Sparks and Flames (8 page)

If I truly love her, then I need to tell her the truth.
He told himself.
I can’t drag her into my life without letting her know what she’s getting into.

He cared about her too much to let her fall into this type of field. Hunters were the very best out there and they didn’t stop hunting. Even after they retired or quietened, there was always a part of them that was out to get something. If Rukia couldn’t handle this part of his life, then how could she be with him?

No, she needs to know this.
He told himself.
The next time I see her, I will tell her. I’ll bring it up slowly and I will get her to understand.

He looked down at his clothes and wondered how he could show up in this. These were the clothes of a killer. Even though he was unmasked, he still looked like he was going to kill something. He wore all black solely so no one could see the blood that stained his clothes. He had to wash them on his own because neither of his parents wanted to touch them. They allowed him to be a hunter but that didn’t mean they had to clean any of his things. As for his weapons, he took care of them. He was careful when he dealt with explosives and anything that could be considered dangerous. He always kept the weapons locked away so no one would accidentally find them. The last thing he needed was someone dying by accident.

He touched the dirt and wasn’t too surprised to see how clean this lawn was. It was nothing like the dirt on the Velt. Anyone that was lucky to have a lawn would never have it this well-maintained. They’d struggle to make sure that it looked presentable. Everything about Calensa was the exact opposite of the Velt. He didn’t get a chance to appreciate the beauty about this place. This was the kind of home that his family should have been living in. He could only imagine what kind of childhood he would have had if this was his house. He would run down the halls, laughing and playing around. He would have had so many toys and things to play with. He would be innocent and completely unaware of the things happening outside of his home. In some ways, growing up in the Velt was a good thing. He was awake and aware of what no one else knew. He had been taught early to avoid Elementals.

Getting up, he dug the toe of his boot into the dirt and made a little mark. This was where he was going to be right now. He needed to wait till the party had died down a little before going in. There were so many guests in there that his only option was to get into the pool room. There would be no one guarding that and no one was planning to take a swim here. He could waltz in and no one would know. Yes, that was the plan. He had to go in through that room. Breaking into to it would be no problem. He had cracked locks before and he could do it many more times. He kneeled by the door and slowly unlocked it, stepping into the pool room. There was no one around so he was in the clear. He thought about getting up to the bedroom and slitting Oda’s throat. He could do it while no one was watching.

The one thing that Kian didn’t realize was that he wasn’t alone in this room. If he had turned on the lights, he would have seen the person lying in one of the chairs. Not only that, he would have recognized her.

He would have known who she was simply by the shape of her body and the blue streaks in her hair.

Chapter 9

Rukia hated the fact that she had to go to another party. Oda had invited everyone from Calensa to this one and she was now bored. It was the same affair. All the rich people would be hanging around and trying to mingle with each other. She was tired of mingling with the same old people and wished that Midori was here. At least her sister was someone that she could talk to.

Her mind was on Kian. The poor thing was probably back in the Velt and struggling to do something tonight. However, he still had some freedom to go out and do something different. She was stuck over here. Oda was throwing yet another party and she was the only one who had been invited to it. Midori had a cricket match to play and her parents had no interest in this party. Still, they didn’t want to appear rude so they sent Rukia over.

She didn’t mind the party so much, but it got boring from time to time. She wanted to be alone for the next few minutes so she excused herself. There were too many people around and she wanted some quiet. Some of the party guests asked her to stay behind, but she took her drink and left the room. The party was becoming too much for her. She needed a place where she could stay and clear her mind.

Rukia had decided to retire into the pool room and rest in one of the chairs. The noise was a little too much out there. She wanted some time to think about Kian and wonder what he was up to tonight. She hoped that he didn’t have another run in like the one with Oda. Midori had given Oda a beating to last him a lifetime. He would know better than to try and cross paths with her again.

Being at another party was not what she wanted. The worst part was that a sober Oda was there tonight. She didn’t see Kian and hoped that he wouldn’t be around. The poor thing didn’t get to go to parties like this often. She could figure that the people living in the Velt probably didn’t know what it meant to have a party. They were too busy trying to put their lives together. It was no different for him.

I wish I could have brought him here tonight.
She thought, looking through the glass roof in the pool room. This was a perfect place for them to escape and talk about their dreams. She could see in his eyes that he had so much he wanted to accomplish. He wanted to do a lot yet didn’t have the chance. If she could take him out of the Velt for a few days, she could give him the experience he never would get. Even a day would have been good enough for them. She sighed and rolled over on her side.

That was when she first heard the sound. It was coming from outside but it didn’t sound like any animal. Confused, she rolled off her chair and went down to the ground to hide. Within seconds, the door to the pool room opened and someone stepped in. It didn’t look like Oda or any of the party guests so she stayed hidden.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are.” The person said. The tone in his voice told her that they weren’t part of the party. “I’m not going to do anything to you. Maybe I’ll gut you like a fish, that’s it. If you come out right now, I promise that I’m going to make your death quick and painless. I don’t always do that.”

He’s after me?
Rukia wondered.
That doesn’t make any sense. I haven’t used my powers the whole time I’ve been here! I haven’t done anything wrong!

“Oh, come on! I don’t have all night.” He went on, walking close to where she was hiding. She held her breath and watched as black boots came closer. She could hear them squeaking across the floor. “I’m giving you an opportunity I don’t give anyone else! I swear on my mother’s life that you won’t receive too much pain.”

Yeah, I don’t believe you.
She thought, wanting to reach out and trip him. It would be very easy to take him down if she could grab his ankles. They were thick but her hands could wrap around them. She stayed still though because she didn’t want to startle him.

It was a hunter dressed all in black except for his utility belt. That was made of metal and looked heavy though he didn’t seem to be having problems wearing it. It fit around his waist without falling to his hips. He was a little taller than her and his face was covered with the mask. He was lurking around the bushes but failed to see that she was there. She couldn’t have been the one he was after. She hadn’t used her powers in public so he had no reason to hunt her down.

Rukia caught sight of the hunter and thought about how she would attack. She didn’t want to burn him right away. His jacket was definitely fireproof so it wasn’t going to work. These hunters always had extra protection despite looking like they weren’t wearing much. He was all by himself but that didn’t mean he wasn’t dangerous. He had to be armed.

Slowly, she crawled out from under her hiding place and snuck up from behind. He might have been a hunter but she was an Elemental. That alone made her stronger than him.

He was now looking around the room, which made him vulnerable. She could attack him at this moment. Before he had a chance to turn around, she tackled him down to the ground with a scream. They both went crashing down while she tried to pin him to the floor.

“What you think you’re doing, murderer?” She whispered. The hunter seemed to listen to her as she spoke. “You aren’t welcome here.”

“Get off me!”

“Not until you tell me why you’re here!”

“Rukia?”

“How do you know my name?!” She demanded. “Who sent you?!”

“I sent myself, Rukia. Please get off me.”

She slowly stepped away but did let her grip go. “I don’t know what game you’re playing but how do you know who I am?”

“I saw you days ago.” The hunter carefully took off his mask. “You saved me and we’ve been going places together. Don’t you recognize me?”

That was enough for her to step off him and looked into his eyes. “No way.”

Kian nodded. “I’m sorry you had to find out this way, Rukia. I swear I was going to tell you. I just didn’t know how you’d react. I was working up the nerve.”

“You’re a hunter? You’re so young!”

“I’m a Lieutenant,” he said. “I’ve been doing this for a while.”

“How come you didn’t tell me?”

“I was scared,” he admitted. “Most people usually don’t think well about the hunters. Throw in the fact that I’m from the Velt and they hate me more. I’m poor and I’m a murderer. That’s two of the worst things you can be here,” he closed his eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t get around to telling you sooner. I was afraid you’d never speak to me again. Although since I kept this from you, I won’t blame you for not speaking to me anymore. I’ll get out of your way. I’ll just…”

“Hold on! I didn’t say we have to stop seeing each other,” she cut in. "Don’t leave okay? Stay with me.”

“What?” He looked down and saw that she was holding his hand. “What are you doing?”

“I just said it. I want you to stay with me,” she said. “I want hear everything that you have to say. Tell me how you came to be this way. Tell me everything about yourself.”

“That’s not the reaction I thought you were going to have. I thought you would scream at me and claim you never wanted to see me again.”

“That sounds like the smart thing to do but I’m not going to do that. I want to know more about you. If anything, this makes me curious,” she said. “So stay with me in here. If you need to, let everyone know you’re all right. How long do you have to be out here?”

“Um, I think I have an hour to spare,” he said. “Will that be enough time for you?”

“Yes, that’s more than enough. That will be enough time to tell me everything I need to know about you. You can’t keep your secrets from me anymore.”

“No, I can’t,” he realized. “Do you hate me for it?”

“No.” It didn’t take her very long to answer.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Why wouldn’t I be sure about this? You’re still the same Kian that I know. You just had a secret that I found out,” she said. “You were planning on telling me, right?”

“Of course. A secret like this would be very hard to keep,” he admitted. “I just…you accepted this so easily. I was expecting you to run away.”

“Run away from what? You?” She laughed at that. “You’re hunting Elementals, aren’t you? Why would I be afraid of you?”

Oh, it hurt to lie to him but she had to do it. She had to act like nothing was wrong with this picture. Inside, she wanted to scream out loud. He was a hunter. He was the one thing that she didn’t want him to be. Her conscious was probably screaming at her, telling her to run. He wasn’t to be trust. However, she just needed a look into those beautiful green eyes and she could tell he was sincere. He wasn’t going to hurt her. He had other things on his mind.

“You okay, Rukia?” He asked. “You look lost.”

“A part of me is lost. It’s lost in your eyes,” she said.

“In my eyes?” He turned bright red again. “My eyes aren’t that pretty.”

“Wrong. They’re like emeralds, sparkling when there’s a light in them,” she explained. “It’s so easy for anyone to get lost in them. I feel like I’m far away when I’m staring into them.”

“I feel the same way about you,” he said. “However, I’m still thinking about all of this. You seem so calm in knowing that I’m a hunter. I wanted you to slap me or scream at me or do something. Instead, you’re okay with it.”

“I can still slap you if you want.”

“That’s not necessary. You’re just a good person underneath it all,” she decided. “At least, I think you’re a good person underneath it all. You just have to explain a lot of this to me.”

Chapter 10

Kian felt nervous as Rukia stared at him. He didn’t know how else he could explain all this. This was the girl that he liked and now she had found out his biggest secret. There was no way he could kill Oda right now. He would have to leave that up to someone else. He took out his phone and sent Dominica a text that he was tied up. Someone else would be the one who would have to finish the man off.

It was just the two of them in the pool room now and it was the perfect time to talk. Rukia didn’t feel like running away from him. He might have been a hunter but he didn’t know she was an Elemental. There was no need to run. Kian looked tense and scared. He was afraid that she was going to turn on him but she couldn’t. If anything, this side intrigued her more.