Chapter Nine

Elijah

 

I held onto the tree limb with a sore hand and pulled myself up the side of the mountain with a loud grunt. Fuckin’ Christ, this is a journey from hell!

My compass pointed north, and according to the coordinates Xander gave me, his cabin would be just a mile east of my location. It fuckin’ better be.

A tarantula sat on a rock as my foot lifted over. It’s hairy legs and beady black eyes freaked me out. Navy SEAL or not, spiders are creepy as hell. I stopped about a quarter mile up and took a drink of my water that was now just as hot as the sun. There wasn’t a path, no easy way to reach Xander, which is just how he liked it I assumed. He always was one to avoid crowds, or people in general. I laughed out loud as I thought about how he’d react to hiking tourists wandering onto to land. I guzzled the rest of the water, even though I knew sipping was more beneficial. I was roasting, itching from the foliage, and my feet were soaked from the wet, lush terrain.

Finally, I held my coordinates and stood in the spot that they dictated, but I didn’t see any sign of a cabin. If that asshole had me on a wild goose chase, laughing his ass off somewhere nearby at my struggle, I was determined to have his head before the end of the day. I pushed past a large overgrown bush and stepped into a small creek bed as the image of the wooden cabin in the distance welcomed me. The sticks cracked under my feet as I took a few steps near the place, then a familiar sound of a gun cocking sounded not far ahead of me. “Another step might be your last,” Xander’s voice was music to my ears.

“You fuckin’ bastard, I ought to shoot your ass for making me climb this mountain,” I called back.

“Elijah!” his voice was friendlier, and once he stepped forward, his face recognizable. “You pussy, you took the easy way,” he teased.

The easy way?

“You better have a cold beer,” I demanded.

Xander laughed as he extended his hand to mine. I gripped on, letting him pull me across the waterway and up the last small hill to his land. Land I was certain he didn’t own but claimed like a damn hippie. “I’ve got something better than that,” he smirked, releasing my hand a little too soon. I nearly fell back onto my ass and was glad Xander had turned, missing my struggle.

His sandy blond hair had grown long, flowing past his shoulders, and the goatee he sported made him look like a wild man, but I guess that’s what he was, what he’d always been.

“Come on in,” he offered, pushing the front door to the cabin open as he walked through.

“How did you find this place?” I asked, looking around the cabin in awe. It was nice: really fuckin’ nice.

“Find it?” he snorted. “This has been in my family for years,” he boasted.

I pulled off my wet boots, and then my socks that were sticking to my waterlogged feet. The place was too nice to dirty up, so I left them by the door. “You still like whiskey?” Xander called from the kitchen.

I never really liked whiskey, but I did drink it a time or two when I was thinking about my dad. I guess now, here back in Molokai, dad’s ashes sitting on the kitchen counter next to the coffee grounds, this was the time for whiskey. “Sure,” I called back, still amazed at the modernization of the place. A dark brown leather sectional spread through the middle of the large front room, a TV, larger than I’d ever seen hung on the wall, and a laptop was open, appearing to be onlin,1 sitting on the plank wood coffee table.

“This place is incredible,” I gasped as Xander reappeared in the room with two glasses in his hands.

“Here,” he handed me one, the smell of whiskey strong coming from the glass, reminding me of my dad and his iron fist. “Yeah, I spruced it up a bit,” he smirked.

I noticed a monitor on the wall, large, and with six split screens. It was scanning the perimeter of his land from every angle. “You saw me coming, ya asshole,” I scorned.

Xander laughed. “Yeah. I just thought it would be funny to watch you squirm a bit,” he admitted.

“So, how do you keep supplies, and how the hell are you getting electricity way up here?” I questioned.

“Generator, and I make a trip to town twice a week,” he said casually, like it was normal to live in the damn woods, more like rainforest, on top of a mountain with no path.

“You’ve always been eccentric,” I smiled, and then took a sip of the whiskey in my hand. “Damn, that’s smooth,” I marveled, swirling the brown liquid around in the glass.

“I made it myself,” he grinned. “I started a company while I was in the States. You can get Xander Whiskey in fifteen states now, and Hawaii is next on the list,” he added.

“Well, that explains where you’re getting all the money to supply this place,” I chuckled, taking another sip. It was really fuckin’ good. My dad would’ve loved to have got on a good drunk with this stuff.

“So, how did you know I was in Hawaii?” I questioned.

“Ahhh, I know where all you boys are. I keep a pretty close eye on my brothers,” he slapped me on the back as he walked past me to the couch. “Sit down and relax,” he offered, motioning to the couch as he took his spot in front of the laptop.

My body was aching as I hobbled over to the couch. Blisters on the back of my heels had already started forming, and I knew from the burn in my calves, I’d have charley horses all night long when I finally slept.

“It has to get pretty lonely all the way up here,” I hinted, finishing my whiskey with one good gulp.

“I’d say it’s more peaceful than lonely. You’re the one who always needed a warm body in your bed,” he teased.

I couldn’t deny that statement. I did always tend to seek out company of the female kind whenever possible. Xander kept to himself, and now that I thought about it, I didn’t think I’d ever seen him with a woman.

“You ready to settle down yet?” Xander asked, his bushy blond eyebrows pushing up on his forehead.

“You know I don’t believe in marriage. That isn’t for me,” I scoffed.

He didn’t let his eyes lift from mine; his stare was intense. “Don’t you want to start a family?” he probed. His tone was serious, which kind of freaked me out. This wasn’t a topic that men talked about, especially Navy men.

“Why bring a kid up in this world? It’s filled with hate and danger,” I proclaimed with the same seriousness that Xander exuded.

“You know Taylor Madden is back in town,” he smirked, standing and walking back towards the kitchen.

My heart raced at the mention of her name. “Yeah, I’ve seen her,” I admitted while he was in the other room and eye contact wasn’t an issue.

“Oh yeah?” he chuckled, walking back into the room with the bottle of whiskey.

He filled our glasses, and then placed the bottle on the table in front of us. The label was a picture of a mountain, with a man, bearded and long-haired, standing on the top. I chuckled as I imagined it was created to mimic Xander. His own cartoon figure was even tough and rugged.

“She’s one hell ova’ woman. It’s a shame what happened to her family,” he sighed, leaning back on the couch.

I hadn’t talked to her about Tommy, but she did bring up the topic of her father. It was a shame; they were an amazing family, and I knew Taylor was close to them. “It is,” is all I said on the topic, not wanting to disclose details about her personal life if Xander hadn’t already known how her father died.

“Didn’t you have the hots for her?” he nudged me hard in the ribs with his elbow.

“I wouldn’t say that,” I lied.

I did have the hots for Taylor, right around my senior year. I’d already signed up for the Navy with Tommy, and he threatened to kick my ass when I mentioned his sister was growing up into a beautiful woman. He was right to. She didn’t deserve the pain of loving a man in the military. My life was uncertain, and she deserved certainty.

Xander started talking about Tommy, which led into Isaac, and then our other brothers, lost and still living. He really had kept tabs on everyone. I was on the edge of my seat, soaking in every last word he spoke, intrigued to learn about my brothers and how they were progressing in life since leaving the Navy. A couple stayed in, but everyone else bailed after their years were up, including me. I couldn’t take anymore. After losing my best friend, holding him in my arms while he took his last breath, I was done.

It was getting late when Xander finished talking, and the bottle that was in front of us. “I better get back,” I reasoned, knowing it would get dark just as I hit the beach where I’d parked my car a block away.

“I’ll throw you a pillow if ya wanna take the guest room. You’re welcome to stay,” he offered.

My sore back, throbbing calves, and blistered feet really considered his offer, but I needed to get back. “I appreciate it, but I’m gonna head out,” I replied, slapping my old friend on the back as I stood.

My socks were nearly dry, but my shoes were still drenched. Xander held up his finger to tell me to hold on while he rushed into the back room. He came out holding dry socks, and a pair of boots that he swore would keep my feet dry on the trip. “Keep em’, but come back up and visit anytime,” he offered.

I wasn’t sure I’d be making that trip again anytime soon. “I’m only here a month, so I’ll do my best,” I agreed. I knew I’d mentioned bringing Taylor along, but I wasn’t sure she could handle this trip. It was hard on me, and I’d been trained to handle those conditions.

I took Xander’s number, laughing that he’d chosen e-mail with coordinates instead of calling me before. It was good to see him, and even though he was all alone on that mountain top, it was obvious he was happy.