Jennifer L. Armentrout 12 страница

I liked Daemon-really, really liked him.

I’d been so caught up nursing my hurt over the way he’d acted when

we first met that I’d been blind to my growing feelings, to what I

wanted, and to how he felt. And now what? Daemon, who never backed

down from anything, had walked away before allowing me to explain

anything.

There was no escaping it. I’d hurt him.

Rolling over, I shoved my face into the pillow. His scent was

still there. I clutched it tightly and closed my eyes. How had things

gotten so tangled up? At what point had my life turned into some

bizarre science fiction soap opera?

“Honey, are you feeling okay?”

I opened my eyes and focused on my mom, who was wearing scrubs

with little hearts and swirls on them. Where did she get those things?

“Yeah, I’m just tired.”

“You sure?” She sat on the edge of the bed, placing her hand

against my forehead. When she determined I wasn’t sick, she smiled a

little. “The Christmas tree is beautiful, honey.”

A rush of swirling emotions crashed into me. “Yeah,” I said, voice

hoarse. “It is.”

“Who helped you with it?”

I bit the inside of my cheek. “Daemon.”

Mom smoothed my hair back with her hand. “That’s really sweet of

him.”

“I know.” I paused. “Mom?”

“Yes, honey?”

I didn’t even know what I was going to tell her. Everything was

too…complicated, too jumbled up in the truth of what my friends were.

I shook my head. “Nothing. Just that I love you.”

Smiling, she bent over and kissed my forehead. “I love you, too.”

She got up and stopped at the door. “I was thinking about having Will

over for dinner this week. What do you think?”

It was great my mom had a stellar love life. “Cool with me.”

After Mom left for work, I forced myself to get up. Blake would be

here soon. So would Daemon, if he still showed.

I went into the kitchen and grabbed a Coke out of the fridge.

Passing time, I collected all the books I had duplicate copies of and

placed them on my desk. A book giveaway would make me feel better.

When I went downstairs to find my Coke-because apparently it had run

away from me at some point-a familiar warmth spread along my neck.

I froze on the bottom step, hand gripping the banister.

There was a knock on the door.

Hopping from the step to the floor, I rushed to the door and threw

it open. Out of breath, I clenched the knob. “Hey.”

Daemon arched a dark eyebrow. “It sounded like you were going to

come straight through the door.”

I flushed. “I, uh, was…looking for my drink.”

“Looking for your drink?”

“I lost it.”

He glanced over my shoulder, a small smile playing on his lips.

“It’s right there, on the table.”

Turning around, I saw the red-and-white can laughing at me from a

corner table. “Oh. Well, thank you.”

Daemon stepped inside, brushing my arm as he passed. Oddly, the

fact he just invited himself in didn’t upset me anymore. He shoved his

hands into his pockets and leaned against the wall. “Kitten…”

A thrill went through me. “Daemon…?”

The half smile was there, but it lacked its usual smugness. “You

look tired.”

I crept closer. “I didn’t sleep well last night.”

“Thinking about me?” he asked in a hushed voice.

There wasn’t a moment of hesitation. “Yes.”

His eyes widened slightly with surprise. “Well, I was preparing

this whole speech about how you need to stop denying that I consume

your every waking thought and haunt your dreams. Now I’m not sure what

to say.”

Leaning against the wall beside him, I could feel his body heat.

“You, speechless? That’s one for the record books.”

Daemon lowered his head, his eyes as deep and endless as the

forests outside. “I didn’t sleep well last night, either.”

I moved closer until my arm brushed his. He stiffened ever so

slightly. “Last night-”

“I wanted to apologize,” he said, and I was stunned yet again. He

turned so that he was facing me completely, and I found his hand

without looking. His fingers threaded through mine. “I’m sorry-”

Someone cleared his throat.

Surprise flitted through me. Before I could turn, Daemon’s eyes

narrowed, glinting with anger. He dropped my hand and took a step

back. Crap. I’d forgotten about Blake. And I’d forgotten to close the

door behind me.

“Am I interrupting?” Blake asked.

“Yes, Bart, you are always interrupting,” Daemon responded.

I turned around, my heart deflating as if someone had popped it.

The entire length of my back burned under Daemon’s stare.

Blake opened the storm door and stepped inside. “Sorry it took me

so long to get over here.”

“Too bad it didn’t take longer.” Daemon stretched idly, like a

cat. “And too bad you didn’t get lost or-”

“Eaten by wild boars or killed in a horrific ten-car pile-up. I

get it.” Blake interrupted and sauntered past us. “You don’t need to

be here, Daemon. No one is forcing you.”

Daemon pivoted on his heel, following Blake. “There’s no other

place I’d rather be.”

My head was already starting to throb. Training with Daemon

present wasn’t going to be easy. I slowly made my way into the living

room. They were in an epic stare down.

I cleared my throat. “So, um, how are we going to do this?”

Daemon opened his mouth, and the good Lord only knows what he was

about to say, but Blake beat him to it. “What we need to do first is

figure out what you can already do.”

I tucked my hair back, uncomfortable with both of them staring at

me like…like I didn’t even know what. “Uh, I’m not sure there’s much I

can do.”

Blake’s lips pursed. “Well, you stopped the branch. And the time

with the windows. That’s two things.”

“But I didn’t do them on purpose.” At Blake’s confused expression,

I looked over at Daemon. He appeared bored, sprawled on the couch.

“What I mean is, it wasn’t a conscious effort, you know.”

“Oh.” His brows lowered. “Well, that’s disappointing.”

Gee. Thanks. My hands fell to my sides.

Daemon’s bright gaze slid to Blake. “What a great motivator you

are.”

Blake ignored him. “So these have been random outbursts of power?”

When I nodded, he pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Maybe it will just fade?” I said, hopeful.

“It would’ve already done that by now. See, one of four things

happens after a mutation, from what I could learn.” He started moving

around the living room, giving me a wide berth. “A human can be

healed, and then it fades after a few weeks, even months. Or a human

can be mutated and it sticks, and they develop the same abilities as a

Luxen-or more. Then there are the ones who kind of…self-destruct. But

you’re out of that stage.”

Thank God, I thought wryly. “And?”

“Well, and then there are humans who are mutated beyond what would

be expected, I guess.”

“What does that mean?” Daemon tapped his fingers on the arm of the

couch. I glared at them.

Blake folded his arms and rocked back. “Like in the

freakish-mutant-looks department and in the head, and it’s different

for everyone.”

“Am I going to turn into a mutant?” I squeaked.

He laughed. “I don’t think so.”

I don’t think so wasn’t high on the reassurance scale.

Daemon’s fingers stopped their annoying tapping. “And how do you

really know all of this, Flake?”

“Blake,” he corrected. “Like I said, I’ve known others like Katy

who have been sucked into the DOD.”

“Uh huh.” Daemon smirked.

Blake shook his head. “Anyway, back to the important stuff. We

need to see if you can control it. If not…”

Before I even had a chance to respond, Daemon was on his feet and

in Blake’s face. “Or what, Hank? What if she can’t?”

“Daemon.” I sighed. “First off, his name is Blake. B-L-A-K-E. And

really, can we do this without any macho-man moments? Because if not,

this is going to take forever.”

He spun around, pinning me with a dark look that made me roll my

eyes. “Okay, so what do you suggest?”

“The best thing to start with is to see if you can move anything

on command.” Blake paused. “And I guess we can go from there.”

“Move what?”

Blake looked around the room. “How about a book?”

A book? Hell, which one? Shaking my head, I focused on the one

that had a cover of a girl whose dress turned into rose petals. So

pretty. It was about reincarnation and had a male main character who

was swoon-worthy and then some. God, I’d so want to date-

“Focus,” Blake said.

I made a face, but okay, I wasn’t really focusing. I pictured the

book lifting into the air and coming to my hand like I’d seen Daemon

and Dee do so many times.

Nothing happened.

I tried harder. Waited longer. But the book remained on the back

of the couch…as did the pillows, the remote control, and Mom’s Good

Housekeeping magazine.

Three hours later and the best I’d done was cause the coffee table

to tremble and Daemon to doze off on the couch.

I fail.

Tired and cranky, I ended practice and woke up Daemon by kicking

the leg of the coffee table. “I’m hungry. I’m tired. And I’m done.”

Blake’s brows shot up. “Okay. We can pick up tomorrow. No biggie.”

I glared at him.

Stretching his arms, Daemon yawned. “Wow, Brad, you are such a

great trainer. I’m amazed.”

“Shut up,” I said, and then ushered Blake out the front door. On

the porch, I apologized. “I’m sorry for being so bitchy, but I feel

like an epic fail right now. Like I’m the captain of my own personal

failboat.”

He smiled. “You’re not a failboat, Katy. This can take a while,

but the frustration is worth it in the end. The last thing you want is

the DOD knowing you’re mutated and coming for whoever was

responsible.”

I shivered. Causing something like that to happen would kill me.

“I know. And…thank you for wanting to help.” I bit my lip and peeked

at him. Maybe Daemon was right last night. Blake was risking a lot

even being around me. Wouldn’t most people bail if they knew the DOD

was heavily entrenched here? I just didn’t want to believe it was

because he had feelings for me.

“Blake, I know this is dangerous for you and I don’t-”

“Katy, it’s okay.” He placed his hand on my shoulder and squeezed.

He also let go pretty quickly; probably he was afraid Daemon would

appear out of nowhere and break his hand. “I don’t expect anything

from you.”

A little bit of relief flooded me. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything.”

Didn’t I, though? Trusting Blake took a leap of faith, but he had

plenty of opportunity to turn Daemon and me over and he hadn’t. I

wrapped my arms around my waist against the cold. “What you’re doing

by helping me is pretty amazing. I just wanted to say that.”

Blake’s grin grew into a smile that caused his hazel eyes to

dance. “Well, it does mean I get to spend more time with you.” The

tips of his cheeks flushed, and he looked away, clearing his throat.

“Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow. Okay?”

I nodded. Blake gave me a weird sort of smile and then left.

Feeling all kinds of whacked out, I went back in.

Daemon wasn’t on the couch, of course. Going on instinct, I

shuffled into the kitchen. He was there. Bread, lunch meat, and mayo

were spread out on the counter.

“What are you doing?”

He waved a knife around. “You said you were hungry.”

My heart did a back handspring. “You…didn’t have to make me

anything, but thank you.”

“I was also hungry.” Daemon plopped mayo on the bread, spreading

it out evenly. He made two ham and cheese sandwiches quickly. Turning,

he handed me mine as he leaned against the counter. “Eat.”

I stared at him.

He smiled and then took a huge bite of his. Chewing slowly, he

watched me eat, and the silence seemed to stretch on forever. After he

went round two with the ham and cheese, which really was just cheese

and mayo, I cleaned up. I finished washing my hands and turned off the

faucet when Daemon placed his hands on either side of my hips, his

fingers curving over the counter. Heat rolled up and down my back, and

I didn’t dare move. He was way, way too close.

“So, you had a very interesting conversation with Butler on the

porch.” His breath danced over my neck.

I fought the shiver and failed. “His name is Blake and were you

eavesdropping, Daemon?”

“I was keeping an eye on things.” The tip of his nose brushed the

side of my neck and my fingers spasmed against the stainless steel

sink. “So, his helping you is amazing?”

Closing my eyes, I cursed under my breath. “He’s putting himself

at risk, Daemon. Whether you like him or not, you have to give him

props for that.”

“I don’t have to give him anything other than the ass-kicking he

deserves.” He rested his chin on my shoulder. “I don’t want you doing

this.”

“Daemon-”

“And it has nothing to do with my raging dislike of the boy.” His

hands left the counter and found my hips. “Or the fact that-”

“That you’re jealous?” I said, turning my cheek so that it was

daringly close to his lips.

“Me? Jealous of him? No. What I was going to say was, or the fact

that he has a stupid name. Blake? It rhymes with flake. Come on.”

I rolled my eyes, but then he straightened and tugged me against

him. With my back flush against his front, he wrapped his arms around

my waist. Dizzying warmth zinged through my veins. Why, oh why, did he

always have to be so damn close?

“Kitten, I don’t trust him. Everything about him is too

convenient.”

To me, Daemon’s reasons for not trusting him were too obvious. I

wiggled free, managing to get myself turned around so I faced him. His

hands fell back to the sink. “I don’t want to talk about Blake.”

One dark brow arched. “What do you want to talk about?”

“Last night.”

He stared at me a moment, then backed off. Retreated all the way

to the other side of the kitchen table as if he were suddenly afraid

of me. I folded my arms. “Actually, I wanted to finish the

conversation we were having before Blake came over.”

“Which is about last night.”

“Yeah,” I said slowly, dragging out the word.

Daemon scratched the five o’clock shadow on his chin. “I don’t

even know what I was going to say to you.”

My brows flew up. What a disappointment.

“Look, last night I was mad. I was also a little caught off guard

with…with everything.” He closed his eyes briefly. “Anyway, that’s not

important. This thing with Bart is.”

I opened my mouth, but he went on. “Part of me just wants to

snatch him up and get rid of him. It would be easy.” My mouth hit the

floor this time, and his smile was cold. “I’m being serious, Kitten.

He’s not just a danger to you, but if he’s playing us, he’s a danger

to Dee. So I want her kept as far away from this as possible.”

“Of course,” I murmured. There was no way I’d involve her.

His muscled arms folded, and he became all business. “And going

along with everything will keep tabs on him. So, you were right last

night about that.”

This wasn’t the part of last night’s conversation I wanted to talk

about. After seeing how affected he was when he’d thought I’d gone out

on a date with Blake-even though he seemed to have gotten over that

pretty quickly-and spending all day feeling heartsick and shattered, I

wanted to talk to him about us. About what I’d realized as I moped

around the house all day.

“I don’t like this, but…” He paused. “But I’ll ask you one more

time to not do this with him. Trust that I can find something out that

can help you-help us.”

I wanted to tell him yes, but how was Daemon going to ask anyone

without arousing suspicion? If the DOD was everywhere, who could say

there weren’t Luxen working for them? Anything was possible.

Since I didn’t answer right away, he seemed to know what my

decision was, because he made this laugh/inhale sound and nodded. A

splinter pierced my heart.

“Okay. You need to get some rest. Tomorrow is a big day. More

Butler. Yay.”

And then he walked out. Actually walked out of the kitchen instead

of doing that super-fast thing he usually did. And I stood there,

wondering what the hell just went down and why I never stopped him and

told him what I was thinking.

What I was feeling.

Courage-I really needed to find the courage to tell him how I felt

tomorrow, before things went further south between us.

Armentrout, Jennifer L.

Onyx (A Lux Novel)

Chapter 20

Days and then weeks went by. Each morning started the same as the

one before. I’d wake up dizzy, feeling like I hadn’t slept at all.

Every day the dark smudges under my eyes grew more prominent.

I didn’t speak to my mom most mornings, which blew, because that

was the only time we really got to see each other. She was busy with

work and Will, and I was busy with school; Blake; and a distant,

closed-off Daemon. Who spent most of the practices watching Blake like

a hawk does when searching for prey.

A frosty air had developed between Daemon and me, and no matter

how many times I tried to start up a conversation about our

relationship, he was quick to shut me down. My heart ached.

Even though he didn’t stop the training sessions and rarely missed

them, he was still dead set against them. Most of our time alone

consisted of him trying to convince me that Blake was no good. That

there was something inherently wrong with the boy, other than the fact

he was a hybrid. Like me.

But as the weeks passed and the DOD didn’t storm the house for me,

I chalked it up to Daemon’s rightful paranoia. He had reason not to

trust the guy. Given what happened with Dawson and Bethany, he was

leery of all humans.

And Blake did his best to handle Daemon. I had to give it to him.

Not many people would keep coming back, especially considering I

sucked butt at the whole ability thing and Daemon made him feel less

than welcome. Blake was patient and supportive, while Daemon was the

pissy pink elephant in the room with the bad attitude.

All the training after school affected any and all social life.

Everyone knew that Blake and I were hanging out. No one, not even Dee,

realized that Daemon was there, too. Since she was spending all of her

time over at Adam’s, she didn’t know where Daemon was or what he was

doing. So Carissa and Lesa believed that Blake and I were dating, and

I’d given up on trying to convince them otherwise. And it blew,

because they thought I was so wrapped up in him that nothing else

mattered. Without even doing it, I’d turned into one of those girls

whose life ceases to exist outside of her boyfriend.

And I didn’t even have a boyfriend.

Their detailed attempts to draw me back into their world were

incessant, but each time Dee wanted to take a shopping trip or Lesa

wanted to grab something to eat after school, I had to turn them down.

My evenings were all about training. There was no time for

reading. No time for my blog. Those things I once spent all my free

time doing were now pushed to the side.

I always asked Blake the same question before we got started.

“Have you seen any Arum?”

The answer was always the same. “No.”

And then Daemon would show up and things usually got crazy at some

point. Blake would try to teach me while ignoring the homicidal alien

taking up way too much room.

“Technically, whenever we use our abilities, we are sending a

piece of ourselves,” he explained. “Like if I want to pick something

up, a part of me is doing that as an extension of me. It’s why using

our powers weakens us.”

That really made no sense to me, but I nodded. Daemon rolled his

eyes.

Blake laughed. “You have no idea what I’m talking about.”

“Nope.” I smiled.

“All right, back to the arms, then.” His fingers slipped over the

curve of my shoulders, and the crazy began.

Daemon was up and off the couch in a nanosecond, forcing Blake to

back away. I took a deep, patient breath and faced the alien.

He glared Blake into submission. “I think I can help her with

this.”

Sitting on the arm of the couch, Blake waved his hand. “Sure.

Whatever. She’s all yours.”

Daemon grinned. “That she is.”

My hand was itching to connect with his face. “I am not yours.” A

small part of me wanted him to deny my words, though.

“Shush it,” he said, walking up to me.

“How about I shush it right up your-”

“Kitten, your language is so unladylike.” He stepped behind me,

placing his hands on my shoulders. Admittedly, the static charge from

his touch was much more powerful…and tempting. He leaned in, his cheek

against my hair. “Ben over there is on to something. Whenever we use

our ability-tap into the Source-we are sending a part of us to do it.

It’s like an extension of our physical form.”

Daemon was making just as much sense as Blake, but I went along

with it.

“Picture having hundreds of arms.”

I did as he instructed. In my head, I imagined I looked like that

Hindu goddess. I giggled.

“Katy.” Blake sighed.

“Sorry.”

“Now take those arms and make them transparent in your mind.”

Daemon paused. “You can see those arms; see the books all over the

living room. Can you? I know you know where each and every one is

placed.”

Knowing that if I spoke, I’d break my concentration, I nodded.

“Okay. Good.” His fingers tightened. “Now I want you to turn those

arms into light. An intense, bright light.”

“Like…your light?”

“Yes.”

I took another breath and pictured my Hindu arms as long, slender

ribbons of light. Yeah, I looked ridiculous.

“Do you see it?” he asked softly. “And do you believe it?”

Pausing before I answered, I worked really hard to believe what I

was seeing. The arms of blinding white light were mine. Like Daemon

and Blake had said, they were extensions of my being. I imagined each

of those hands picking up the books scattered about.

“Open your eyes,” Blake instructed.

When I did, books floated around the room. I moved them to the

coffee table, stacking them in alphabetic order without laying a

finger on them. A heady thrill went through me. Finally! Ecstatic, I

almost started jumping and squealing.

Daemon let go, his smile an odd mixture of pride and something

much more. It tugged at my heart. So much so that I had to look away,

and my gaze collided with Blake’s.

He grinned at me, and I grinned back. “I actually did something.”

“You did.” He stood. “And it was pretty damn good. Nice work.”

I turned to say something to Daemon, but there was a rush of warm

air and I realized the spot where Daemon had stood was empty. A door

opened and then closed.

Surprised, I turned to Blake. “I…”

“He sure can move fast,” he said, shaking his head. “I can move

fast, but damn. Not as fast as him.”

I nodded, blinking back hot tears. The one time I actually did

something right, Daemon bailed. How freaking typical.

“Katy,” Blake said softly, wrapping his hand around my arm. “Are

you okay?”

“Yeah.” I pulled free, dragging in deep breaths.

He followed me into the living room. “Do you want to talk about

it?”

I choked out a laugh, embarrassed. “No.”

Blake was silent for several moments. “It’s probably better this

way.”

“It is?” I folded my arms, willing my tears to go away. Crying

fixed nothing.

He nodded. “From what I’ve gathered, relationships between the

Luxen and humans don’t work out. And before you tell me there’s

nothing between you two, I know better. I can see the way you look at

each other. But it’s not going to work out.”

If this was supposed to be a motivational speech, it was so not

working. Blake picked up the first book, smoothing his hands over the

glossy purple cover. “It’s better if you cut ties. Or he does, before

someone gets hurt.”

My stomach hollowed. “Hurt?”

He nodded solemnly. “Look at it this way. If he thought the DOD

was onto you, what do you think he’d do? Risk his life, right? And if

the DOD does find out you’ve been mutated, they’re going to want to

know who did it. Their first guess is going to be him.”

I started to tell Blake that it wasn’t Daemon, but that would just

sound suspicious, and damn if he didn’t have a point. Daemon was the

obvious suspect. I sat down, rubbing the heel of my hand over my

forehead. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt,” I said finally.

Blake sat beside me. “Do we ever? But what we want rarely changes

the outcome, Katy.”

…

In trig the following day, Daemon tapped his pen off my back. “I’m

not going to be at your training today,” he said in a low voice.

Disappointment swelled inside me. Even though Daemon usually

wasn’t the most helpful person during these sessions, I truly believed

the reason I’d been able to move the books was because of him.

And yeah, I also looked forward to seeing him. Sigh.

I forced a shrug, playing it cool. “Okay.”

His emerald-colored eyes met mine for a brief moment and then he

sat back, scribbling along his notebook. Feeling as if I’d been

dismissed, I faced the front of the class and exhaled slowly.

Carissa tossed a folded-up note on my desk. Curious, I spread it

open.

Why the:(face?

Gosh, was I that obvious? I scribbled a quick message:

Just tired. heart your new glasses.

And I did. They were a rocking zebra print. I managed to toss the

note back to her. We weren’t worried about our teacher-it was doubtful

he could see all the way to the back of the classroom. The guy made

Santa look young.

A few seconds later, the note was back on my desk. I grinned as I

unfolded it.

Thank you. Lesa wants me to tell you: “Daemon looks hot today.” I

have to agree.

I laughed under my breath and wrote back,

Daemon always looks hot!!!

Stretching into the aisle, I went to drop the note back on

Carissa’s desk. Before it could leave my fingertips, it was snatched

from my hand. Son of a donkey butt! My mouth dropped open and my

cheeks burned. Twisting around in my seat, I glared at Daemon.

He held the note close to his chest and grinned. “Passing notes is

bad,” he murmured.

“Give it back,” I hissed.

Shaking his head, he unfolded the note much to my-and I’m sure, to

Lesa’s and Carissa’s-horror. I wanted to die as I watched those

vibrant eyes quickly scan the note. I knew when he got to my part,

because his dark brows shot up his forehead.

He grinned, used his mouth to pop off the cap on his pen, and

wrote something on the page. Groaning, I glanced at Lesa and Carissa.

Lesa’s mouth was hanging open and Carissa’s cheeks matched mine. God,

Дата добавления: 2015-11-13