declan for healing her foot. Her calves were burning and it was with great relief when they finally reached the summit an hour later. She plopped down, taking a large swig of her water. Declan joined her thirty seconds later.
From where she sat, she could see the sleepy town below, the outlines of the Trust compound so far away. It almost felt like a dream to her, these past five months, the whirlwind romance of Garrett, the daily structure that was Declan’s regimented training.
Declan took the words out of her mouth. “It’s like you can breathe up here, isn’t it? Like your life doesn’t have so many expectations placed on it.”
Her eyes slowly took in the beautiful canvas laid out in front of them. “Exactly.”
“Just me, the trees, and the mountain.”
She nudged him playfully. “Hey! Don’t forget about me.”
“Oh no, I could never forget about you.” He sipped his water, attempting to stifle the smile that was tugging at the corner of his mouth. He leaned back, lying down to stare at the clear blue sky. “It’s amazing, isn’t it?”
She copied him. “What is amazing?”
He motioned at the blue azure above. “Out there. There are all these stars, all these possibilities for life and other cultures out there and we have barely begun to scratch the surface of our own exploration. At night, I love to just stare at the stars and think about us coming across another planet, just like our own, with intelligent life forms on it, waiting to start a new age of peace. When I begin to feel full of myself, I look at the sky or the stars and realize just how insignificant I really am.”
Caitlyn continued to lie down, but her head was now turned to Declan while he continued to speak. He did not realize that she was staring at him at first; he kept talking, sharing his intimate thoughts and beliefs about the world.
She found that she loved hearing him talk. The relaxing timbre of his voice, the steady cadence; the way that she knew that he truly believed with every fiber of his being what he was saying. When he talked about making the world a better place, Caitlyn wanted to go out and help him make it a better one.
So she listened.
He finally turned his face to hers and her brown ones met his blue. He blushed, she guessed because he realized that he had monopolized the conversation. “I’m sorry.”
Her hand reached out to find his and she gave it a squeeze. “Don’t be. It was nice.”
Caitlyn could see his internal clock winding up again, the world creeping back into his thoughts, the concerns that plagued him every day coming to the forefront. Although Declan was obviously destined for greatness, her heart yearned for him to know some normalcy. He sat up, letting go of her hand.
She stilled his hand and jerked her head down a few thousand feet below. “Don’t. Leave it down there, Declan. Up here… up here we can breathe.” She said, repeating his earlier sentiment.
“It’s difficult not to let guilt creep in.”
“We will head down soon enough. But for now…Sometimes, even when everything seems overwhelming and daunting, sometimes you just need to take time out and appreciate life. You and I are very similar. I think it’s why we get along so well. We will push and push each other and ourselves to death if we let it. Sure, we may have strength and even power, but at the end of the day, can we say that we lived a full life if all we do is work? This is what life is about, Declan. This is what we are fighting for. Our humanity.”
Awakening Book One of the Trust Series
J. E. Swift's books
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- Stolen: Warriors of Hir, Book 3
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- Awaken: A Spiral of Bliss Novel (Book Three)
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- Trust in Me