Secret of Betrayal: Book Two of The Destroyer Trilogy (9 page)

I can barely see him in the pitch black room,
and I doubt his eyesight is much better, but my annoyance is clear in my
expression and stance, regardless. He had better be telling the truth, because
I am definitely going to check. “Braden, you breaking into my room and scaring
me half to death is not
stopping by
. It’s breaking and entering. How did
you know I wasn’t going to walk in with Milo? He almost came in! If he had
found you here, I don’t think anything I could have said would have stopped him
from attacking you.”

“No offense to your boyfriend, but I’m not all
that worried about his newbie talents. He does more flailing around than
anything.”

“He took out one of your strikers on his own, or
have you forgotten that night already?” I snap. Milo may not be as fluid as
Lance and Braden, but his raw power and determination more than make up for
where he lacks.

Shockingly profound grief spills out of Braden.
The power of it sets me back a step.

“No,” he says fiercely, “I haven’t forgotten
that night, Libby. I may not blame you for what you and your friends did, but
those were my men! I trained them, lived with them, and then watched them die.
I will remember every detail of that night for the rest of my life! Nine of my
strikers left that stage in body bags. You saved Milo, but you killed nine good
men to do it.”

His anger filling the room doubles when I add
mine. “You never should have come after Milo in the first place! If you weren’t
out trying to arrest innocent people, your team never would have gotten hurt!
Don’t expect me to apologize for doing the right thing.”

“I never said I expected you to apologize,”
Braden argues. “If I had been in your position, I would have done the same
thing, but those were human beings. Forgive me if I don’t think you should be
proud of your boyfriend for killing my men. They were following orders.”

“Who said I was proud?” I jam my finger against
his chest angrily. “I never said I was proud. I don’t want to kill people. I
hate the idea of hurting anyone. I am
not
the monster everyone thinks I
am, but I will stand up for my friends. Milo ran from your brothers, hid, and
helped beat you off when you came back for him. I think that deserves respect,
even from you.”

For a long time, the darkness occupying the room
makes
more sound
than Braden does. It is disturbing
how quiet he can be. When he does finally speak, I jump in surprise.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “I know you were
protecting Milo, but those men were my friends, my brothers. The fact that you
were doing the right thing doesn’t change that they’re dead. It isn’t an easy
thing to get over.”

If there’s one thing I can agree with Braden on,
it’s that. Death never really leaves you once it stains your soul.

 “I didn’t know it was so many,” I say
quietly. I knew for sure that I had killed at least two. The last Guardian
Lance faced had definitely been dead. Other than that, I had no idea that night
had been so deadly.

“You did what you had to do,” Braden says. His
body suddenly feels very close to me, but I can’t make myself move away. He
continues, seemingly unaffected by our nearness. “And at the time, I did what I
had to do. I’d rather not talk about it anymore.”

I nod, more than happy to change the topic … and
get away from him. I step away slowly. I’m aiming for the light switch, but I
stumble over the corner of the bed again. Braden’s quiet amusement at my
clumsiness brings blood rushing to my face. Thankful it’s still dark, I stand
back up. Desperate to get this encounter over with, I make for the light switch
and flip it up. The light that suddenly fills the room makes me blink rapidly.
When I can see again, I’m faced with Braden two inches in front of me. I barely
keep myself from gasping.

“Would you stop doing that?” I demand.

“What?”

“Sneaking up on me.
It’s getting really irritating.”

“Well, maybe you should work on not being
surprised so easily. I know some pretty decent
Concealors
if you need some pointers,” he says. “Although, that would mean I’d miss out on
seeing you jump so often. Maybe I won’t tell you who I know.”

I scowl at him and back away. “My Concealment
skills are perfectly fine, for your information. Now if you happen to know any
good Spiritualists …” I let my words trail off immediately. I hadn’t meant to
come even close to that topic with him around. His freakish ability to put me
at ease is beyond worrisome.

“Spiritualists,” Braden muses. “That brings me
back to why I’m here. I want to know what happened in the hall with that girl,
Casey. No more avoiding me. I want an explanation for why I’m keeping an eye on
her.”

“Why do you care so much?” I ask, suddenly wary.
I, of course, explained everything to Lance and Milo, but all I asked of Braden
was to watch over Casey. He shouldn’t know anything about what happened between
us.

“You had to pull her back from the spirit world,
that much was clear, but I don’t understand how she got stuck there in the
first place.
Or how you finally got her back.
I’m not
familiar enough with your spiritual energy to have caught everything that
happened. I just know there was a lot of energy involved.”

My breath freezes in my chest. How does he know
any of that? Did Casey actually tell people what happened? She’s on thin ice
with the rest of the school as it is. I can’t imagine she’d risk actually
telling anyone that the Destroyer had to rescue her from the spirits. That
would be social suicide. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

I try to get away from him, but a
Strength-enhance hand grips my shoulder and stops me momentarily. I shove his
hand off of me with a flick of my wrist. The burst of pain from him doesn’t
last long enough. We both finish the exchange glaring at each other.

Braden breaks the standoff first. “Don’t lie to
me, Libby. I know what happened. I just want an explanation.”

“Just an explanation?”
I mock. “I don’t have to explain anything to you.”

“Tell me what happened.” His demanding voice
fills the room.

“Why? So you can run back and tell your Captain
about it? I’m not telling you anything!”

“Did you not hear me when I said I lied to my
captain about my reasons for coming here?” he yells. It takes him a few seconds
to calm back down and
speak
at a normal level. “I
didn’t tell the Captain about Casey, and I have no intention of telling him.
I’m not here because of orders.”

“Then why are you here?”

An internal struggle I fear is an extension of
our conversation at school today rages in Braden’s eyes. When it calms, he
leans back against the wall in defeat. For a moment, I don’t think he’s going
to answer me. Then he stands up straight and approaches me. When his hands grab
my wrists, I don’t stop him, purely out of curiosity. Principal Andrews
interrupted him today before he could say whatever it was he was going to tell
me. Will he say it now? Braden’s fingers push back my long sleeves.

“The bruises Casey gave you are gone now, but I
still remember them. I’m here because I want to be, Libby. That thing in the
hall the other day, it scared me. I know how dangerous the spirit world can be.
I was afraid you were going to get hurt trying to help that girl.”

“What do you mean you know how dangerous the
spirit world is? How do you even know what happened? Did Casey tell you
something?” I demand, completely ignoring his incredibly sweet confession.

“No, Casey didn’t tell me,” Braden says. “I know
because I’ve been there plenty of times and had a few close calls of my own.”

Realization dawns on me. I hadn’t even
considered the possibility. I hadn’t even thought about what other talents he
might have. “You have Spiritualism? And you’ve been to the spirit world?”

He looks at me with a strange expression. “Uh,
yeah, isn’t that what I just said?”

“Sorry, I didn’t even think about it. I figured
with you being a Guardian …”

“The only talents I had were Speed and Strength,
like Lance,” he finishes. “You have to have those two to be a Guardian, but
plenty of Guardians have other talents, too.”

Of course they do. That’s who the Seekers are,
aren’t they?
Guardians who have the added talent of Vision to
see future dangers and stop them before they happen.
Why shouldn’t
Braden have more than two talents? Milo is a Guardian, after all, and he has
six talents. Although, Milo is a special case, being my own personal Guardian,
so he isn't the best one to go off of. Braden is always careful to keep his
diktats and Guardian blade covered so he doesn’t make people uncomfortable, so
I’ve never had any visible hint of other talents. How good of a Spiritualist is
he? He was strong enough to understand what was going on with Casey. And it
sounds as if he’s been in the spirit world quite a bit.

“Libby?” Braden asks.

“Huh?” How long have I been standing here
thinking?

“Are you going to explain what happened with
Casey?”

I hesitate. If he’s really experienced in the
spirit world he may be able to help me. It would be a huge risk, though. When I
do speak, my words are slow and testing. “You’re on the wrong team, remember?”

Unlike most of the Guardians-in-training at
school who brazenly display the Guardian blades strapped to their left
forearms, Braden keeps his covered by long sleeves. He knows the general public
fears Guardians. Doing his best to protect people without bullying them is only
one of many things that set him apart from other Guardians. His right hand
slowly pushes back his sleeve so his blade is fully exposed. My heart jumps
into my throat and tries to strangle me. Is he really going to do it?

Braden’s first two fingers press against the
Guardian emblem on the hilt of his blade. I hold my breath and watch in rapt
attention for where they will go next. But instead of moving to his heart and
forehead, his fingers stay pressed to the emblem. “Libby, I promise I will not
tell my Captain anything you tell me tonight.”

My shoulders fall as a quiet, “Oh,” escapes my
lips.

Braden’s expression turns quizzical. “Are you
disappointed? I thought my promise was what you wanted.”

“It is!” I say quickly. His eyebrows rise even
higher. “No, it is. Thank you. I’m glad you won’t tell your Captain.”

“But you were expecting something else?” he
asks.

I can feel my cheeks turning red. “No. It’s
nothing. I’ll tell you what happened with Casey.”

And it’s not just a desperate attempt to change
the subject. His promise made on the Guardian emblem is something I know I can
trust. It is a physically binding gesture. He can’t tell even if he wanted to.
I’m eager to explain now, and ask him for help as a Spiritualist, but Braden
seems to have forgotten his earlier curiosity and replaced it with a new one.

“What were you expecting me to say?” he asks,
looking down at his blade. Then he rethinks his question. “Not say, do. You
wanted me to do something more than promise.”

“Do you want to know what happened, or not?” I
demand.

“The Guardian Oath?” he asks.

My quivering expression betrays me. It’s not
something either Lance or Milo will get in trouble for, but I don’t know what
Braden will think about it, or how he’ll react. I don’t say anything.

“You wouldn’t expect it if someone hadn’t
already done it,” he says. “Which one was it?
Lance or Milo?”

I don’t respond, but I must give something away
in my expression.

“Both of them?”

My reluctant nod sends him into silence. My
imagination runs wild in the emptiness, wondering what he’s thinking. Both
Lance and Milo made their Oaths willingly, eagerly, but they’re both simple
trainees. The Guardian Oath is a very serious commitment. Will Braden think
they’ve mocked it by giving it to me? Without illuminating me, Braden tips my
chin up so I am looking at him. His hand drops away, but his eyes linger.

“Either those two have some incredible belief in
what you’re doing, or they’re head over heels in love with you,” Braden says.

“I think it’s a little of both,” I say quietly.
“More the second one for Lance than the first, but he’s coming around.”

Braden’s hands suddenly come up and press
against my cheeks. The fiery warmth of his skin against mine ratchets up my
awareness of him to an electric current running through my body. I want to pull
away, but I find I can’t make myself do it. The effect he has on me won’t give
me the chance.

“And you wanted me to give you my Oath like they
did?” he asks, his voice soft and dangerous.

I have to swallow the lump in my throat before I
can say, “Yes. It … It’s the only way I’ll ever be able to trust you.”

His hands slide back to my neck, pulling me
closer. I’m sure he can feel my pulse racing under my skin, but I’m too
consumed to do anything about it at the moment.

“And what reason do you want me to have for giving
you my Oath? The first … or the second?” he asks.

“The …” His lips are so close to mine. So
achingly close. I have the sudden, inexplicable desire to kiss him. He’s made
gestures and subtle indications before now that he may have more than a professional
interest in me. Nothing as forward as this, though. I can’t push him away. I’m
not sure I want to. I …

“The first!”
I nearly
shout at him. Finally, I find the strength to jump back.
“The
first.”

It’s torturous to watch his lips curve into a
knowing smile. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” I say quickly. The last thing I need
right now is another guy thrown into the battle of suspicions raging between
Lance and Milo.
Even an older one.
Twenty-two
to be exact.
He’s probably more mature, too. I don’t need that, though.
Two are bad enough.