Final Truth

Chapter 17: Holding On

Cassia's point of view:

A few hours after the uproar from the city above subsides, I hear a knock on the door.

Everyone else holds their breath in fear, but I rush for the door without giving a second thought as to who might be behind it.

And as I expected, Cade stands there looking at me when I heave the door open, coming to check on us. His black hair is a little messy, and his eyes are pale with concern.

A flood of feelings hit me upon seeing him, his presence bringing everything into focus. There is so much fear that surrounds us in every waking moment that nothing seems sturdy anymore.

But I look at Cade closer, and he is there standing straight and tall in the doorway looking unshakeable compared to how unsteady I feel. Before I know what I'm doing, my feet are moving me closer to him and his arms are opening slightly, and I collapse into them with defeat.

I don't care if a few days ago I said I would never acknowledge I even hugged him; things are different now, and things are scarier.

He wraps his uncertain arms around me as I cling to him, confused as to where my sudden change of heart came from.

I know I should let go, that everyone else in the room is probably staring at us, and that I have walls around me that I need to keep built up for a reason. I don't trust him, and he's only an ally for us.

But I still can't bring myself to let go.

I shift myself to allow him inside and kick the door shut with my foot, his arms never leaving me as I start the conversation.

"Did you see the broadcast?" I manage to ask him.

"Yeah, I did," Cade admits, and I bury my face into his side and squeeze my arms tighter around him, knowing that any moment I will collapse with worry if I let go.

"What was the point of that speech?" Kyle asks, his hand holding on tightly to Susan's.

Before Cade can answer, however, Adam speaks up instead.

"Didn't you listen? They wanted to use Julia as a way to subdue the people. Henley and Will thought that by giving the people a familiar face telling them to stop fighting, they would listen to her. But she chose to disobey them by telling us to keep fighting," He explains.

"Yeah, but at an expense; we heard the gunshots in the background and saw the blood on the camera at the end of it," Susan speaks up, her mood hitting such a low point that my spirit falls even further with hers.

Cade takes in a breath, almost as if he's about to deliver us even more bad news. "Look, things are even worse up there now. There's no way in hell the citizens are going to let Will have that box, but everything is give or take now. People died tonight in that uproar after the broadcast ended," he admits.

But then, something about Cade changes as if he has something worse to say. His heart rate picks up dramatically, and his breathing becomes quicker; he slides his hands around my waist and holds me closer to him, almost as if he needs to hold on to me as much as I need to hold on to him.

"I think Will may find you guys," he finally admits.

I feel my stomach trying to crawl into my throat as I immediately drop my arms from him and back away, distrust replacing my need to hold onto him.