P. Stormcrow

Sky

The credits rolled on the screen but Sky didn’t want to look away, didn’t want to see Malcolm wincing in more pain than he admitted. Every time he did, a tinge of guilt plucked at her heart though she couldn’t fathom why she felt at fault here.

”Do you want to watch another movie?” Malcolm asked.

“Sure.” It beat talking. Since Oliver dropped them off Malcolm’s home and they had managed to get Malcolm comfortable, they had resorted to using TV to fill the time. The things he picked to watch were light and she could not help but laugh, especially when he added his own commentary. It was enough to distract her from her own darker thoughts.

The place was tiny but nice, tidier than she expected of a bachelor’s pad, or maybe he had a girlfriend that came over to help clean? It wasn’t that Malcolm was hard to talk to, just that now that the initial shock had faded, she grew conscious of just how damn good looking he was with his five o’clock shadow. And a faint sense of memory told her that she was usually quiet to begin with but especially around hot guys.

“Here.” Malcolm passed the remote to her and shifted to brace himself on the couch. It was an old leather piece, some sorts faded with time but like the rest of the mishmash of furniture, the thing was clean and well cared for.

“Where are you going?” Sky stared at the remote then up at his face.

“Noah and Oliver will be over soon for dinner. I need to start cooking. Got some chicken defrosting in the fridge.”

Malcolm cooked? For the three of them?

“Wait, they live here?” She couldn’t see how with the single bedroom.

He shook his head but chuckled. “Both Noah and Oliver don’t cook. Or rather Oliver can’t and Noah hates to. So they come over for dinner most nights before they head home.”

Her own circumstances forgotten, Sky leaned forward, curiosity fueling her courage.”What about friends? Don’t they have their own—” Belatedly, she realized how rude the question sounded and cut herself off.

“Life?” Malcolm finished for her but if he took offence, he didn’t show it. “I don’t know if you know this but the life of a groundskeeper, or a funeral director, or a mortician for that matter, makes us pretty unpopular. Lots of folks out there are way more superstitious than you’d think and those that aren’t, have friends or family that are so you see where this is going?”

Sky has never stopped to think about it or she did but couldn’t remember. That didn’t matter though as she studied Malcolm more closely. “You don’t seem to mind.”

Malcolm shrugged. “I didn’t have much, to begin with. And it’s good to be back working with family instead of strangers.”

“You guys are family?” Sky brought up the images of Oliver and Noah in her head and attempted to find some resemblance but failed to.

“Sort of. We met at the orphanage and kind of adopted each other.”

Oh. She could sort of see that, especially when she recalled what Malcolm said earlier about Oliver helping him escape bullying. But she found herself wanting to know more about the man in front of her, the one that saved her from freezing in the graveyard. “What did you do before?”

“Everything and anything. Man of my size, people take one look and assume things.”

She tilted her head to one side, unsure what he meant. but Malcolm didn’t elaborate. Instead, he got ready to push himself up.

“I’ll cook,” she spoke with haste, shooting up from the couch before she paused. Shit. She didn’t know how to cook.

Malcolm must have seen something on her face. “It’s okay Sky. I can manage.”

At that, she raised a brow and gave his leg a pointed look. “Did I not tell Oliver that I was going to take care of you? Like he needs another excuse to think of me as a useless burden.” The last comment came out without her intention. She didn’t even realize how much Oliver’s tone with her all day had been bothering her. Then again, she had only known the three of them for a day, so why did she care what they thought?

Probably because they are all you know right now.

Great.

Malcolm placed a hand on her shoulder. “Oliver doesn’t think you’re a burden.”

“Really?” She could hear the sarcasm dripping in her own voice. 

But Malcolm didn’t seem put off. “Really. He’s just a bit rough around the edges and the finances have been stressed out recently. Look. If Oliver thought that, he wouldn’t have agreed to let you take care of me.”

She wasn’t sure if she believed his reassurances but for now, she had a job to do and she was going to do it. “Then let me take over the cooking.” When Malcolm frowned, she added. “Why don’t we compromise? You can watch and tell me what to do.” 

At that, Malcolm laughed and Sky could not help but envy at how easy the sound came to his lips. “Deal.”

They moved to the kitchen with Sky keeping close as Malcolm hobbled his way. At least he didn’t have far to walk. Two stools crammed along the kitchen counter and Sky settled into one of them before she stepped around to stand in front of the stove, her head turning this way and that in bewilderment.

“Fridge. Check if the chicken has defrosted enough yet,” Malcolm prompted and Sky moved automatically there and opened the door. 

“It’s limp,” she called out.

“Okay, good. Take it out here and I’ll explain.”

For the next two hours, Malcolm talked her through cooking the various components and for the first time since she woke up in that cardboard coffin, she found some semblance of peace as she tried her best to chop right and not burn anything. It was harder than she expected, even with Malcolm’s instructions.

So consumed she was by her task, Sky didn’t even hear the phone ringing nor the loud knocks until Malcolm began to move. She snapped her head back in surprise as she plated the food but Malcolm motioned her to continue as he moved to the door.

“You should be resting, not cooking” Oliver scolded right away. “We could have ordered pizza or something.”

“Not like we have much money these days for—”

“Something smells…burn-y,” Noah’s more casual tone still made Sky flush with embarrassment. She had tossed away the burnt garlic and tried again but hadn’t quite been able to get the smell out.

From the corner of her eye, she glimpsed Malcolm shooting Noah a dark look as he mouthed something to him.

“Come get your food,” Sky called out before anyone else could make a comment.

Noah and Oliver shuffled to get their shoes and coats off before they came to pick up their dishes. As if on autopilot, they made their way to the couch.

“Here,” Sky carried Malcolm’s plate for him and they moved there too but she retreated to eat her own dinner

“Come eat with us,” Malcolm called out over his shoulder.

“It’s okay! There’s not enough room any—”

Before Sky could finish her sentence, Noah was beside her with a playful grin on his lips. “I’m sorry I said it smelled burnt. I thought Mal was the one cooking.” He offered a hand and gave her puppy dog eyes. Damn, and it works. Her resolve melted away and she placed her hand in his. “Only because you apologized.”

“I do!” Noah’s earnest grin relaxed her and as he scooped up her plate, she laughed at his antics as he pretended to treat her like royalty, walking her to where everyone else was.

They kept the talk over dinner light as they discussed the operations of the cemetery and Sky contented herself with listening and observing. They cared about each other, that much was evident even with Noah taking shots at Oliver. Especially with Noah taking shots at Oliver as the latter born it with grace. Then there was their attractiveness, Noah with his mischievous grins and even Oliver with his gravitas. Sky found her cheeks heating as she admired them then wondered what was wrong with her once more.

Soon, however, the three of them turned to her. All the attention was a little disconcerting so Sky reacted without thinking.

“What?” she snapped and straightened herself.

Oliver adjusted his glasses. “What are your next steps?”

The question caught her off guard and she stared at him with uncertainty. But luckily Noah spoke up for her.

“We thought we’d go to the university and ask around. That’s where I remembered her from.”

The other two jerked their heads in Noah’s direction, brows lifted, lips parted in surprise. 

“It’s a really big campus.” Malcolm rubbed his chin. 

“Statistics,” she blurted out without intending to. “I remembered, had a flash of me working with R and I’m pretty sure I was in the statistics department.”

“As a student?” Oliver asked as he set his plate on the coffee table and leaned forward, interest peaked.

“I… I’m not sure.” Her hope dimmed.

“Hey, that’s at least a better starting point than we had before. Who knows? Maybe once we’re there, something else will jog your memory!” Noah’s enthusiasm was infectious and Sky found herself smiling and nodding.

“We should go tomorrow.” Noah slid forward from his seat.

“Okay, go first thing in the morning. Noah, I’m going to need you back in the afternoon to work on the new body coming in.” Oliver directed.

Sky turned to stare at him in surprise and found Noah doing the same. 

“Are you sure?” Malcolm asked Oliver, his voice quieter than before.

“We need to figure this out. If there’s a chance for Sky to remember who she is, we need to take it. I can handle things back in the office.”

“Thank you,” Sky murmured, gratitude welling within. Perhaps Malcolm was right and Oliver didn’t hate her so much. Or maybe he just wanted her out of his hair. Either way, she’d take the help.

Oliver cleared his throat but couldn’t quite hide the hint of color spreading across his cheeks. “Well, tomorrow will be a busy day then. I should head home.”

He stood and Noah stood with him. When Sky looked up at Noah, he pointed at Oliver. “He’s my ride.”

Sky stood as well. “I should go too,” she murmured. Not that she had a place to go.

“Stay.” When Malcolm ventured to grab her hand, she didn’t pull back. His palm was warm against hers.

“It’s here or one of our places or the woman’s shelter.”

Sky opened her mouth to protest before closing it as she tried to summon images of the women’s shelter. It might mean getting the cops involved and she wasn’t ready for that yet.

“Oliver can take you there instead if you want,” Malcolm suggested. “You would be safe and I don’t think they would call the police unless you wanted them to.”

Was he reading her mind? Sky studied the three brothers before refocusing on Malcolm. He was the one that held her through her shock-induced hallucination. How would anyone else react if they found her like that?

“I’ll stay here. Besides, someone needs to clean the dishes.” Right. It was because of the dishes. 

She ignored the mild disappointment on Noah’s face but gave Malcolm’s hand a squeeze before letting go. Without waiting for anyone else, she walked past the men toward the door. Oliver and Noah swung around to follow.

As soon as Noah got his jacket and shoes on, he pulled Sky into a hug. “Don’t let Mal push you around, okay?”

They both knew that would be the last thing Malcolm would do but she nodded all the same as Noah let her go. But to her greater surprise, Oliver pulled her into a hug next. 

“Get some rest.” There was a kind of restrained fierceness that drew her breath away. When he let go, he fixed her with a stern look. “I mean it, okay?”

“Okay,” Sky squeaked out, still too stunned to come up with an appropriate response.

Oliver let her go and patted her on the head before he let himself out with Noah in tow. 

Sky stood there dumbfounded long after the door closed.