Runaway Mortal (13 page)

“Then it struck me, and hundreds of them began attacking me from different directions. I covered my face so I didn’t see anything else.”

“And you obviously passed out after that.”

I nodded and winced at the memory of the assault. “I couldn’t fight through it. There were so many of them.”

“This is all my fault!” he growled, slamming his fist into the wall.

The noise scared the crap out of me. I didn’t understand why he was blaming himself. He hadn’t attacked me.

“What are you doing? I’m fine!” I sat up and reached for him.

“This is your definition of fine? You are not fine. You could have died. I thought you were dead, Kat.” Loire tilted his head to the side, breathing heavily. “Maybe it is best if you stay here tonight, like Healer Junas said, so I can keep an eye on you.”

I faltered, and my heart leapt as our eyes locked. Under his gaze, I felt frozen into place. The pain in my body was faint as my stomach writhed in apprehension. During moments like these, it was hard to deny how attractive I found Loire. The way his body leaned towards me, his muscles taut and ripped under his shirt, made me lose my train of thought.

“Kat?” Loire prompted when I didn’t say anything.

“Huh?” I stopped admiring his physique and met his eyes. “Oh, um, sure, I guess.”

“You should probably change into something else.” He seemed much calmer after his outburst as he walked over to the built-in closet and flung open the doors.

My clothes were completely ruined. There were grass stains all over them and they were ripped from where the rocks had pierced through the fabric. Not a good look.

“Here.” Loire handed me a long-sleeved, flannel shirt. “This would cover most of you if you weren’t so tall, but it’ll do.” He looked me up and down in a way which made my body heat up.

“Thanks,” I managed to say, eying the shirt in disdain.

I went into the bathroom, taking in each of the contents in the almost bare cabinet. There was some aftershave by the sink that I had smelled on Loire before. It had a distinct sandalwood scent. Turning on the tap, I washed the dirt off my arms and legs as best as I could.

Once my ruined clothes were off, I put on Loire’s shirt and tugged it down as far as it would go. The hem rested around my upper thighs and accentuated the length of my legs. My reflection showed how disheveled my hair was, so I let it loose from its ponytail and headed back into the room.

Loire was sitting on the bed when I finally walked out. He took in the sight of me and stood up. I hesitated in the doorway, wondering what to do with myself, before approaching him tentatively. There were knots in my stomach from nerves that I couldn’t explain.

He waited until I reached him. Neither of us said anything for several, long minutes. This was so unlike me. I always had something to say, even when I was nervous. When I finally raised my head and locked eyes with Loire, the knots in my stomach tightened. His eyes were smoldering and dark with lust.

I took a step forward, uncertain, and laid a hand on his chest. He closed his eyes and grasped my hand—it was firm and rough against mine. I studied every inch of his face without reservation, taking in his chiseled jaw, the light stubble on his chin, the straight nose, and the full lips. He was the hottest guy I had ever laid eyes on, and he was standing inches away from me. I had to do something.

“Why did you ask me to stay?” Ugh. Wrong move. I shouldn’t have spoken. I should’ve done something instead. Sometimes I wasn’t nearly as smart as I liked to pretend I was.

Loire opened his eyes and stared at me. Then he ran a hand through his hair, looking confused. “I already told you. I want to keep an eye on you, Kat. I want to make sure you’re safe tonight just in case anything else happens. And you’ll always be safe with me. I promise.”

The moment between us had passed because of my own stupidity. I wanted something to happen between us—I wanted him—but that didn’t mean he felt the same way about me.

“Um, right, yeah.” I struggled to fill the awkward silence, but couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“You should go to bed,” Loire advised. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”

We didn’t talk after that and when I eventually climbed into bed, Loire quickly turned off the lights, enveloping us in darkness.

Chapter Thirteen

When I awoke sometime during the morning, Loire was gone.

I got up and made his bed before retrieving my clothes from the bathroom. There was no way I could wear them again, but I couldn’t exactly go to my room while I was dressed so scantily and coming from Loire’s room.

I decided to go through Loire’s wardrobe and see if he had a pair of basketball shorts that I could fit into. Yeah, it was a little creepy going through someone else’s clothes, but I didn’t have any other choice. Last night had been pretty awkward and I still wasn’t sure what he thought of me.

“Kat, what are you doing?” Loire asked.

The door shut behind me—I hadn’t even heard it open—and I jumped away from the wardrobe, feeling mortified. When I turned around, he was walking towards me carrying my backpack.

My face flushed and I felt like a total fool for being caught going through his wardrobe. “I was, um, looking for something to wear,” I said sheepishly.

Loire handed me my backpack and then stepped away. “I swung by your room to pick up some stuff for you,” he explained when I shot him a questioning look.

Peering inside, I found a pair of yoga pants and an ugly, brown t-shirt my mom had given me for Christmas last year. I’d pretended to like it so I didn’t hurt her feelings, but should’ve thrown it out the first chance I’d got
ten. Talon had offered to burn it for me, but I’d kept it hidden in the bottom of my drawer. Trust Loire to find the only thing in my wardrobe that I didn’t want to be seen in.

“This was the best you could do?” I groaned.

“You could always go out dressed like that,” Loire said with a smirk, looking me up and down. “I’m not complaining.”

As a reflex, I covered my skimpy attire at a show of modesty. I wanted to slap him for that comment, but managed to restrain myself. I could be disciplined if I wanted to be.

“You are so funny,” I said dryly as I headed to the bathroom to get changed.

“That’s what they tell me.”

I rolled my eyes at him, before shutting myself in the bathroom. Quickly, I took off Loire’s shirt and put on my own clothes, feeling like myself again.

After I’d brushed my teeth and washed my face, I studied myself in the mirror and saw that most of the cuts had healed on my face, but that bruises and a few red marks still remained across my body. Healer Junas wasn’t the best healer around, but at least I wasn’t wincing every time I moved.

“Are you still alive in there?” Loire’s voice made me jump, and I quickly wrenched open the door to the bathroom to find him standing right outside.

“Ever hear of giving people their space?” I grumbled, moving past him and into the room. My arm brushed against his and I tried to ignore the tingle that ran through my stomach.

“You look like a respectable member of society now,” he said, dropping two aspirin into my palm and handing me a glass of water. “Here, take these, Rookie. I don’t want you passing out on me again.”

I did as he said and gulped down the pills. “Passing out is the plan. I’m going back to my room and sleeping until tomorrow.” Since prom was tomorrow, the students got to have today and tomorrow off to prepare for it—get their nails done, get spray tans, that kind of thing.

Loire’s lips curved up in a half smile. “Actually, you won’t be doing that today. I have something planned for us. I went to see the headmaster while you were asleep as well and told him what happened.”

“Did you tell him that I was attacked by rocks?” It still sounded ridiculous coming out of my mouth.

“Well, I didn’t put it like that exactly.” Loire paused. “I didn’t want to lose my job and be sent to a mental asylum. I told him someone unidentified attacked you and that you suffered some serious injuries. He was very worried about you.”

Of course he was. Delware wasn’t just Misha’s “Uncle Troy”; he was pretty much mine, too.

My stomach rumbled like thunder and I gave Loire a pointed look. “Can I eat first at least?”

“There’s a sandwich for you in your bag. You can eat on the way.” Loire headed towards the door and opened it, glancing back at me. “Come on, Rookie, let’s go. I don’t have all day.”

Gosh, he was impatient.

“Where are we going?” I asked, following him outside and pulling the sandwich out of my bag.

He still didn’t say that, but he started heading down a familiar path towards the gym. Goddamnit! I wanted to be in bed right now.

“Are you kidding me?” I stopped in my tracks, mid-chew. “I was just assaulted by rocks and you’re making me train already?” This guy was freaking insane.

“You were healed. Is it really that bad?” Loire turned to face me, releasing a sigh into the cool air. “In the real world, sometimes you don’t get time to recover. Sometimes, you have to fight through the pain.” His voice was wistful, like a distant memory was tickling the edge of his mind.

“Sounds like you’re speaking from experience,” I commented. I rarely saw this serious side to him. It was very different to the cocky, arrogant jerk that he could be.

“Anyway.” He cleared his throat, like he was embarrassed by what he’d just revealed to me. “What I’m trying to say is that there are dangers out there, like Hell Hunters, and you need to learn to push yourself.”

There he was warning me about Hell Hunters again. I knew they were dangerous, obviously. That’s what I’d grown up learning my whole life. But it sounded like he had something personal against them.

Deciding not to push the subject any further, I continued walking. “Fine. Let’s do this.” I wasn’t a pushover. I wanted to be the best version of myself that I could be. Sometimes I could be a stubborn head, but I wanted to be a stubborn head that could kick some serious butt.

***

Loire didn’t go easy on me. We warmed up with stretches before moving onto lunges and squats. After that, we repeated that sambo move over and over again until I felt like my back was about to break.

Then he guided me through some basic hand-to-hand combat moves. That was the stuff that I was already good at, but wanted to be even better at. Loire’s abilities were definitely more advanced than mine. He was cleaner in his moves.

Sure, all mortals had advanced senses and fighting abilities, but not anyone could become SRECON that easily. I was lucky he’d agreed to train me.

“Do you want to change things up a little?” he asked.

I was exhausted by this point but didn’t want to show any signs of weakness. “Sure,” I said with a shrug.

Loire walked over to where he’d laid out his long jacket on the grass. We were out alone in the large field behind the gym. Several yards away was the edge of the forest that surrounded the school. If you continued deeper into the forest, you’d hit the wall that encircled the school, before finding more forest.

He came back carrying something very familiar. “My wakizashi!” I cried out in surprise. I hadn’t seen it in weeks ever since they’d taken it from me.

I held my hands out expectantly, but Loire simply stared at me. The edge of his lips twitched. “Promise not to stab me?”

“Ugh! I am not going to stab you! You annoy me most of the time, but I’m not going to kill you.” I tried to grab for it, but he was too quick. He threw the wakizashi up in the air and caught it in his other hand.

Damn show off.

“Are you sure?” he asked, his tone teasing. “I know you have a lot of unresolved feelings for me.” This was the Loire I was used to, not the serious one or the one who showed his caring side.

“Yes, I’m sure,” I said, with a roll of my eyes. “But if you keep stalling, I can’t make any promises.”

Grinning, he handed me the wakizashi and a sense of comfort immediately settled through me at the familiar weight in my hand. “You ready for a battle, Rookie?”

“What?” I asked, confused.

Without warning, Loire pulled out his short-sword and directed it at me in response. With lightning reflexes, I used my wakizashi to block the blow. The sound of metal on metal rang out, and my hand and wrist immediately hurt from the impact.

Jumping back, I watched the way he got into an offensive stance, legs apart and body leaning to the right. I mirrored his move as we both began circling each other, trying to find an opening.

Something in the air shifted, and Loire charged at me, his short-sword coming down on me heavily. Anticipating it, I blocked him again, but this time he didn’t back down and give me a chance. He continued to barrage me with blows and I continued to block them.

I was starting to get annoyed with myself because I couldn’t make the shift and go on the offensive. Loire’s skills were beyond mine; he was too powerful. There was an intensity and focus in his eyes every time he swung his blade. It was kind of hot, actually.

Then I faltered. Damn it! I’d let him distract me.

Sensing the weakness in my defense, Loire pulled out some fancy move where his short-sword seemed to almost entangle itself with my wakizashi and pull it free from my hand.

Cursing, I was just about to gab for it, but he kicked it away and held his blade to my throat. The very tip of it pressed into my neck, and I tensed up, knowing that I’d lost.

“Nice try, Rookie,” he said, lowering his short-sword and putting it back in the sheath that hung around his waist. “But we both know I’m way more superior than you.”

“Yeah, yeah,” I grumbled, reaching for the water bottle that was in my backpack and taking a long drink.

I hated losing, especially at something I was usually good at.

Loire grabbed my wakizashi and put it back in some secret lining of his coat. “You kept up a good defense, but that’s not enough to win a fight. Work on finding your opponent’s weakness.”

Obviously, I already knew that. “I didn’t think you’d be that good,” I admitted grudgingly, splaying out on the grass.

Every single muscle in my body was burning in agony right now, even my butt. I had never worked out this hard in my life.

“Whoa! Hold on a second!” Loire sat down beside me, and I turned my head to find him giving me a look of disbelief. “Did you just give me a
compliment
?” He said that last bit in a whisper, like I’d said something that shouldn’t be repeated.

“It’s my first and last compliment to you ever.” I could feel the teasing smile creep onto my face.

I knew he could tell I was joking because he relaxed and lay down beside me. But when he was silent for a few minutes, I knew something was on his mind. His face was taut, but gave nothing away. Sometimes I wondered what it would be like to read minds, like Veritas did, and know what someone was really thinking.

“Is something wrong?” I dared to ask. We weren’t really friends, which was weird considering we spent so much time together, so I didn’t know if I was crossing some sort of line.

Loire breathed a sigh and turned his head so he was looking right at me. His gaze was penetrating, melancholy, his eyes as grey as I’d ever seen them. “You have no idea how guilty I feel about what happened to you last night.”

I propped myself up on an elbow, completely taken by surprise. I hadn’t expected him to say something like that. “Why do you feel so guilty about what happened to me?”

“Because it’s my job to take care of you and I failed.” There was serious Loire again. The cockiness, the arrogance, was all a mask. This was really him.

“Your job is to watch me, not protect me,” I pointed out, noticing the way his body had tensed up.

“Yeah, and I’ve sucked at that lately, too.” His face contorted and he looked angry at himself. “I want to be strong; I want to take care of the people I love.” His gaze flickered to me for a split second before he continued. My heart froze at the ‘L’ word. “I’ve watched you, Kat. You’re not a murderer, you’re a good person.”

“You think I’m innocent?” My mouth fell open and I could hardly believe my ears.

“Of course you are,” he said, his eyes clear with sincerity. “But what I think doesn’t matter. It’s the angels and demons who judge us, look down on us. They’re the ones who doubt you, not me.”

His words stunned me into silence and I forgot to breathe for a moment. It was so wonderful, so thrilling, to hear someone tell you that they believed you instead of the lies about you. Of course, Anna and Misha had always supported me, but they were different. They’d known me for years; Loire had only known me for a few weeks.

“Can I tell you something?” I asked, feeling like I could confide in him.

“What is it?” He sat up again and stretched his long legs out in front of him.

“I do have a way of proving my innocence,” I said slowly.

“You do?” Loire’s eyes widened and he leaned in so close that all I could focus on were his lips. They looked so soft, and in that moment all I wanted to do was press my mouth against his. “Kat?”

“Huh?” I snapped out of the inappropriate thoughts I was having of him and looked away. “My ex-boyfriend.”

“I don’t understand.”

“I was with my ex-boyfriend when Headmistress Melkane was killed.”

“What? You have an alibi?” Loire’s voice rose with each word. “Then why don’t you tell the Headmaster? Why doesn’t your ex-boyfriend say something?”