Light in Your Eyes

12 | the call

L A Y L A

I plop myself on the bed, going through my new phone with excitement. I know that everything I do with this phone -- all my calls and all my messages -- may be tracked by Black Wings, but I don't care.

I proceed with setting up the phone first, including putting my fingerprint and passcode for security. I know that they can do anything, but this is just for precaution in case the horrible guys out there suddenly want to take it again. The thought of them harassing me still makes me think twice before going out of this room, and my heart sinks as I realize all over again that I am no more than a prisoner here.

Just as I'm about to dial Archer's number, the phone rings. I stare blankly at the unknown number showing on the screen, wondering if it's Jaxon.

I swallow, answering the call. "Hello?"

"Layla," a man's voice echoes in my ear.

It's Jaxon.

I have so many questions in my head that I don't even know what I should say to him. Before I can make up my mind, Jaxon is already speaking again.

"I may not have enough time because I'm in a hurry, but I have to talk to you about Kellan." There are sounds of people speaking in the background, distinctly, so I'm guessing that he's in a public space but currently excusing himself to make this call. "How is he?" he asks, and I can hear concern in his voice. "How is my brother?"

I want to say that Kellan is being a pain in the ass, but then, I decide to choose the words wisely. I'm talking to the first heir, the King of Black Wings.

"To be honest," I begin. "He's a difficult person. Did you even tell him that I was going to be his caregiver? Because it didn't seem like he agreed to it."

Jaxon sighs and then curses. "I had no other choices. He's pulling away from me, and I just want to know that he's okay. He needs someone to take care of him, no matter how hard it is for him to admit that."

I remember very clearly that Kellan hated to feel that he was incapable. That was why he told me to get lost.

"I know that you paid me in full amount, but I don't think that I can--"

"Listen to me," he cuts me off. "I don't care about the money. You don't even have to return it should anything happen before the contract ends."

Jaxon sounds pissed, and it makes me think twice before crossing him again.

"My brother has been in agony since he lost his eyesight," Jaxon says, "and the environment around him -- that fucking house --  is not good enough for him to heal. There are only a few people I can trust there, and they don't have the capacity to give him the help that I want."

I listen intently, sensing that what he's about to say is going to be important.

"Kellan is constantly angry with everything, but mostly with what happened to him. I don't think that he'll ever accept the fact that he's blind and that it's permanent," Jaxon says heartbreakingly, I can almost feel the pain myself. "He's angry that he can't be normal. He thinks that he's incapable, which is far from the truth. I always knew that he had a protective nature since he was a kid, so I taught him martial arts. It helped him a lot. He learned so hard. I taught him, and I taught him, until he became even better than I was."

Jaxon sounds like he's speaking through gritted teeth, like it hurts him to the core that his brother is suffering.

"Right now, he can fight better than me, and I can't be more proud of that. But it's not enough."