Violet Path (22 page)

“Hi,” said Ryan innocently.

I tried to sit up slowly, but my little friend rejected the idea. “Andrew told me not to let you do that. He told me that I had to keep an eye on you so you don’t hurt yourself.”

I couldn’t stop from smiling. “That’s Andrew for you.”

There was a short moment of silence before Ryan spoke again. “You’re different, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean?” I didn’t like where the conversation was heading.

“You’re a girl,” he stated casually. My heart froze. “Please don’t lie to me. I won’t tell anyone. I can keep a secret. I promise.”

“How did you know?” I hesitated, knowing that there was no turning back as I acknowledged the truth.

“You act differently.”

I laughed. “How?”

“You laugh differently too.”

I laughed again, and it pulled at my abdomen. “And how do I laugh differently?”

“Like my mother did.”

My laughter ended abruptly, resonating in the air. I hadn’t meant to hurt him by reminding him of his loss.

We were silent until Maxime entered.

“He knows,” I told him sincerely.

“You told him?” He sounded upset, but he didn’t raise his voice.

“No, he figured it out on his own.”

Maxime looked at Ryan and smiled. “Children are smarter than adults. They spend more time observing than taking stuff for granted.” He crouched down. “Don’t tell anyone, okay?”

Ryan nodded.

“How are you feeling?” Maxime asked as his deep, blue eyes settled on me.

“Fine,” I lied. I was aching all over.

“No, you’re not. You need to start trusting me. Here are some painkillers. You have the worst bruises I have ever seen.”

“Thank you.”

He ran his hand gently along my forehead. “Sam healed your stab wound, but as for your neck, he said that it would have to wait. He’ll take the temporary stitches out when he thinks it’s time, but he left them in for now.” He placed the medication on a table beside me. “You must be hungry. I’ll get you lunch as well as something to drink. Try to be careful.” Maxime smiled, and it sparked up my heart. I wanted him to stay, but I knew that he couldn’t.

Once Maxime was gone, Ryan bluntly said, “You like him, don’t you?”

I blushed. “What makes you say that?”

“The way you look at him.”

I fell silent. Ryan was like a little brother, a very observant little brother. I couldn’t bring myself to lie to him, so I didn’t deny it. “How do you know?” I asked. “Is it that obvious?”

“No. You look at him the same way my mother looked at my dad.”

I felt sad again, reminding him of his mother, but I enjoyed his company. I loved his innocent simplicity. He was relief from the sad, dying world.

“Please don’t tell him,” I pleaded.

“Don’t worry, I won’t.” He flashed a beautiful smile.

“Thanks.” I looked into his big, hazel eyes. He was serious and strong, but more importantly he still had hope. It didn’t matter what Maxime would try to do, it was too late; Ryan’s childhood had already been shattered, but he still had a heart of gold.

“Here you are,” said Maxime, as he entered with a bowl of soup and a glass of water. I sat up in pain. “Be careful,” he said. I thanked him as he set my meal on the table.

“I’m sorry, but I have to go. I want you to stay here until dinner and rest.”

“But Sam said—”

“I don’t care what he said. You need to be careful. You keep getting lucky. Just because you keep recovering doesn’t mean that you should hurt yourself. What happens when your luck runs out? I’m sorry, but you’re staying here.” Maxime smiled one last time, then headed out the door.

I sat up and swallowed the painkillers. The pain vanished in the following half-hour. I threw my covers off and stood.

“I’m sorry, but you know that I can’t let you go anywhere,” Ryan said.

“Who said I was going anywhere?” I responded mischievously.

“You know what Andrew said: ‘Be careful,’ and I’m to make sure of that, so be careful with whatever you have in mind.” He was determined to fulfill his assigned job.

“Well, to start off, can you please get me some clean clothes?” I asked as I looked down at my blood-filled, ripped clothing.

“Sorry, I forgot about these. Andrew left them for you,” Ryan said as he took a clean shirt and pair of pants out of a bag by the door. I thanked him and asked him to step outside for me to change.

The clothes were still a bit warm from having been washed and dried. They were soft and smelled like Maxime. There was a mirror by the sink, so I examined my wounds. To my surprise, I didn’t have the slightest mark indicating where I had been stabbed, but swollen, dark, purple-brown bruises covered my abs. It looked as if my skin had been tie-dyed. I remembered every kick and every punch as I ran my fingers along my abdomen, realizing how sensitive I still was. It hurt to remember every vivid memory. Blood was still slowly oozing out of my neck, staining the gauze, a drastic contrast of the piercing red and pure white. I recalled the cold blade along my throat and my heart racing against death. Orion’s words rang in my ears. I fought against my memories, tiring myself. I was afraid.

A knock at the door ripped me from Orion’s rage-filled eyes. I pulled the clean shirt over my head and quickly changed pants.

“Who is it?” I called.

“It’s Sam,” he said.

“Come in,” I said, as I lay back down.

“Good to see you awake,” Sam said timidly.

“Thanks for everything,” I told him genuinely.

“It was nothing. I took care of your stab wound and internal bleeding. The bruises will heal on their own as well as the marks on your wrists. I don’t have the right materials for your neck right now, but they will be sent over from Maria as soon as they can spare them. I gave your painkillers to Andrew and trust you received them. You can take the gauze off your neck later on, but I suggest you keep it on for now. That’s not actually a suggestion, more of doctor’s orders.”

“Thank you.” I smiled.

“No need to thank me; Andrew was the blood donor. Everything seemed to work out very well. You are very lucky.”

“And grateful. Thanks, Sam,” I said. He flashed me a smile and left. Did he figure out that I was a girl when he operated on me? He did, after all, practically see me naked from the waist up. I brushed away the thought.

Maxime entered and said, “Ryan left to eat lunch.”

“Thank you, for everything.” I couldn’t find the right words to fully show my appreciation.

“I don’t deserve the praise.”

“You’re too hard on yourself.”

We were silent for a minute as he approached my bed. His eyes were a warm blue with burning flames dancing in them.

“Do you . . . know why Orion and—”

“Not really. They asked what Matthew’s plans were,” I cut him off.

“I’m sorry. I have to ask.”

“I understand, but do you know anything about it?” I looked away as I dug up dreadful memories.

“Not much.”

“Please.” I knew I would have to pry open the answers.

“They were following up on the Aramissian. And when they asked about Matthew’s plans, they were referring to how Matthew is going to obliterate every community other than his own. They wanted to know what community was next to be attacked, what his tactics were, what he wanted you to do. Basically, the questions without answers. That really shouldn’t have . . .” He couldn’t find the words to finish his sentence, so the room fell silent again as we did our best to forget the conversation.

“I’m glad the clothes fit.” He smiled.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me; Ryan gave them to you.”

“Where is he going to be staying?”

“He moved into a cabin near the kitchen. I showed him where yours is. David sends his regards. He’s teaching a class as we speak.”

“Thank you.” I didn’t really care for David’s concern, because I couldn’t imagine it being a solemn apology.

“With so many people joining The Shadows after Jarva had been destroyed by Matthew, we need to change our schedules, and the groups will get bigger. Also, Matthew has started to attack the smaller villages around H.S.H.S., so we need to be more careful.”

“That’s reasonable,” I responded as I sat up.

“Please don’t sit up,” he said. “We’re thinking about taking away the free time and replacing it with conditioning. We will also have a day off for each group.”

“That’s great, so why do you look upset?”

“I’m not saying that you can’t handle it, but it will be tough, and weaknesses can give away identity.” He looked away.

“I’ll be fine. I’m more than okay with the push-ups now, so adding a few won’t hurt.”

“But that’s because of the S.S. Pill. I’m thinking cardiovascular conditioning—running.”

“How do you know about the Pill?” I asked, horrified. He knew too much about me.

“I just do. Are you more of a sprinter or endurance runner?” His eyes darted around as he tried to dodge the question.

“Why won’t you answer my question?”

He didn’t respond. I sat up, ignoring his orders. I wanted to hug him, to hold him. I finally gave into temptation and wrapped my arms around him, then rested my head against his back so I could hear his heart beating. I closed my eyes and felt his warm hand rest on mine. I didn’t want to let go of him. I loved him. It was a new emotion to me, stronger than anything I had ever felt in my life. It made the world so much more vivid. I felt a tear gently explode on my hand, only it wasn’t mine.

Suddenly, he stood, as if he needed to break free of me. “I’m sorry,” he said and left.

“Can I come in?” Ryan said from the door.

“Yes,” I replied, trying to control my trembling voice.

“I’m sorry I left. I went to lunch.” He paused, noticing my wet cheeks. “I’m sorry, but did I say something?”

I shook my head and let it hang. I felt so worthless for being so weak in front of a child who had lost everything.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I smiled. “Nothing.”

“Then why are you crying?”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Ryan looked at me slightly confused but didn’t push the matter any further.

“Come on!” I tried to sound full of energy. I needed to be strong.

“Come on where?”

“We’re staying here since it’s being forced upon me. You’re my apprentice, so I need to teach you how to fight.”

“But Andrew said—”

“Andrew said to be careful and stay here. I’m following his orders. Anyway, at worst I’ll take the blame, although I’m not breaking any rules,” I interrupted.

“I guess.”

“Don’t guess, know. You need to be sure of what you’re doing. You don’t have time to hesitate.”

“What if I hurt you?” Ryan’s eyes were very honest.

“You won’t. Don’t worry.”

“Are you sure you’re all right? I mean . . . to do this?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.” Ryan was sounding like Maxime.

“Listen, I need to do something to get my mind off of things, and you’re supposed to do what I tell you, so let’s start.”

“Is it ‘yes sir’ or ‘yes ma’am’?” Ryan smiled.

We both laughed. He knew exactly how to cheer me up.

We quickly reviewed what I had taught him earlier that day and added a couple of skills. We then fought for almost an hour and a half. Ryan was very skilled, especially considering his age. He could kick almost two feet above his height while keeping balance. Agility, speed, strength, and focus were all to his advantage. He wasn’t much competition for me, but he would get there. We stopped after I had pinned him for the fifty-third time to the ground, but Ryan accepted his defeats with great pride. He was the perfect student.

The bell rang. I tried not to rush out, although I wanted to step out into the fresh air more than anything. The moment I stepped outside, the frozen wind scratched me. I had forgotten how cold it was. I crossed my arms to try to stay warm. Ryan quickly offered me his body-warmer, but I refused to take it; it would have hurt the cut along my neck anyway.

We made our way through the darkness to the long tables to eat. As soon as Maxime spotted me, he ran up to join us.

“You’re shivering! I’m sorry. I forgot to give you a sweater. Here, take mine.” He slipped his off and handed it to me. I wanted to take it because I was cold and it was his, but that would cause him to freeze. Maxime waited for me to take it, his big, blue eyes pleading, but I shook my head.

“You’ll freeze,” I argued.

“You are freezing!” he said.

I shook my head again.

“Sometimes you need to learn not to care and to just take orders. Take it. If it pleases you, I’ll run and get my body-warmer.”

I hesitated, but took it, slipped it on, and watched him run off into the night.

“Heard you had a tough morning. Can we see the scar?” Nick asked.

I was embarrassed, but I slowly pulled the gauze off to reveal a bloody line across my neck.

“What did you hear exactly?” I was afraid that whatever I would say would oppose what Maxime had already shared.

“Only that Andrew helped you back to camp because you had two cuts and that you needed surgery—the usual for you.” Nick took a bite of his warm meal and a sip of wine.

“What do you mean by the ‘usual’?”

“You’re always getting hurt.” He took another bite. “How old are you anyway?”

“Sixteen.” I blushed.

“You’re almost Andrew’s age. He really seems to appreciate having someone his age around. Now he has someone to take care of instead of his brother always treating him like the vulnerable child of the camp.” Nick smiled cheekily, intriguing me.

“What?” I asked.

“Oh, nothing,” he chuckled.

“Yeah right!” I didn’t like how he considered me innocent and ignorant because of my age.

“Okay, nothing for your young ears to hear.”

Frustration started to boil inside of me. “You did that on purpose,” I said.

“Did what?” Nick laughed.

We looked at each other and then laughed. Ryan nudged me. I turned to see Maxime coming toward the table, but something was wrong. His gait was unsteady, staggering, as if he’d had too much wine to drink. Then he collapsed.

“Andrew!” I yelled as I darted over to him. I searched desperately for his pulse. Unable to find it, I gently pressed my ear to his chest. He was still breathing. Everyone had crowded around us.