AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I needed a mom to talk to about these feelings I had for Zaq. Needed someone to hug me and tell me I was doing the right thing. Needed someone to help me figure out what the right thing was.
The thunder grumbled again, closer now. The breeze picked up, tugging at my pigtails.
I jogged the last few yards to the Metro entrance.
18
ZAQ
Reaper returned like moonrise on a dark night. Soundless and coolly beautiful.
The slab shifted and she dropped to the dirt floor, the mesh shopping bag in her hand. A burst of fresh air came with her through the opening, followed by a roll of thunder like giant bones knocking together.
I sat up.
Shrugging off the backpack, she took a wrapped sandwich from the mesh bag and tossed it to me. “Hope you like ham and cheese.”
“I’m not picky.”
I unwrapped the white paper. Nestled between crusty slices of bread was a juicy slab of ham topped with creamy Gruyere cheese. I ate slowly, savoring each bite.
Meanwhile, Reaper climbed up the ladder to put the slab back in place, then crouched nearby with her own sandwich. Her hair was in pigtails, which on most women would’ve looked cute but on her just looked efficient.
She ate like she did everything—with a silent, intense focus. Like being secretive and avoiding attention was a way of life.
Did she even taste the food, or was it simply fuel to her?
I couldn’t finish my sandwich. I rewrapped the remainder and set it on the table.
Reaper glanced from the sandwich to me, a line between her brows. “That’s all you’re going to eat?”
“For now. Other than a burger in the airport and the food you brought me, it’s been four, maybe five weeks since I’d had meat. I can’t seem to eat more than a few bites at a time.”
Disbelief flickered over her face. “You didn’t eat meat in Syria?”
I clamped my back teeth together. I was tired of her assuming the worst about me. “I was in a fucking war zone. The meat went to the kids and pregnant ladies.”
“I suppose you didn’t feed either.” Her tone was heavy with doubt.
I regarded her through slit lids. “No.”
“I was there in Syria. Not the whole time, but a few days.”
“You’ve been following me for that long?”
Silence.
“Of course you have.” I answered my own question. “You’ve been planning this for a while, haven’t you? Think about it. If I’d been feeding from those poor bastards, don’t you think you’d have heard? Humans talk, you know.”
She lifted a shoulder, let it drop. “You’re a Kral.”
“Which doesn’t make me an asshole.”
She grunted.
Thunder crashed, followed by a bright flash of lightning. The rain began to fall so hard, drops spattered us through the narrow air vent.
“Looks like it’s going to be a big storm,” I said. “You made it back just in time.”
