Midnight Fire - Rise of the Dark Angel - Book One (12 page)

             
“Yes
,
I am,” he answered
,
not
willing or able
to share anything w
ith her about who he really was
.
She wouldn’t believe him
if he told her the truth, anyway. It would almost be worth it just to see her reaction
.

             
“I’
m sorry. D
id you lose your fam
ily?”
She
asked sympathetically
and placed her hand on his arm,
causing
that electric feeling again. He
liked
it
and wanted her to continue touching him.

             
“It’
s been a while,” he told her
and tur
ned away. Looking into her eyes
,
he wanted to tell her everything.
He’
d be better off not speaking
of himsel
f
and keeping the conversation focused on her.
“I would rather not talk about them, though,” he said. Phoenix didn’t want to cause him more pain so she quickly changed the subject.

             
“I have a lot of work to make up since I slept away part of my day
but
I’
d love for you to join me. We have a safe place
for you to stay so you won’
t have to wander anymor
e,” she told him
as she removed her hand and started walking
again
.

             
Jayden foll
owed her, not
happy
she’
d removed her hand. He
wanted to grab her arm
and place it through his
.
He wanted to do a lot of things with her and he wasn’t known for his patience. He thought he may have to learn some for the first time in his existence. The thought made him laugh out loud, which earned him a strange look from Phoenix.

             
“Where is this place?” Jayden
asked
when he realized he’
d never said anything about her o
ffer
.

             
“I don’t
know how to explain where
it’s located
.
I just know how to get home. Where are you originally from?” she asked. She then bent down and started picking some wild herbs. It didn’t take him long to figure out what she was collecting
and soon he started helping her.
Phoenix gave him
another of her beautiful smiles
, appreciating his help
.
H
e could’ve had the entire chore
done for her within minutes
but
he had to keep his cover
so he moved slowly
alongside
her
and found it didn’t bother him.

             
“
My family was always nomadic
, never staying in one place for too long
. I cou
ldn’t tell you exactly where I’m from
,” he said in answer to her question. It wasn’t exactly a lie, as they did move a lot. But, he did know exactly where he was
from,
she just wouldn’t be able to comprehend it.

             
“Oh
,
that’
s sad. Before the war started I was from one place only. I was brought home from the hospital to the same house we
left
behind. It was scary
,
giving
up my
entire life
to come here
.
M
y family was
one of the lucky
few
because we made it out
and
are together
,
still
,” she said with a sigh.
He’d never thought much of what the escaped humans went through during the war.
He just followed orders.

             
He found he felt a bit guilty
viewing
humans as
merely
animals, only there for his pleasure or amusement. He’d changed so much in his years of service with Vyco. If one of them were dead it was of no particular
interest
to him, but this small girl seemed to make him feel things he’d never felt before. He didn’t know if he exactly liked the feeling.

             
“How long have you been here?” he asked.

             
“Since it all began a few years ago. My father
knew it was coming
and so he
and a few others prepared for it. They said if nothing happened
they only
lost money
,
which
was replaceable
. B
ut
,
if something were to happen they had peace of mind in knowing their families would be safe. They made us a really good home, nothing like what we had before
but
much better than what so many are deal
ing
with. Have you seen the slave camps?” she asked.

             
“I’
ve seen them
and trus
t me,
you’d be better off sleeping on the ground
,” he told her. The camps the enemy troops placed th
e humans in were horrific. He’
d watched as they were beaten
and starved. Some had
been able to escape
but
it wasn’
t usually far
.
T
he unlucky
,
who
remained locked up
,
didn’t stand a chance.

             
The very old and the very young were always the first to die
but
the troops fed the teenage humans a bit better
to
get
more
work
out of
them.
Any person
who
was deemed unusable was quickly disposed of. They killed humans by the dozen without any remorse. He
didn’t
see how they kill
ed off
their
without feeling anything
.

             
“I know some of the elders go on missions
,
try
ing
to
rescue people
but
it’
s very risky and they don’t talk
much about it. We’
ve lost
some of our people
but
we’
ve also been fortunate enough to rescue
many
. Those
who
do
get
out of t
he camps are always grateful
and they never talk to
the
kids about
what they’
ve been through. I’
m sure
they talk to the elders
,
though.
I think they just
don’t
want to think about
the
torture they were put through. I can’t believe how skinny and sick they look when they come in,” Phoenix said as a tear rolled down her cheek.

             
Jayden watched the
small tear
and felt a tug in his heart
. He
wanted
to pull her into his arms and offer comfort. He wanted to promise her
he’
d protect her from the enemy and make sure she didn’t witness any more horrors. It was a promi
se he couldn’t keep
,
though
.
He didn’t understand why
he even cared
.

             
“I’
m sorry,” was all he could say
.

             
“Thanks
,
Jayden. S
ometimes n
o one knows what to say
but
I’m glad you’
re safe. I think you’
ll like
our place,” she told him. “I’
ve gathered all I can today so we can start heading back,” she finished and
headed
in a new direction.

             
Jayden silently followed Phoenix,
keeping an ear out for
danger
,
feeling a strong desire to
keep
her
safe
.
She’
d quickly become the
single
most important
person
in his existence
.
Phoenix
seemed
fine
with the silence
.
T
hey walked
through the woods
for about an hour
. He didn’t know
how she’
d managed to stay alive for so long
,
co
nsidering how careless she was. Even though her group had soldiers stationed throughout the woods didn’t mean she should let her guard down. Someone could slip in unseen, like he had.

             
He was relieved when they reached the secret entrance to her cave,
grateful the
enemy was
unable to
locate
the spot.
T
he
ir
group had guards stationed throughout the woods and they may be invisible to other humans
but
not to his people.
             

             
“I’
m exc
ited for you to meet my dad
and the rest of our group
. I’m sure you’
re starving
.
D
inner will be in about an hour
but
if you need something now
we could probably sneak into
the kitchen
,” she told him.
He hadn’t really thought about food.
He inwardly groaned as he realized he was most likely going to have to eat some of their human food. It wasn’t like it
did anything bad to his system. H
e simply couldn’t stand their
flavorless
food.
             

             
He continued
following
Phoenix
deep within
the cave, not comfortable being
closed in
.
He didn’t like being in unfamiliar places. He certainly didn’t like not having a way to escape. He
quickly scanned the cave,
learning all the exit points. He was relieved there were
n’t
any
demons
there
. Many of Vyco’s followers loved to hide among the humans. They loved to toy with them, gain their trust and then pounce when they were least
expecting
it. It was like a game of cat and mouse and gave them a sense of power.

             
Jayden had never felt the need to play with beings
who
were so much weaker than him. He’d never thought of having anything to do with them since his fall from the light. He’d quickly
erased from his memory the
years of service to Josiah
,
now roaming
the underworld with Vyco. Being around Phoenix was bringing back
the
long forgotten. For the first time in an eternity he thought about his sister, Chastity. Just thinking her name caus
ed an ache to form in his chest, where
it
had been hollow for so long.

             
Phoenix walked into the cave,
down the long semi-lit hallway
, not aware Jayden was holding back
. She was tired
and glad to be
inside
, which was unusual. She normally wanted to stay out as long as
possible
but
she was feeling guilt
y
over making her brother worry about her.

             
The two of them continued down the twisting turns of the cave,
the route familiar to Phoenix.
They stepped into the
central
cavern and she
spotted John right away. He hadn’
t yet turned around to spot her
and she took a deep breath, prepared for the lecture she knew she deserved. He finally turned and Phoenix watched as his eyes narrowed. Even though the lighting was always poor in the cavern, especially
after being out in the sun
, she could see the sparks
flying
from his
dark
blue depths.

             
“It’s about time you got back here
,
Phoenix. We were getting ready to send out a search party,” John shouted as he quickly approached them. Neither of them noticed the slight shift in Jayden. He was respondi
ng to the anger in John’s voice
and prepared to protect
her
but
he quickly backed down
when he realized John meant her no harm
.

             
“I’
m sorry
, John.
I was picking and then
fell
asleep by a stream,” Phoenix told her brother
. Her cheeks flushed
in embarrassment
because she’
d fallen asleep on the job.

             
“Phoenix,
do you know how dangerous that was?
You could’ve been captured, or even worse, killed,” John said, as he wrapped his arms around her. “You need to have someone with you from now on. I know you like to have alone time
but
it’
s just not worth it. The guards reported
e
nemy troops
have gotten closer to our area
and you know I couldn’t handle it if
anything ever happened to you,” John said, squeezing Phoenix so tightly she couldn’t breathe for a few moments.

             
“You’
re choking me
,
John,” she gasped and he quickly loosened his grip
. “I’
m really sorry and I won’t let it happen again. I love you
,
too,” she said with a huge smile, which took Jayden’s breath away
once more
.

             
“Sorry
, s
is.
I was just scared when I couldn’t get ahold of you,” John said, calming down and smiling sheepishly at his sister. He finally noticed Jayden standing by silently and his shoulders stiffened up again as he
looked at
the outsider. “Who’
s this?” he asked Phoenix, instead of addressing the question
to the guest
.

             
“This is Jayden.
H
e’
s an escapee I met
today
,” Phoenix said, grabbing hold of Jayden’s arm
and pulling him forward.
He had to control himself, not to pull her into his arms. At her simple touch, his body lit on fire and he
didn’t want to release her
.

             
“Hello Jayden. L
et me take you to the elders and we can get you
settled
,” John said a bit reluctantly. He was looking over Jayden with suspicion, which amused
him
. He
thought
if John knew who he really was
he’
d have a reason to be suspicious
. B
ut
,
at that point her older brother
just didn’t like the
fact he’
d been alone with his sister in the woods.
John
didn’t know how right it was that he was
leery
.

             
Jayden looked into John’s eyes, making sure he had his full attention. He cou
ldn’t necessarily control human’s
actions
but
he could bend them to his will
.

             
“T
hank you
,
John and
I’
m
sorry if
you were worried,” Jayden said
in his silky smooth voice.

             
“Oh, it’s not your fault
. I just
tend to overreact
when I worry about people
. I’
m sorry
if I’
ve been taking it out on you,” John
said, backing down
.
He
was no
rmally a nice guy
and a tr
ue
friend and felt bad
about his cold reaction to the stranger. It wasn’t Jayden’s fault
for his bad mood
.

             
“Thank you,” Jayden simply said
and the two men
left
. Phoenix watched them walk away, taking a huge lungful of air.
She hadn’t realized she’
d been holding her breath. She continued staring after Jayden, almost as if she was in a trance. The guy was so
mysterious
and his voice was mesmerizing.

             
She shook herself out of
the
trance, berating her stupid hormones. She was trying to convince herself not to get a crush on
Jayden
because she would
most likely
end
up
heartbroken all over again
.
Just as she was about to convince
hers
elf
to forget all about
him, Jayden
turned around
,
flashing
a smile and her heart fluttered out of control. She actually sighed aloud and her eyes drooped in pleasure. She was completely unaware Jayden heard her sigh all the way across the room and it was like fuel to a fire for him.

             
“Who the heck is that?” Sadie said, coming
over
to her with a dreamy expression on her face, breaking Phoenix out of her trance.

             
“His name is Jayden.
I found him in the woods,” Phoenix said, realizing how stupid her words sounded as soon as they escaped her lips.
It wasn’t like he was a lost puppy dog.
Sadie looked at her like she was insane and the two of them
continued watching
the guys until they disappeared.

             
“I think I’
m going to try and get p
icking duty more often if that’
s the kind of harvest you’
re getting,” Sadie said with a giggle
.
Phoenix realized the humor in the situation and the two girls started to crack up. They didn’t stop until they couldn’t breathe anymore and their stomachs
hurt
.

             
“Seriously
,
he’
s gorgeous
,
isn’t he
,” Phoenix said, needing confirmation that it wasn’t just her imagination.

             
“Yeah
,
he’
s dreamy. O
h
my gosh
,
I had to do a double take when he walked i
n
the room and believe me I’
m not the only one. I noticed Jessica about droo
led on the floor. I think she’
s
even
forgotten Brian’s name,” Sadie said with a pointed look
at
Jessica, who was walking toward
the hallway the boys had entered.

             
Phoenix had an overwhelming urge to rip the g
irl apart. She’
d always been irritated
by the way Jessica
flirted with Brian
but
she’
d never wanted to stake her claim so badly.
She had no right to a claim
Jayden,
though.
He
didn’t belong to her. S
he’
d simply been the one to meet him in the wo
ods and there was no way he’
d choose her when someone like Jessica was throwing herself at him. He was after all, male.

             
“Yeah, Jessica would spo
t him immediately. I guess we’
ll see what kind of guy he really is. If
he falls for her fakeness, he’
s definitely not someone I want to be friends with
.
I
f he sees
through her act, then maybe he’
s as good a guy as I think he is,” Phoenix said, not holding out much hope.

             
“Well
, you know he’
ll be b
usy for a while with the elders. They’
re going to
want to
know exactly what he'
s seen
and get new inform
ation from him
.
W
e may as well get ready for dinner.
You know
you’
re going to be the star of the show tonight since you brought that hunk of man meat in with you,” Sadie said
with another giggle while wrapping her arm through
Phoenix’s
and
dragging
her away
.

             
Phoenix followed without complaint, needing to get cleaned up after her long day in the woods. A warm bath would feel
wonderful
and she needed to get out of her dirty clothes. She also needed to get her mind off the
enigmatic
Jayden.

             
As Phoenix relaxed in the bath, her eyes became heavy and she felt herself starting to drift to sleep
.
Before she gave in, she
forced
her eyes open so she could at least get out, dry off and make it to her room.
She wasn’t normally so sleepy
but
the day seemed to
have
drain
ed
her.

             
She woke up when Sadie came rushing into her room, wanting to fill her in on what happened over the last couple hours. It seemed more people had been brought in an
d they had some stories to tell.
Sadie rushed Phoenix in getting dressed and
hurried her
to the
dining
room.

             
“I’
m coming as fast as I can,” Phoenix said, a bit exasperated.
             

             
“I know
,
but
do you really want to leave Jay
den alone with Jessica. He’
s back from ta
lking with the elders and she’
s had her claws in him since he walked out
.
So far, he’
s completely ignored her, other than a few polite words and his ey
es keep wandering. I think he’
s
been looking for you. I’
ve been too scared to talk to him
,
so far,” Sadie rushed to tell her.

             
“I can’t
believe you’
d be too scared to talk to anyone,” Phoenix said with a fond smile.

             
“I know, right? But seriously, he seems to just get dreamier looking. You know how most guys seem so dang hot
at first
and then after you see them for a while,
their hotness level drops a bit?
I
t’
s comp
letely the opposite with Jayden.
W
hen he reappears again
he just gets
hotter
,” Sadie sighed, while
still dragging
Phoenix down the hallway.

             
They stepped into the dining room, which was already completely full. At least they wouldn’t have to wait long in line for their
food.
F
inding somewhere to sit would be a whole other matter. The two gi
rls quickly gathered their
meal
and looked around the full room.