Mitry and Weni (7 page)

She pushed those thoughts aside and opened her eyes to stare up at the water-covered glass pyramid, wondering how they’d managed to build all of this and under a lake no less.

Krysta was so overwhelmed by everything she’d learnt so far and yet she wasn’t in the least scared. She’d been dealing with and fighting the evil shadows alone for a couple of years now and even they didn’t scare her anymore. Just thinking about those evil bastards and their crazy demonic leader filled her with determination to continue killing them until humanity was once more safe. The thought of innocents being hurt was just too horrible to contemplate.

“Are you all right?” Mitry asked from somewhere behind her but she didn’t turn to look at him, just nodded instead. Her body was humming at their proximity and she was worried if she gazed upon them once more she would do something she would regret. Although how she could regret jumping their bones she wasn’t really sure. She had a feeling that if she did that she wouldn’t want to leave their sides ever again.

Krysta had vowed long ago to never rely on anyone but herself. Growing up without loving parents had taught her that hard lesson.

Her mother had been barely out of her teens when she’d gotten pregnant, and from what she’d been told, the man who had donated sperm to give her life had run, never to be heard from again. However, she wasn't sure she believed that story. Her mom had never once looked into her eyes when Krysta had asked the questions.

Instead of digging deep and accepting that she would be a single parent, however that had come about, her mother had turned to alcohol and drugs. By the time Krysta was five years old her mom had been useless. It had been up to Krysta to become the parent and look after her mom the best she could. The day after she’d turned eight and come home from school had changed Krysta’s life forever. Her mom had been lying on the couch with her eyes closed as if she were sleeping. The moment Krysta had placed her small hand on her mother’s cheek to try to rouse her, she’d known that her mom was dead.

She didn’t cry like a normal kid would have at losing a parent. Krysta had felt pure and utter relief, hoping that her young mother had finally found peace. She hadn’t wanted to call the authorities to let them know of her mom’s demise but forced herself to pick up the phone and make that call.

She’d been so damn scared of being accused for her mom’s death, she took off and hid in a tree house in the neighbor’s yard. By the time all the officials left she was so hungry, cold, and tired she wasn’t able to force herself to leave the treehouse. The next morning after the neighbors went to work she wandered the streets looking for something to eat, because she wasn’t able to go back in the house. She’d been too scared of being caught since the police were making periodic checks on the place.

That was how she found the abandoned warehouses in the industrial part of town. She had been lucky because she met Cyn, who took her under her wing and showed her how to survive. Cyn had been in her early teens. Krysta had known that Cyn wasn’t the girl’s real name but she hadn’t cared. The other girl became like a big sister to her, showing her the best places to find food and how to hide from the cops and the less-than-savory characters that lived on the streets.

Krysta spent six years following Cyn around until one night the other girl just disappeared, never to be seen or heard from again. It had broken Krysta’s heart not knowing what happened to her friend. Of course she suspected foul play but until Cyn’s body was recovered she would wonder what had happened to her.

She often speculated if she had a guardian angel watching over her because she always seemed to find the people she needed in times of desperation. Two weeks after Cyn disappeared, Krysta was rummaging in a garbage bin outside an Italian restaurant. The owner came outside to dump another bag of trash and caught her red-handed, but instead of yelling at her and telling her to get lost, the elderly man grabbed hold of her and pulled her into the kitchen.

He introduced himself as Giovanni and, after plonking her onto a stool, cooked her the best tasting meal she’d ever had. From that moment on another friendship formed. Giovanni took her in, cleaned her up, and sent her to school. From past experiences, Krysta had learned to keep her heart locked up tight and although she’d loved the old Italian man, she never told him and kept a safe distance from him. He was so patient with her and treated her as if she was his daughter.

He taught her how to cook and all about life. The day he died was even more devastating than her own mother’s death. She’d bawled her eyes out and once again called the authorities. She’d hidden behind the dumpster in the alley, watching and listening as Giovanni’s body was taken away by the coroner.

Krysta hadn’t even known that the old man had any living relatives because in all the years she lived with him in the small two-bedroom apartment above Giovanni’s Restaurant they had never once visited or called. If Giovanni had photos of his family, she’d never seen them and suspected they had been put away from view.

The vultures swooped in fighting over who was going to get the restaurant and money, but when Giovanni’s lawyer turned up and told the money-hungry selfish bunch that all of their relative’s possessions had been left to charity, the fists started flying.

The cops ended up arresting Giovanni’s two sons and that had been that.

Krysta had wanted to be as giving as Giovanni had been to her. She immediately dropped out of school since she didn’t have the funds to continue to buy books or pay the fees, and she went to restaurant after restaurant, hoping someone would hire her to cook or as a kitchen hand.

After visiting countless places and being rejected time and again, she was finally accepted as an apprentice chef at another small family restaurant. She worked her ass off to finish her apprenticeship early and when she had that diploma in her hand she was full of pride, but she had no one to share it with.

Krysta saved as much as she could as she gained her certificate and in her spare time started feeding the homeless people. In the end she had to give up her job because she was so exhausted she collapsed at work.

Fighting the demonic night after night, plus working all day and taking a couple of hours in the evening to drop off huge amounts of food to those in need had taken its toll. That was just over a year ago.

With the way her life currently worked out, she wondered if she’d made the right decision in giving up her job. The money she'd saved was nearly gone, and if she wanted to keep a roof over her head, she needed to find employment.

“Krysta?” Wen’s voice drew her from her reverie. “Are you okay?”

“I honestly don’t know anymore.” Krysta didn’t know what she was supposed to think or do. All she did know was that once again her life had changed irrevocably and she wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.

“Are you hungry or thirsty?” Wen asked.

Krysta hadn’t realized until that moment that she was both. She’d been so caught up in everything else, she’d ignored her body’s needs. Well, except for the underlying hunger which had nothing to do with food. She turned to look at Weni over her shoulder and nodded before she looked beyond him and noticed that Mitry was leaning against the far wall staring at her intently. When she met his gaze, his eyes flashed with hunger before it was quickly gone again. She glanced away, and when she saw Wen move, she looked down at the hand he offered her.

She wasn’t sure touching him was a good thing to do but Krysta couldn’t seem to help herself and found herself reaching for him. The moment their palms connected, her body lit up as if she’d been hit by lightning. Electrical pulses raced through her frame, centering in her breasts and pussy, but there was no pain. Just a deep hungry throb she knew wouldn’t be relieved by anyone or anything but Weni and Mitry.

However, she was going to try and ignore the yearning impulses because she wasn’t ready for any of this. She’d never imagined being attracted to one man let alone two. Not after her worthless father had knocked up her mom and then ran away, leaving a young, scared woman to deal with their actions. The only man she’d had any respect for had been Giovanni but he was gone now.

She wasn’t sure she could trust Mitry and Weni. Maybe one day she would learn to trust another human being but so far everyone who’d come into her life had left or let her down.

Trust had to be earned through actions and not words. So far they’d done nothing to instill any faith in them. She mentally shook her head because that was a lie. If it hadn’t been for them and the others arriving to help her fight the demonic and then claiming her, she’d be dead. They'd taken her in without knowing who she was. That showed they were loving, caring people.

Plus, she was still here. Didn't that mean that she trusted them deep down, even if she wasn't ready to admit it to herself on a more conscious level?

Maybe she trusted them after all.

Mit wanted to pull Krysta into his arms and hug her tight. He’d felt some of the emotions coming off of her while they’d been in Ra’s temple and it had nearly broken his heart. He’d felt sadness, resignation, but what hurt him most of all was the wariness. He wished she would open up and talk to them but she was closed up tighter than a clam.

He led the way into the kitchen dining room and hoped that the other women would be able to make Krysta feel more comfortable and get her to open up with them. All he wanted was for her to talk to them but he wasn’t sure that was going to happen anytime soon. His mate was so distrustful and he had a feeling she was that way for a reason. Had someone hurt her in the past? He wished he could ask her, but from the way she had her arms crossed over her chest, she was already self-protective and he wasn’t about to put her on the defensive even more.

“Everyone this is Krysta,” Wen called from near the doorway.

“Krysta!” Nina called out and smiled. “How are you feeling?”

“Fine,” Krysta answered brusquely before clearing her throat. “Thanks for asking.”

Mit wondered why she sounded so surprised by Nina’s question, his mind churning quickly before he realized that she probably hadn’t had anyone care about her welfare in a long, long time. If that was the case, where the hell were her parents? Had they neglected her? Were they even alive? If they were dead, how old had she been when they died? Who had looked after her?

He glanced at Wen and saw his friend frowning as he moved toward the spare seats on the opposite side of the table. Usually Paser sat on one side of Nina and Pen on the other, while Wen sat next to Pen, but this time the others changed seating arrangements and Mit sighed with relief. This time Pen and Paser sat next to each other and Nina sat beside Pen. Wen left the seat next to Nina free for Krysta, taking the chair next to it and leaving Mit to sit on his other side. Mitry was glad his friend was thinking along the same lines as him.

“Come sit down.” Nina patted the chair beside her.

Krysta hesitated for a moment before shrugging her shoulders, skirting the table, and making her way around to sit beside Nina.

“Let me introduce you to everyone,” Nina said before Mit could begin.

As she pointed out each person and said their names, Krysta nodded. As the food was passed around, Lavinia turned to smile at Krysta. “What do you do?”

“Cook,” Krysta answered.

“You do?” Paser leaned around Nina to smile at Krysta. “I love to cook. I do most of the cooking for this lot. Maybe you could help out?”

“Maybe.” Krysta shrugged her shoulders noncommittally.

“What’s your specialty?” Paser asked.

“Italian food.”

“Really?” Zara asked. “I love Italian food.”

“Most people do,” Krysta replied, and Mit was glad to see the tension leaving her shoulders and she was beginning to relax.

“Where did you learn to cook?” Lavinia asked.

“Giovanni’s Restaurant.”

“In Austin, Nevada?” Set asked.

Krysta nodded.

“Sab and I met Giovanni once. He was one of the nicest men I’ve ever met. He told me he’d found a young homeless girl searching the trash cans for food. Giovanni took that girl into his home and treated her like his own daughter. It was such a crime the way Giovanni's sons treated him. Those greedy bastards had been trying to talk to Giovanni into selling his restaurant and giving them the money from the sale so they could buy their own homes.” Set trailed off when he realized how quiet it was.

Mit wished he could have stopped Set once the other sentinel began talking but the other man had his mind shield up and had been so intent on his story Set hadn’t noticed that Mit had been knocking so he could talk to him telepathically. Krysta hadn’t moved a muscle since Set began speaking. Her shoulders were so tense they were up near her head and she was staring down at her plate as if it was the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen.

“Do you want some pancakes, Krysta?” Lavinia asked.

“Thanks.” Krysta stabbed one with her fork and dropped it on her plate.

“What about bacon and eggs?” Zara asked, already holding both platters of the food ready to hand them over.

“Please.” Krysta took a little of each before handing them back.

Mit sighed with relief when the others began talking, diverting the attention away from his uncomfortable mate. He knew from the way Krysta had tensed up that she’d been the girl Set talked about. He wanted to ask her how she’d ended up on the streets but kept his mouth shut.