Helios Exposed (The Helios Chronicles #2) Read online

  “Jimmy’s always been an asshole, Andrew. All through school he acted like he was better than everyone else. He hated me with a passion because he knew I didn’t care what he thought of me.” Jayden frowned. “He and I have fought many times.”

  Andrew shook his head in disgust. Andrew then smiled as he remembered where Jimmy was and knowing that he wouldn’t be the big man in prison. Andrew glanced at Jayden who was now looking out into the canyon, which was still vibrant with color.

  “Aaron and Olivia tried to engage me but it just wasn’t happening. When I first got the Harley, I just rode it with no rhyme or reason. I had no real plan, and then I found this place purely by chance. I remember stopping and feeling a pull to this,” he said, waving his hand to emphasize the landscape. “I sat right here.” Andrew looked down, indicating where he was currently sitting and then shook his head slightly. “I felt so lost and confused. I didn’t know what my purpose was. I kept hearing Aaron say that this was my time to fly. That I was free like the Phoenix, but I just couldn’t see it. But as I sat there wallowing in self-pity, something... happened. It was weird, but there was this tiny spark of faith that started to build inside of me.” He sighed. “I sat here for hours before finally going back to the house.”

  “This place is very... peaceful,” Jayden said, glancing at him.

  “It is. There is a gentle calm about this place, and when I’m here, I have this sense of tranquility that overcomes me. You know what I mean? Like my heart slows down and I can breathe and, I don’t know, things feel hopeful.”

  He glanced at Jayden who was nodding. He hoped that he could feel that as well. Andrew turned back to the breathtaking sight before him.

  “When I got back to my room, all I did was draw. Everything I could remember, and what I couldn’t remember, I waited to draw until I could see it again. I ended up coming back here daily for several months until this was all in my head and I could see it clearly.” He smiled and glanced at Jayden who was looking out across the canyon again. “Aside from Madison, you are the only other person that knows about this place. I...” He paused as Jayden turned to him. “This place is very special to me and I wanted to share it with you.”

  Jayden closed his eyes for a second, nodding.

  “I thought, maybe, you know, when you have those nightmares about what happened to you and your parents, you could come here and it would make you feel better like it did for me,” Andrew said with heartfelt sincerity.

  Jayden’s eyes shot open, tears stung his eyes in the hot sun as his throat constricted tightly. His mouth opened, but he wasn’t able to form any coherent words. Andrew placed his hand on his shoulder and squeezed lightly before taking a deep breath and looking back out over the canyon area. Jayden inhaled deeply and turned to the scene before him as well.

  “Thank you, Andrew,” Jayden finally said after several minutes had passed.

  “You’re welcome, Jay,” Andrew replied.

  They sat in silence as they both thought about the lives they had led up until that point, and how, in such a short time, their friendship had grown so deep. Neither was looking forward to not being able to see each other for such a long time. After much time had passed, both men looked at one another. Jayden offered him a small smile that Andrew quickly returned.

  “We should head back soon,” Jayden said, chuckling. “You don’t want to miss my parents big 'going away' production.” He winked.

  Andrew laughed and stood up, reaching his hand down to help Jayden up. “Heaven forbid, but seriously, there is no way in hell that Madison would miss the opportunity to ogle your fathers one last time,” Andrew said with an eye roll.

  Jayden laughed and put his arm over Andrew’s shoulder. “Welcome to my world man. I swear to god, girls don’t seem to care that they’re gay. It’s the strangest thing,” he said shaking his head.

  When they got back to their bikes, Andrew threw his leg over his Harley and grinned at Jayden. “I’ll race you.”

  Jayden literally jumped on his bike, starting it with a roar and a huge grin. “You are so on,” he said, pulling out ahead of him.

  2 Farewell Gathering

  Madison pulled up to the Bennetts’ home and could already see that Aaron, Olivia, and Andrew were there. She looked out the window and saw smoke coming up from the back of the house. Madison had never actually been in their backyard so she assumed that must be the barbecue. She glanced at her grandma, who was looking at the house as well, a forlorn look on her face.

  “You okay, Grans?” Madison asked concerned.

  Her grandmother turned to her. “This is really it, isn’t it?”

  Madison could already feel the tears forming in her eyes. “It is, Grans.”

  Her grandmother nodded and turned back to the house, opening her car door. Madison quickly exited the vehicle, grabbing her potato salad from the backseat before making her way to her grandma. They locked arms with one another as they casually strolled to the door.

  “Are we supposed to walk inside?” Grans asked confused.

  Madison nodded. “Yes, Liam told me to just come inside and put my salad in the fridge. He said they would all be out back.”

  Madison did as instructed, placed her salad in the huge side-by-side refrigerator, and guided her grandmother towards the patio door where they could hear laughter and music. Andrew spotted her at the sliding patio door and jumped up as if he were on a spring. He kissed her the minute he reached her and then leaned down to kiss her grandmother on the forehead. He winked at Madison as he took her grandmother’s arm and led her to a nice chair near his aunt and uncle.

  Madison took a moment to eye her surroundings. The backyard was monstrously huge. She had no idea it was as big as it was. There were two sets of fruit trees that lined the walls on both sides that seemed to serve a few purposes, one, shade, two, privacy and three, well, they smelled wonderful. There was a gazebo nestled in the corner that looked like it had a sunken-in Jacuzzi and to the back of the yard was a pool. But what struck Madison the most was that on the opposite side was a huge barbecue pit, like the ones that you might see in the south. Madison smiled and shook her head at the enormity of the place.

  “It’s nuts, isn’t it?” Andrew asked, kissing her temple.

  Madison nodded and pointed at Jayden. “You have been holding out, buddy!”

  Jayden laughed. “Sorry, Madison.”

  “Hmm, just for that, none of my famous potato salad for you,” she said arching her brow.

  Now, he gave her a pout. “Ah, come on, Madison. Don’t be like that.”

  “Do you want something to drink?” Andrew asked with a chuckle.

  When she nodded, he walked to the huge cooler and got her a soda. Madison strolled over and gave both Aaron and Olivia a hug as well as Callie before taking a seat in one of the large lounge chairs. Andrew brought her the soda and motioned for her to scoot forward. He slipped in behind her and pulled her back to him, which was exactly where Madison wanted to be. Everyone talked and visited about nothing in particular, while Liam and Elias were grilling several items.

  “How does everyone want their steaks?” Liam asked as he approached them.

  Everyone told him their preference and Madison watched as he walked back to the pit with Elias. He whispered something to him, which made Elias actually blush and nudge him away. Liam laughed and ghosted his fingers along Elias’ back before walking inside the house. After a lot of small talk, because no one wanted to talk about the inevitable, Elias brought over a plate of steaks and set them on the table that Liam had ready. Madison and Olivia had both tried to help but were promptly shooed away. Jayden had then informed them that his dad was very particular about stuff like that. The table was perfectly lined with food and freshly picked flowers in strategically placed bowls as well as tiki lanterns behind the table and at the ends. The whole scene looked as if it belonged in some home and garden magazine.

  “The mediums are here. Aaron, your rare is at the end and as reque
sted, it is still mooing,” Elias said chuckling. “Callie, your well done is over here.” Callie smiled up at him.

  “Everyone, please, eat,” Liam said with a gallant wave to the table of food.

  “Damn, you guys sure know how to throw a barbecue,” Madison said with a whistle.

  “Well, I am from Texas,” Elias said, tipping his head as if he had a cowboy hat on.

  “Duly noted,” Madison giggled as she took Andrew’s hand.

  Madison had not been kidding when she said the Bennett’s knew how to do up a barbecue. There were steaks and four different kinds of salads, fresh fruit from what Madison assumed were the fruit trees in the yard, husked corn on the cob that had come off of the huge pit that Liam and Elias had been working. There were even homemade tortilla chips along with what appeared to be mango salsa. She couldn’t imagine how they expected everyone to eat all of it.

  “I told you it would be a production,” Jayden said, nudging Andrew.

  “This is a lot of food,” Andrew noted, shaking his head.

  “Oh my GOD!” Madison mumbled through a mouthful of chips and salsa. “Is this homemade?”

  Elias laughed. “Yes, it’s a family recipe. I’m glad you like it.”

  “Everyone likes your salsa,” Liam inserted with pride.

  The next several hours were spent eating and eating until no one could eat anymore. The conversations were fun and exciting as people shared funny stories for entertainment. The soundtrack for the evening consisted of a mixture of what Madison deemed 'street music' along with some of the popular Tejano music currently out. It reminded her of New York and the block parties she had attended as a teenager, especially the ones in Spanish Harlem. Liam and Elias glanced at each other as one of Santana’s songs came on. Jayden grinned and then stood up, taking Callie’s hand as he led her away from the tables. He immediately pulled her closer and started dancing as if he belonged in the actual video for the song.

  “Do you mind if we dance?” Elias asked, looking at the remaining couples present.

  “Of course not,” Olivia said immediately.

  “Ma’am,” Liam asked looking at Madison’s grandmother.

  She smiled. “Thank you for asking but it isn’t necessary. I may be old but I can still spot love in these old eyes of mine. You don’t need my approval.”

  With that, Elias took Liam’s hand and they joined Jayden and Callie. It was clear that this was some family thing that was just beautiful to watch. There was nothing odd or strange about it, instead it was lovely and sweet. When the song changed, everyone clapped for them and all four made exaggerated bows. When they sat down, they were laughing.

  “My dads taught me how to salsa to that song and then every time it came on, which was a lot, we would all dance to it,” Jayden said excitedly as he snatched a handful of chips off the table.

  “My husband and I were like that, anytime Frank Sinatra came on he would take me in his arms and we would slow dance,” Grandmother Downing said with a smile.

  Liam grinned and walked over to where the music was playing and fiddled with it for several minutes until suddenly the crooning voice of the one and only Frank Sinatra was belting out, The Way You Look Tonight. Without hesitation, Andrew stood and walked to Madison’s grandmother, reaching his hand out to her.

  “May I have this dance?”

  Madison couldn’t contain the smile on her face at watching her grandmother blush profusely as she stood and danced sweetly with Andrew. It was an interesting sight to behold. Here was a heavily tattooed man that to an outside observer appeared hard and possibly dangerous, dancing with an old woman with long gray hair that was resting her head against his chest. If anything spoke to not judging a book by its cover that certainly did. Madison glanced at Olivia and Aaron and Olivia had one hand gripping Aaron’s tightly while she was wiping tears from her eyes with her other one. When the song ended, Andrew gave her grandmother one of his radiant smiles as he helped her sit down.

  “Should we, you know?” Andrew asked, sitting next to Madison again.

  Madison sighed and nodded. She dug in her pocket and pulled out her car keys, handing them to Andrew who walked back into the house. Everyone turned to Madison for answers but she just smiled, she was not doing this without Andrew. They had talked over a month ago about wanting to do something special for their friends and family. She hoped they would like what they decided on. A few minutes later Andrew returned with five packages. He leaned them against his chair as he took his seat, holding Madison’s hand.

  “Andrew and I wanted to do something for all of you, as a way to thank you for everything you have done, the love you have all bestowed on the two of us and for your understanding as to why we need to leave,” Madison began.

  “Madison, that really isn’t necessary,” Callie said, her voice shaking slightly.

  “Yes, Callie, it was,” Madison said firmly, she then turned to Andrew, “Let’s start with Elias and Liam.”

  He nodded and flipped through the packages and found the one marked E&L. He stood and walked over to them, handing it to the two of them who were looking at him in shock as they were not expecting anything. Andrew sat down again and took Madison’s hand. Everyone watched as the Bennett’s opened the paper and then both inhaled sharply. Elias and Liam were surprised at what they were seeing. It was a framed drawing of the two of them. They were standing in the center of a crowd of people, their hands almost touching with their eyes locked on one another. In the background there were a lot of people drawn smaller than Elias and Liam, some were dancing, some talking, some toasting with glasses of wine but all were barely visible as Andrew had drawn them with less detail and more diffuse so that the focus would be the Bennett’s.

  “What is it?” Jayden asked, curious why it looked as if his parents were about to cry.

  Liam turned the picture around so everyone could see it.

  “Oh god, Andrew, it’s beautiful,” Olivia gasped.

  “We wanted to do something special, that was reflective of how much you have meant to us and to be honest that right there is how we see the two of you,” Madison stated firmly.

  “You two have helped us in more ways than we could ever repay and I know it isn’t much but this is our way of saying thank you for everything you did for me, for us,” Andrew added.

  Elias and Liam were still staring at the picture. The detail was exquisite. It belonged in a gallery versus on their wall. Liam touched their almost joined hands and looked over at Elias whose eyes were drawn to every little detail in the picture, mesmerized by the accurate depiction of him and Liam.

  “Thank you for this,” Liam finally said, swallowing hard.

  “You’re welcome,” Madison and Andrew said in unison.

  Andrew then brought a package to both Callie and Jayden. Callie excitedly opened hers while Jayden seemed hesitant. Callie squealed when she saw the picture, which was of her and Madison, some were of the two of them on the beach, some holding bags and the larger one in the middle was of her and Madison walking with linked arms, the way they always seemed to walk with one another. In every picture, Callie looked as if she was floating on air, their faces were joyous and full of life. Callie jumped up screaming and ran across the way, hugging Madison tightly and then wrapping her arm around Andrew as well, pulling him to her.

  “I love it,” she said kissing them both on the cheeks.

  As she sat back down she smiled at Jayden. “Go on, Jay, open it.”

  He took a deep breath and unwrapped it carefully. He had a tenuous hold on his emotions and was extremely worried that he would have some kind of panic attack if he didn’t keep himself in check. He felt a tear slip out of his eyes as he saw what Andrew had drawn. He looked across at Andrew and then back down at the picture.

  “Oh, Jay,” Callie said resting her head on his upper arm.

  Jayden smiled as he traced his fingers along the various pictures, most were of him and Andrew doing things, motorcycle racing on Piute Mount
ain, racing boats at Lake Arrowhead, on their jet skis at Lake Isabella, and paddle boarding in Santa Barbara. But the central picture was of him and Andrew, sitting with their legs drawn up, looking out onto the canyon.

  “This was today. How...” Jayden muttered, still looking at it.

  “I have been thinking about it for a long time but I hadn’t taken you yet. I meant what I said about it,” Andrew said confidently.

  Jayden nodded. “I’ll remember,” he said with a sigh. “Thank you.” The words seemed to be choking in his throat. “This is...” He wasn’t able to finish his thought.

  “You’re welcome, Jayden,” Andrew said and then looked at Madison, “Let’s do the last two at the same time, okay?”

  Madison nodded not sure how much more she could manage without turning into a sobbing mess. She picked up the picture marked Grans while Andrew grabbed the one marked Auntie. Madison sat next to her Grans as she handed it over to her. Madison had asked Andrew to draw a picture of her Grans in her chair with Madison on the arm, hugging her. She had wanted her Grans to always be able to see that, their special way of connecting to one another. Andrew had actually taken it a step further and drew two Madison’s, one on each arm of the chair. The first one was Madison as she was now, an adult who loved her grandmother, while the other was Madison as a little girl, clinging to her grandmother’s arm. When Madison had seen it she cried for an hour. Andrew had thought he had done something wrong but Madison had reassured him that it was perfect.

  “Oh, Maddie,” Grans smiled and breathed in hard, she then turned to Andrew who was watching her. “Come here, Andrew.”

  Andrew set his package down and walked over to her. She handed the picture to Madison and grabbed his hands forcing him to kneel in front of her.

  “What you did in that drawing was extraordinary. I can’t thank you enough for it.” Andrew started to say something but Grans shook her head. “Now, when you first started dating my granddaughter I was a little concerned but you showed me that you are an honorable man. Don’t let anyone tell you differently just because you don’t 'look' like what they might think an honorable man should look like. Mr. Bowers appears honorable but we all know that he isn’t. Looks are often deceiving.”