“Kai that was a two-story window! How did you live that?!”

“Because I’m not like you.”

“Well….can you please stay with me. Please?”

“Ok but then you need to stay away. You could have died at the beach you know.”

“Paige wouldn’t have killed me someone would have stopped her.”

“I’m not talking about Paige Claire I was talking about Logan.”

“Logan?”

“She could have killed you. None of us knew what she was doing until she closed her eyes to keep them from- but anyways we thought she had more control than that.”

I looked down at my hand and then at the bite marks. I remembered Hunter’s safari scene. How Kai got the blood, Logan the soul, and Hunter the body. I remembered that his eyes were red. Maria’s storm and Logan in the woods with her bat wings and devil’s tail. How she was crying blood. How Kai said that he wasn’t like me.

“Do wolves hunt deer?” I think I had all the pieces together to make them fit.

“What type of question is that?”

“Do wolves hunt deer?”

“No. Wait I mean yes they do.”

“Wolves don’t hunt deer.”

I started walking closer to him and stared at his eyes.

“They don’t make red contacts.”

“Yes they do I told you that.”

“No they don’t! People can’t jump out of a two-story window, land on their feet, and walk away without a scratch on them.”

“Yes they can people do it all the time.”

“No one can be as fast as you are.”

“Millions of people are fast.”

“No ones skin is as cold as yours.”

“People get cold Claire!”

“Normal people can’t rip skin with their teeth.” I held up my hand as evidence. Kai backed up.

“Yes they can Claire.”

“People don’t run at the smell of blood and leave a girl bleeding in the sand!”

“People don’t like blood Claire.”

“You can’t be in the middle of the woods screaming and crying blood and know exactly where the person that can help you is. You can’t grow wings, a horn, and a tail Kai!”

He was silent and I knew I had him.

“People can’t make a storm happen.”

“Yes they can?”

“You aren’t normal Kai, you aren’t normal.”

“Yes I am Claire.”

“I’ll show you you aren’t.”

I picked up a sharp rock.

“Claire don’t do that.” He warned me.

“Dare me.”

I slashed it across my wrist and blood poured out of the fresh wound.
He put his hands up around his mouth like he had on the beach. His eyes were on my bleeding wrist and they were black now instead of red.

“Claire run.”

“I’m not going anywhere.”

“Claire run now.”

“No.”

His eyes were getting brighter then darker then back again. He darted towards me and I was on the ground. His knees were pinning my arms to the floor and his mouth was near my neck his hands were locked on my face shaking and moving to my neck then back as if to soothe me- or him. I looked down at my bleeding wrist and then his face near my neck. This was not the reaction I was looking for. I was expecting him to maybe run or something. But definitely not this. I closed my eyes getting ready for the worst. Kai opened his mouth and then he was on the floor like me.

He had his head in both his hands and was looking down. I tried to get to my feet but all I could do was back up until my back hit the front of a tree. My arms had bruises on them and my wrist was still bleeding. I started to feel the stinging pain and I felt the tears streaming down my red cheeks. I looked around in the trees and saw Logan, James, and Hunter running towards where me and Kai were. Logan and James came running towards me but Hunter went to Kai. Hunter put his hands in Kai’s and Kai let out a quick scream of pain then opened his eyes.

Then he froze and Hunter ran to me. His eyes slowly turned red and then a hot pink. Logan slowly looked at me, James, my wrist, and then finally Kai who was still frozen in place.

“You bit her Kai but you stopped me from getting a tiny sip at the beach! No one would have noticed! But this, this will be on her forever.”

James picked up my wrist then looked at the bloody rock on the wet forest floor.

“You stabbed yourself! Why would you do that of all things?!” Again his British accent surprised me.

“James he isn’t normal!”

“So you just go and stab yourself because of that?”

Kai started walking towards us but Logan crouched down in front of me and then there were low growls. Kai backed up and Logan leaned back down towards me.

“I don’t know what you are Kai but I know you aren’t normal.” I yelled at him.

James sighed and looked at Kai.

“She’s stupider than I thought.” He started laughing.

Logan stared at my wrist and then up at Kai.

“How could you attack her? How?” I heard the disappoint in her voice but also a hint of jealousy. Everything started getting blurry and I felt lightheaded then it got black like I was drowning. I couldn’t breathe that well and I was crying more. I heard Logan’s sweet voice.

“Did she just faint?!”

“She lost too much blood.” I could understand that was Hunter.

“I told her to run but she wouldn’t listen to me.” From my own experience I could tell that was Kai. He sounded fairly close so I expected that Logan let her guard down. They started whispering where I couldn’t hear and then there were some sighs most likely coming from Kai. I felt something cold grab me and then I was moving. I heard a door open and then the creaks of stairs. I heard the voice of someone I didn’t know.

“What happened and why are you carrying a girl Kai?”

“It’s fine Dakota there was just an accident in the woods. I’m taking her to my room.”

Another door opened and then I was on something soft. Cold water splashed on my face and I heard Paige’s laughter. I was able to see again and I was in a room I never saw before. The room had a case full of books and CDs probably more then any book or music store had. There was a giant TV on the wall and a couch made of black leather. A black computer with white edges and the bed I was sitting on. The bed was black and white blankets with a black headboard with golden lions engraved in it. In front of me was a lady I never saw before so she must have been Dakota. She was tall with curly jet black hair to her shoulders and golden eyes she had dark skin unlike the rest of them so I guessed that they were all adopted.
She was wearing a blue silk night dress with a matching blue robe. She looked at my wrist and I followed her stare. My wrist now had stitches in it and there was blood on the palm of my hand. She glared at me straight in the eyes then frowned.

“When someone says run then there is probably a good reason why they want you to run.”

I stared back at her trying to remember how I got here. In this room. In this house. I didn’t know where I was at, at all.

“Do you understand?”

I looked back up at her.

“Yes I do.”

I looked over at Kai.

“Where am I?”

He started laughing at me then walked closer. His eyes were a bright orange. “Your at my house in the middle of the woods. You kind of fainted and I had to carry you here.”

“What time is it?”

“About noon.”

“Noon! Debbie is home! And I left my cell phone in the woods when I got attacked.”

I said the last part slowly but Kai’s eyes were a dark purple.

“I’ll take you home Claire.”

Kai held out his hands then looked at Dakota. She looked at him sadly and shook her head no.

“What’s wrong?”

I said it quietly enough that I didn’t think they could hear me but every eye in the room was on me now. Kai shook his head and his eyes turned hot pink again. I was starting to figure out which colors were good and which weren’t and what they meant. Orange was happy. Hot pink was sad. Dark purple was angry. Red was normal. And I still didn’t understand black but I had a feeling I should stay away when they are that color. He grabbed Dakota’s hand and pulled her to the corner of the room.

Out of the corner of my eyes I could see that his were turning slowly black and I stopped breathing. He shook his head no a couple of times then walked back towards me. I backed up some and his eyes were hot pink. Sad. He picked up my hand with the stitches and rubbed it against his cheek. His eyes turned dark purple and he dropped my hand and stormed out of the room. I saw Paige run to the door after him and down the stairs. Once they left Hunter walked into the room and to the bed. Kai came back in but without Paige. He looked at Hunter then me.

“We need to talk about something Claire.” His eyes were going from hot pink to dark purple then back again.

“Can you tell me at school tomorrow? I’m tired.”

“No I have to tell you now. I won’t be at school tomorrow.” He sounded a little annoyed.

“Fine what do you need to tell me.” I could hear the anger in my voice.

He looked at Logan and she nodded her head yes. Kai laughed then nodded and left the room. Hunter and Logan easily took his spot.

“I’ll take you home if you like.” Hunter sounded like it was more of a statement then a question.

“I’ll take you home Claire. I will get you there faster than any one can.” Logan laughed at some inside joke and picked me up like I weighed nothing. She walked over to the door and Kai was in front of it with his black eyes.
“Drop her Logan sweetie.” His voice was demonic with a sick twist of niceness. I guess he was trying to trick her. And it worked. She set me down on the floor and backed up a step. Then grabbed me again and there was another growl.
“She’s not a prisoner and her mom is worried sick. You can’t trap her in here forever.” She sounded sad like she wished that I was trapped in the room.
He nodded his head and walked out of the way. Logan went down the stairs and opened the door. I fell asleep and woke up in my room. I looked at the clock reading six in the morning. I got ready for school and walked out to my Charger. When I pulled into the parking lot the Mustang was gone but in its usual place was a yellow Porsche car. I parked my car next to it and Logan came out waving to me. She walked me to my class and I sat in my usual seat whose partner was gone. I pulled out my textbook and there was a note.

Sorry about our behavior last night. You hit your head pretty hard though. It was just natural to panic a little. You should be ok but maybe some headaches and crazy fantasies. You’ll be better in a few days though and every thing will go away. Sorry about the accident in the kitchen.












©Logan