Chapter 1

"No, please stop! It hurts." I could feel the blood dripping down my side. I looked up only to see the pure hatred in his eyes.

"No son of mine will be gay!" I was done for. The belt in his hand twitched. I lifted my arm to block it, but the blow never came. Instead, I felt his hand wrap tightly around my throat. He lifted me up to the point that my feet no longer touched the ground. As I struggled in his grip I heard him say,

"Remember this boy. You're only alive because of me."

It had been years since I'd seen him. He was my father before, but not now. Not ever again. His voice haunted me as I would hear it every time I closed my eyes. He was the reason I couldn't sleep at night. The reason why I was hiding. My father was a mean and wealthy politician who got his way through any means necessary.

I stared at the small photo in my hands. Two seventeen-year-old boys kissing. It was rare to see someone that open about their homosexuality. because in these parts it was a death sentence. I wish I could be as carefree as I was then. It wasn't long before my father found the photo, but what I didn't realize is what he would do with the photo until I found it on the other boy's dead body.

This is what happens to people who get too close to me.

My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on my bedroom door. Knowing that he wouldn't knock again I quickly opened the door to reveal my best friend Caleb and his partner, Cameron. Caleb pulled me into a hug.

"Gave us a fright when you didn't show for breakfast this morning."

I looked over at the clock sitting on my nightstand. It read 8:45. Shit. Caleb stepped back looking me up and down whilst a small frown was growing on his face. I knew that look. He was one of the only people who knew about the boy in the photo and the truth about my father as he, Jasmine, and Niko were the only ones I trusted. I stared at my feet waiting for Caleb to say something. Cameron, sensing the tension between me and Caleb asked to excuse themself from the room. Caleb and them exchanged a look as Caleb silently informed his partner that the two of them were going to have a talk later.

"They can stay. It's about time they knew anyway." I sighed.

As I invited them in Caleb gave me a questioning look before beckoning Cameron over. He sat in a small chair next to my bed and pulled his younger partner into his lap, setting a kiss on their cheek. Cameron blushed at the small show of affection.

"How were the nightmares last night?" Caleb asked hugging Cameron closer to him. The two of them looked adorable.

"It's getting worse." I swallowed. It was hard to admit, but it felt good to finally say it to my best friend.

"It's like I'm reliving horrors I don't remember. Like a constant spinning of images that feel familiar, but I can't quite place them." I absent-mindedly started to rub the scars that ran along my arm. The scars hurt, but not in a way most people would suspect. They hurt me emotionally and were always there to remind me that I couldn't depend on people who were supposed to love me.

We all glanced over at the door when another person came knocking. This time it was Niko.

"So, sorry to break up this little meeting, but we got another new one."

New One. We started using that phrase whenever someone would come to us seeking shelter. It was usually kids, but we occasionally got adults too.

"What do we know about the new one?" I inquired as we walked toward one of the greeting rooms. They had originally been used as our armory, but as more people sought shelter. we had converted them into greeting rooms where we would house our newest members before placing them in one of the wings. Caleb passed me the tablet with the small about of information we had on the kid.

"Be careful when talking to her, Haymond. She's had a rough couple of days," he warned.

Jasmine met us in the hallway right outside the greeting rooms with little Amara. When we first started to get into greeting I had realized that the newer kiddos were more comfortable talking to us if we had a little in there as well. It helped ease the newer ones and also gave them the knowledge that we weren't going to harm them in any way. Jaz was nervous and for good reason, Amara was her daughter and it was her first time. I gave Jaz a reassuring smile.

Jasmine and I went to high school together. She next to Niko, Caleb, and I were founding members of our small guild. We have roughly fifty people total under our protection and the numbers were still growing by the day. I turned to Caleb.

"Are you sure that I should be the one to talk to her?" I asked.

Even though everyone looked to me for leadership, I still was apprehensive when it came to leading. I wasn't the most senior ranking by any means. Jasmine was a few years older than me and way more experienced. She was the voice of the people when it came to making important decisions. Same with Damian. He was the oldest member in the guild and was a strong role model for our younger boys. He was kind and soft-spoken.

"Stop it." Caleb cautioned. "You know more than any of us what it is like to be afraid of what you truly are."

Caleb knew how to get to my soft spot. How to see reason in what the others were trying to help with. I shook my head, he was right. I reached my hand out to Amara.

"Let's do this."