Oblivion

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Suddenly I was thrown back to that horrible night when I saw her, heard her pitiful whimpers. “You have no idea what went through my head when I saw you in that cage—when I hear how your voice still rasps when you get excited or upset. You screamed until there—”

  “I don’t need a reminder,” she snapped. “Shit.”

  She placed a hand on my arm. “One of the things I love about you is how protective you are, but it also drives me crazy. You can’t protect me forever.”

  Oh, I could so do that.

  She exhaled roughly. “I need to do this—I need to help Dawson and Beth.”

  “And Blake?” I spat out before I could stop myself.

  “What?” She stared at me. “Where did that come from?”

  “I don’t know.” I moved my arm away. “It doesn’t matter. Can—”

  “Wait. It does matter. Why would I want to help Blake after what he pulled? He killed Adam! I wanted him dead. You were the one who was, like, turning over a new leaf or something.”

  I stiffened as her words settled over me like a coarse blanket.

  “I’m sorry,” she said in a rush. “I know why you didn’t want to…do away with Blake, but I have to do this. It’ll help me get past what I caused. Like making amends or something.”

  “You don’t—”

  “I do.”

  My jaw clenched as I looked away. I knew she could handle herself. I knew she was strong, but dammit, she didn’t have to prove that to me. I couldn’t bear the idea of something happening to her. “Can you do this for me?” I paused. “Please?”

  “I can’t,” she whispered.

  Of course not. Tension crept into my shoulders. “This is stupid. You shouldn’t be doing this. All I’m going to worry about is you getting hurt.”

  “See! That’s the problem! You can’t always be worried about me getting hurt.”

  I arched a brow. “You’re always getting hurt.”

  She gaped at me. “I am not!”

  I laughed. “Yeah, try that again.”

  Kat scrambled off the bed, her cheeks flushed with anger, which thoroughly amused me despite how angry I was. “God,” she muttered. “You tick me off.”

  My smile was slow. “Well, at least I got you—”

  “Don’t even finish that statement!” She snatched up the forgotten socks and tights. Rolling them on, she hobbled on one foot. “Ugh, I hate you sometimes.”

  I sat up. “Not too long ago, you were really, really loving me.”

  “Shut up.” She moved on to the other leg. “I’m going with you guys on Sunday. That’s it. End of discussion.”

  Throwing my legs off the bed, I stood. “I don’t want you going.”

  Shimmying the tights on, she glared at me. “You don’t get to say what I can and can’t do, Daemon.” She grabbed one of her boots. “I’m not a frail, helpless heroine in need of your rescue.”

  I rolled my eyes. “This isn’t a book, Kat.”

  She yanked on the other boot. “No, really? Crap. I was hoping you skipped to the end and would tell me what happens. I actually love spoilers.” She spun around and stomped out of the room, heading downstairs and then outside.

  I followed her, damn near desperate to get her to understand where I was coming from, and the desperation fueled what I said next. “After everything that went down with Blake, you said you wouldn’t doubt me. That you would trust my decisions, but you’re doing it again. Not listening to me or using common sense. And when this blows up in your face again, what am I supposed to do then?”

  She gasped, backing up. “That’s…that was a low blow.”

  “It’s the truth.”

  Her eyes glistened, and I cursed under my breath as she appeared to force the words out. “I know all of this is coming from a good place, but I don’t need a friendly reminder of how badly I screwed up. I totally know. And I’m trying to fix that.”

  “Kat, I’m not trying to be a dick.”

  “I know, it just comes easily to you.” Her gaze flickered over my shoulder. I looked. Headlights peeked through the fog, coming up the road. Her voice was hoarse when she spoke again. “I’ve got to go. Mom’s home.”

  Kat hurried off the porch, but I wasn’t done. Moving quickly, I ended up in front of her. She stopped, eyes widening. “I hate when you do that.”

  “Think about what I said, Kat. You have nothing to prove.”

  “I don’t?”

  “No,” I said, and I’d say it a thousand times.

  But I knew screaming it from the top of Seneca Rocks wasn’t going to change how she felt. I watched her wait for her mom by their porch, and then I turned around.

  Amazing.

  Took only two minutes to turn her into boneless, happy, and sated Kat. And it only took two minutes to piss her off.

  Chapter 12

  Kat still wasn’t a fan of mine come Friday morning, and I still wasn’t thrilled with the fact that my concerns fell on deaf ears. My mood only briefly improved when I caught up to her outside of class and kissed her in a way that made sure she’d spend the bulk of the rest of the day thinking about me.

  However, having found her with Blake was not on my top one million things I cared to repeat again. I didn’t like him around her, not even in the same time zone as her, and the douche bag knew it. The fact that it was obvious I wanted to strangle him with my bare hands didn’t deter him one minute, not even from texting her about meeting Saturday night to go over the Mount Weather plans.

  Kat and I still needed to really hash out the whole Sunday business, but as I walked her to her car after school, I just wanted to do something normal, because normalcy was so underrated these days.

  We caught an afternoon matinee. I had no idea what the hell the movie was about, because I was too busy monopolizing the bucket of popcorn and Kat’s mouth. I was actually disappointed when the movie ended and we made the drive back home.

  And that disappointment multiplied when we got home. The moment I stepped out of her car, I sensed one of my own in my house, and it wasn’t Dee.

  “Kat, I think you should go home.”

  “Huh?” She closed the car door, frowning. “I thought we were going to talk? And eat ice cream—you promised ice cream.”

  I chuckled under my breath. “I know, but I have company.”

  She planted herself in front of the porch steps. “What kind of company?”

  “The Luxen kind,” I said, placing my hands on her shoulders. “Elders.”

  Her brows lifted. “And I can’t come in?”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea, and I don’t think that’s an option.”

  Kat looked over her shoulder as my front door opened and the Elder stepped out and stood in the doorway. I kept my expression blank as I eyed Ethan Smith, who for some reason was dressed like he had a job on Wall Street, three-piece suit and all.

  I had no idea how old Ethan was. Silver hair framed his temples, but the rest was midnight black, and his sharp amethyst gaze missed nothing, and definitely not where my hands were on Kat’s shoulders.

  Ethan’s smile was pleasant as Kat turned, facing him. My hand slid down the center of her back. “Ethan,” I said. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

  His gaze flickered over Kat. “I can see. Is this the girl that your brother and sister kindly informed me about?”

  I did not like the way he said “girl.”

  “Depends on what they kindly informed you of.”

  His smile didn’t waver. “That you’ve been seeing her. I was surprised. We’re practically family.”

  “You know me, Ethan, I don’t like to kiss and tell the world.” Unease bled from Kat, and I moved my thumb in slow, soothing circles along her lower back. “Kat, this is Ethan Smith. He’s like a…”

  A giant pain in my ass?

  “Godfather,” Kat offered quietly.

  Ethan lifted his chin. “Yes, like a godfather.” He focused on Kat again. “You’re not from around here, are you, Katy?
”

  “No, sir, I’m from Florida.”

  “Oh.” Dark brows rose. “Is West Virginia to your agreement?”

  She glanced at me. “Yeah, it’s nice.”

  “That’s lovely.” He came down a step, extending his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  Kat started to reach for Ethan’s hand, but I intercepted, weaving my fingers through hers. I didn’t trust Ethan; therefore I didn’t want him touching her. Lifting her hand to my lips, I pressed a kiss against the center of her palm.

  “Kat, I’ll come over in a little while.” I let go of her hand and shifted, shielding her from Ethan. “I have some catching up to do, okay?”

  “It was nice to meet you,” Kat said, her voice even.

  “Likewise,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll meet again.”

  Not if I had anything to do with it.

  Ethan watched her walk next door with a curious tilt of his head. “A human, Daemon?”

  I ignored the comment as I walked up the steps and headed inside. He was right behind me, taking his time. “What can I do for you, Ethan?”

  He followed me into the kitchen. I grabbed a water, and nope, wasn’t offering him shit. Unbuttoning his suit jacket, he sat at the kitchen table. “There’ve been many, many rumors circulating, and it appears all of them are true.”

  Leaning against the counter, I unscrewed the lid on the bottle. To be honest, I wasn’t too surprised that he’d heard them. “Is that so?”

  His smile lacked all warmth. “Dawson has returned.”

  “I’m sure Lydia told you that.”

  He cocked his head to the side. “He was re-assimilated?”

  “Uh-huh.” For some reason, I didn’t think he believed the question he was asking.

  “Luxen are only re-assimilated for breaking the rules. Many are never rereleased,” he said, tapping his fingers on the table. “What rules did Dawson break?”

  I took another drink.

  He laughed under his breath. “I’m sure I can guess what it is. The same rule you’re breaking right now?”

  “Hmmm…”

  “You’re seeing a human.”

  “Among other things,” I said with a smirk.

  That smile went down a notch. “I expected better from you.”

  Irritation pricked my skin as I took a drink of water. “That’s too bad.”

  “You know the risks involved.” His eyes flashed. “And yet you treat this as a joke.”

  “There’s not a damn single thing I find about this as funny.”

  “That’s not the message I’m getting.”

  “That’s not my problem.”

  The smile was completely gone by this point, replaced by a tense slash of a month. “Then is it Katy’s problem?”

  I stilled.

  My lungs stopped the useless task of sucking in oxygen as I stared at the Elder. “Are you threatening her?”

  “No.” He chuckled, waving a hand dismissively. “Now why would I do that?”

  Yeah. Bullshit. “I don’t know. You tell me.”

  He was quiet as he dragged his hand off the table. “I would not threaten a young girl, Daemon. That kind of classless tact is below me.”

  I snorted. “Sounds right up your alley, to be honest.”

  Ethan’s eyes narrowed. “Your actions affect those in the colony—”

  “My actions have nothing to do with those who live in the colony,” I said, so very done with this conversation. “Or with you or Lydia or any other Elder. They never have. They never will.”

  He stood, buttoning his suit. “You’re young, Daemon, and you’re at an age where you think you know everything.”

  The side of my lips kicked up. “I know a lot of stuff.”

  Ethan ignored that comment. “And you’re foolish because of your age, despite what you may believe. Do not think you’re the only Luxen male…or female to sample outside of our kind.”

  I arched a brow.

  “But all of us, including you, will choose one of your own.”

  “I hate to break it to you, Ethan, but that’s not going to happen.” I sat the bottle down, meeting his slightly widened gaze. “I’m not just ‘sampling’ the human race over here. You can outcast me.” My smile spread. “You can threaten to report me to the DOD.” Crazy for me to throw that out there, but it wasn’t like the DOD didn’t already know about Kat and me. “It’s not going to change anything.”

  His shoulders stiffened. “You so sure of that, Daemon?”

  “Positive.”

  An eerie smile crept across his face, leaving the room as cold as frostbite. “Everything changes.”

  Ethan’s visit left me feeling…shit, weird as hell. His words left a sour taste in my mouth. His visit was a warning, but what could he seriously tell the DOD that they didn’t already know?

  But his visit did have me thinking about the fact that the DOD hadn’t captured all of us yet, and what the hell were we supposed to do once we did get Beth out of Mount Weather, if she was really there?

  No way would they let that slide.

  Dawson and Beth…they would have to leave. There really were no other options, and there was a good chance all of us would have to make an exit, including Kat. God, that made me antsy as hell, because I hated that because of me, she would have to leave everything and everyone behind.

  Wasn’t that the end result?

  I felt like shit, which made the weird feeling even weirder, so a little while later, when Ash and Andrew stopped over and asked if I was hungry, I said yes. Not like I was going to say no when Dee had given me those sad eyes of hers, complaining that I never spent any time with her. And that was true. I hadn’t, not since…well, since she stopped hanging out with Kat, and Dawson had returned.

  We’d gone to Smoke Hole, but the place was packed, so we ended up ordering a pizza and heading to the Thompsons’ place.

  It had been months since I had been there, and while so much had changed since then, and Andrew and Ash were subdued compared to how they were before Adam’s death, it felt good hanging out with them.

  Up until we started talking about Sunday night. For one of the first times ever, I saw real fear oozing out of Ash when Andrew talked about taking part. She was afraid she was going to lose Andrew, too. Dee still wanted to kill Blake. It took hours to get everyone on the same page about Sunday.

  I’d texted Kat, letting her know I wouldn’t make it over to her place before she went to bed, but I didn’t get a response. Telling myself she probably had her nose stuck in a book, I tried to not let it stress me out. “Tried” being the key word, because even though if I was standing and living, so was Kat, that didn’t mean other things couldn’t happen to her.

  I got home around two in the morning. Still no response from Kat, but I sent her another text for when she got up Saturday morning. Slipping on a pair of loose, old sweats, I turned music on low and passed out the moment my head hit the pillow, and it was a dreamless, deep kind of sleep. A warm sense of awareness woke me hours later, and I smiled sleepily, recognizing the series of tremors along the back of my neck, even half asleep.

  Kat was quiet as she opened the bedroom door and crept across the room and sat on the edge of the bed. For a couple of moments, she was impossibly still, and I could feel her gaze on me.

  I rolled toward her without any warning, snaking an arm around her waist. I dragged her down onto the bed next me, burying my face