by Clark, Bekah
“Looks like she’s got you beat, Adams.”
Kyle lowered his bow and smiled at her, “So far. At least in this.”
Lyssa glanced over at him, and then blush back. Her smile was no longer smug. It was almost as if she expected him to be put off by her beating him so soundly. But, he wasn’t. He found her wholehearted participation in their contest fascinating. She was not like any other girl he had ever met. They would have been too shy to beat him even if they were better than he was at something.
He watched her hurry to the locker room and hurried himself. Changing as fast as he could, he stood outside the girl’s locker room and waited for her. She came bounding out and then stopped, eyes wide when she saw him. Cheeks flushed, she turned and headed for the door. He hurried after her.
“So, hunter?”
For a moment, she looked around with panicked eyes. Now that was odd. But then, she turned her gaze to him and relaxed. Light dawned in her eyes as though she realized he meant something else. What would the term hunter mean to her? She smiled.
“Me? A hunter? No. I couldn’t bring myself to kill a poor deer. I mean, don’t get me wrong. I eat meat. I just couldn’t kill it myself.”
“Then why are you so good with a bow?”
“I like weapons. I’d have a gun, but … my parents,” she said the phrase oddly, “won’t let me. I do, however, have a long bow and a compound bow. As well as a wakizashi, a katana, a broadsword, a bokken and a combat knife.”
Kyle’s brows shot up. Not the usual things girls collected, that was for sure. He wondered if he should be afraid or not. No, definitely not. She was…unusual and that just strengthened his resolve. He definitely wanted her to tell him she liked him.
“Should I lock up the kids?”
“What?” She glanced at him again, confused.
“You sound dangerous when you brag about your weapons.”
She laughed, it had a slight musical quality to it and Kyle found himself grinning at her, “I am dangerous, Kyle. Just not the way it sounds.”
With that cryptic remark, she trotted off to her red car. Lexa was already there and she glanced at him after taking in her sister’s face. Grinning at him for a moment, Lexa turned back to her sister as Missy and Anna joined them. Missy gave him an enthusiastic wave. Anna just glanced in his direction. She was weird too, but not the way Lyssa was.
He waved to the group of them and trotted off to his old Beamer. He always liked his car, but now he was feeling a little envious of Lyssa and her brand new TTS. Her parents were either loaded or totally indulgent of their oldest daughter. Most likely both. He was just pulling out to meet Brad and Steven when he saw Lyssa whip out quickly and take off down the road. Damn, she drove fast.
Chapter 4
Lyssa chewed her bottom lip angrily as she followed Missy’s directions. What was wrong with her? Why did she keep blushing around Kyle? He was just another boy. Just like so many that she had met in the last few years. Sure, he was sexy. But a lot of men were sexy. Men. Man. He was a boy! Sure, he was probably just shy of eighteen like her, but he was a boy nonetheless. And she had a job to do. She glanced over at Lexa who was grinning and enthusiastically talking to Missy. She glanced into the rearview mirror and saw Missy animatedly gossiping about various topics that Lyssa could care less about. She switched her cold gaze to Anna, who was staring out the window. That girl was not happy. Or, at least, she reminded Lyssa of herself, just trying to get through this whole school thing. Anna’s warm brown gaze met Lyssa’s in the mirror and there was something in that gaze. Something…But just as quickly, she looked away.
“Hey,” Missy called out, “take this left.”
“Um, that’s the Burlington Mall.”
Missy grinned, “Yep!”
Lyssa turned her gaze to Lexa before meeting Missy’s in the mirror, “I didn’t sign up for the mall, we’re supposed to be doing pizza.”
“We are! There’s a pizza place here and then we can walk, talk, and burn off calories. Come on! It’ll be fun!”
Lyssa was just about to open her mouth when Lexa said, “Please, Lyss? Please?”
All Lexa wanted was to be a normal teen. Well, an afternoon at the mall shouldn’t be that dangerous. Moreover, if they ran into Hunters, they would just run. Leave the state. Lyssa had no problem just abandoning Missy and Anna. Lexa would, but Lyssa was in charge of when they stayed… and when they fled.
“Fine. But only for an hour after we eat.”
Missy and Lexa squealed and Lyssa cringed. She never had been much for teenage fun. Since they went on the run, Lyssa’s one goal in life was to keep Lexa safe and the two of them free. If anything were to happen, Lyssa would never forgive herself. They were running because of her, after all. If she hadn’t been born, Lexa would be safely at home right now, with their parents, having a happy, normal life. So to make it up a little, she went to the mall.
Lyssa was not a mall girl.
After parking, they made their way in and got a table right away. It was more of a restaurant than just a pizza place, but that was fine. Missy and Anna sat on one side of the booth, with Lyssa across from Anna. The girl actively avoided eye contact. All her instincts riled. This girl was someone to be watched. If she turned out to be a threat, Lyssa would neutralize her.
“Lyss and I only eat pizzas with meat on them. Veggies on pizza are just gross.”
“Or we could get a cheese, Lexx.”
“Why don’t we get two? We’ll get what we want and the girls can get what they want.”
“You two are going to eat a whole pizza?” Anna asked, her voice a little surprised by the idea.
“Yeah, I’ll eat three slices, Lyss will eat five. Of course, you two have no idea how much she works out.”
Anna and Missy decided to split a small pepper, mushroom and onion while Lexa and Lyssa ordered a large with sausage, hamburger and pepperoni. Though Lexa would eat it, it was Lyssa’s favorite and she ordered it specifically to make Lyssa happy. Anna and Lyssa quietly sipped their sodas while Missy and Lexa were on a marathon of talking. Suddenly Missy turned to Lyssa and asked, “Where are you guys from?”
Anna’s eyes were instantly on Lyssa. Interesting. She smiled brightly and softly went with their current story, “We move around a lot. I don’t think we’ve ever stayed anywhere longer than two years. Our parents work for the same company and they get moved around every year or so.”
“Must be tough…”
“Who do they work for?” Anna suddenly interrupted. Lyssa’s eyes met Lexa’s. There had been humans who worked for Hunters before. But, never had one been in place prior to their getting into a town. It didn’t matter; the girls had an answer for this too.
“Phaedon Corp.”
“Never heard of them,” Missy smiled and started to chatter on. Anna stared back as Lyssa.
Lyssa smiled, “You’re like me. You don’t talk much.”
“No. I just have a hard time with people.”
“How did you and Missy meet?”
“We both moved here in the fourth grade. We became friends from there and that’s been that.”
“Anyone else?”
“What?”
Lyssa glanced at Missy and then back to Anna, “Friends. Any other friends or is it just you and Missy.”
At that moment, the pizza arrived. Maybe Anna was just weird. The trouble for Lyssa was that she had been looking out for potential problems for so long that it only seemed natural that someone who was odd had an agenda of some sort. She really had to stop doing this to herself. Not everyone in the universe was after them
Helping herself to two slices, she dug in when Anna finally answered softly, “I don’t make friends well. Missy’s all I got.”
“But she makes friends easy. That can make it hard. I understand. Lexa’s all I got.” Lyssa commented sympathetically.
“Yes, but even though you are reserved you don’t seem… socially awkward. Well, maybe around Kyle you do.”
> “That’s because I don’t know how to deal with a persistent guy. Usually a few cold comments and they stop seeking me out.”
“He must like you.”
“He’s just eye-candy,” Lyssa said dismissively, hoping to stop the conversation.
Lexa eyed her, “I don’t think you actually think that.”
Lyssa shot Lexa a look, but Missy chimed in, “Oh, Kyle’s smart. The last two years he’s had the highest GPA in our school.”
Lyssa’s left brow shot up. She knew he was intelligent, but that smart? Again, Lyssa wondered why he was interested in her, “Is he the type to pursue things just because they are a challenge?”
Anna shrugged and Missy chirped, “Maybe. I’ve never really talked to him. Having him sit with us… well you know… was really cool.”
“Well, he won’t like Lyss anymore when she takes his rank away from him.”
Missy grinned and leaned forward, “So do you help people with their homework?”
Lyssa laughed, “I help people study and learn for themselves so they can do their own homework.”
Lexa let out a laugh of her own when she saw Missy’s clear disappointment, “I’ve been trying to get her to do that for me for years. All I get is lessons instead so I can do it myself.”
Anna snickered, “Well, Missy, looks you are going to have to actually study this year.”
Melissa frowned, “Whatever. I still need help or I probably won’t pass this year.”
The server came by with the bill and Lyssa plunked down her gold card without even checking it. Missy’s eyes nearly popped out of her head, “You have a gold card?” She looked at Lexa, “Do you have one too?”
Lexa pouted and quoted the standard line, “No. Mom and dad don’t trust me not to abuse it.”
“Our allowance is pretty high,” Lyssa said softly, “but it still has a limit. Our parents know I won’t go past it. Lexa just blows through money like water.”
The truth was with one of her gifts, Lyssa could hack into anything, anywhere, at any time. Lexa was jealous but it kept them comfortable. Lyssa would create identities for the whole “family” as well as bank accounts, credit histories and accounts. Then she’d fill those. Lyssa had no real spending limit; she simply did hundreds of millions of micro transactions whenever they needed money. Lexa did have a spending limit. Because while Lyssa could get them all the money they needed, she didn’t like to do it more than necessary. These lives she created were temporary and if there was any money left over when they’d move, she’d donate it to charity. Breaking the law wasn’t something Lyssa liked doing, but money made their life on the run easier.
It also helped in making friends for Lexa, which is why Lyssa had her on a budget. Lexa had a lot going for her; she was sweet, bubbly and kind. Despite her not wanting to study, she was smart. She just lacked in confidence. After their first year, Lyssa had put her on a budget to keep her from trying to buy friends. Lunch occasionally was fine, but Lyssa was not going to allow Lexx to fall into old habits.
Missy grinned, “Man, you two have it easy.”
Lyssa and Lexa exchanged looks and smiled. Easy was a relative thing. They had money, but their life was anything but stress-free. However, what could they say? That they had been on the run for the last four years of their lives. That if they were caught, Lyssa would be killed at best. And Lexa, Lexa could be used to keep Lyssa in line and she feared what would happen to her sister if that happened.
“Yes, but our parents are practically never home we see them so rarely. If we didn’t have each other, life would be lonely at home.” There was a touch of pain in her voice that she just couldn’t hide and Anna raised both brows at her, even Missy frowned for a second.
“But hey, guilt money is good. Let’s go shop!” Lexa said to break the mood.
Lyssa finished adding in a generous tip, signed her receipt and they left. Once out into the main part of the mall, Missy and Lexa squealed and led Anna and Lyssa from one place to the next. Soon, however, Lyssa was drawn in by Lexa’s laugh and the fun she was having. She ended up buying herself a few skirts that were just a little shorter than what she usually wore and some nice pale pink shoes.
“You need to wear that stuff for Kyle,” Missy giggled.
“Yeah,” Lexa chimed, “I bet he’d think you were sexy.”
The two of them laughed and Lyss rolled her eyes, “Why would I wear any of this for him? I don’t even like him, he’s too determined!”
Melissa knocked her hip against Lyssa’s, “That’s part of the charm. Seriously, wear those skirts.”
Laughing softly, Lyssa shook her head, “I will, but not for him.”
Anna held out a top and gave Lyssa a shy smile, “This will look good with the black one and the pink heels.”
It was cute, the same pale pink as the heels with a slightly lower neckline than she usually wore, “Um… it might be too flashy for me.”
“I think it’d be pretty,” Anna said softly and looked at Lyssa with calm brown eyes.
She’d be pretty if she smiled, Lyssa thought. Smiling at her, she took the shirt with a nod, “Thank you.”
Anna nodded and went back to poking around through the racks. Watching her for a few moments, Lyssa gave a little laugh and headed to the register. As she walked by, she noticed Lexa pondering what to buy. She was close to her monthly limit already. Shaking her head, Lyssa grabbed the clothing from her.
“Hey, I’m trying to…”
“I know what you’re trying to do, let me get these for you Lexx.”
Lyssa headed to the register, but before she could move, Lexa surprise hugged her from behind, clinging tight, “Thank you! You are the bestest sista eva!”
Lyssa laughed and gave Lexa a quick kiss on the cheek, which caused Lexa to instantly back off. Grinning, Lyssa headed for the register and bought the clothing. Behind her, she could hear Missy saying softly, “Wow, she really spoils you.”
Missy didn’t need to know that Lyssa was making up for the fact that they lived their life on the run. She didn’t need to know how much it bothered Lyssa that Lexa couldn’t have a normal life. That neither of them would see their parents again. And, deep down, Lyss knew their deaths were her fault. However, she would never say that aloud.
After they dropped off the girls, Lyssa and Lexa drove in silence. Finally, Lexx broke it, “I like them. Well, I like Missy, Anna is a bit of a bitch.”
Rolling her eyes, Lyssa let out a bit of a sigh, “Really? Watch your language. And also, don’t you dare become one of those girls. I like Anna, she just… doesn’t know how to deal with people well. If she hadn’t been friends with Missy so long, I doubt they’d even be friends. Missy seems like a decent person. Some girls drop friends they consider uncool when they get into high school.”
“So we can stay, right?”
Lyssa glanced over before taking a corner fast. Once again, she had checked before they headed home. There wouldn’t be any cops or traffic, “We stay as long as no one suspects anything. And as long as the Hunters don’t come to realize we are here.”
“Will they come again? Will they really find us again?”
Lyssa answered the only way should could, “I don’t know. But if they do, we’ll handle it. It could be a few random ones that are in the area and the group won’t know about it. There is no way of knowing until I get a flash that they know where we are. But I won’t ever let anything bad happen to you, Lexa. I promise you that.”
“You always say that. But what about you, Lyss, what do you want?”
“I just want you to be safe. I just want us to not have to run anymore. But that’s not the case. All because of me.”
Lexa fell silent, what could be said to that after all?
Chapter 5
When Lexa got to school the next day, Missy came bouncing over and gave her a friendly hug. It was a relief to feel like she belonged in this school. Anna gave her a nod, it wasn’t overly friendly but it was progress. Lyss had to
ld Lexa that she thought Anna was just shy and that maybe she guarded her friendship with Missy because she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to make other friends. Maybe Lyssa’s theory was true. It didn’t matter. No matter how deadpan Anna was, Lexa was determined to be nice so she gave a huge smile and nodded back.
“Lyssa said no way in hell is she going out with Kyle today. Sorry.”
Missy laughed, “Well, I guess I saw that coming. He certainly won’t go with us.” She clutched at her heart, “My dream…my dream!”
