I stumble to the exit, but halfway there, I feel someone grabbing me again. As though through a haze, I see a pair of dark eyes shooting over me.
“Are you okay?”
The voice is dark and heavy, but sounds familiar. I blink to rid myself of my blurry vision and only then see who is gripping my shoulders. “Yeah,” I pant, “yeah, I’m okay.”
“Wait in the lobby!”
“No!” I shout, looking into his angry smoldering eyes. I grab his arm, but he shakes it off and walks away from me.
Even before Julien manages to get to his feet, he is being lifted and thrown over the mahogany bar top without mercy. Bottles crash to the floor, glass shatters, and the liquor is pouring out across the floor. In seconds the bar smells like a brewery.
Julien scrambles to his feet and looks at his aggressor. “Your little girlfriend here begged me for some real…”
Sam thrusts an elbow against Julien’s nose and I can hear a cracking sound. Blood gushes from his nose as he staggers backwards.
I drop to my knees in the doorway and cover my mouth to hold back a scream. I expect, desperately hope, that Julien will lose consciousness, but he hangs in there, and the look in his eyes is not the look of a man planning on giving up any time soon. He is probably so numbed by the alcohol that he barely feels pain.
“You fucking bastard,” Julien curses. Seething with anger, Julien lashes out, but Sam simply grabs him by the arm and twists it into an impossible angle. My God, he’s going to break Julien’s arm…
“Sam, stop!” I say, half crying. “He gets it, it’s over.”
As Sam is distracted and looks in my direction, Julien frees himself from Sam’s grip and tries to tackle him as though he was playing a game of football. He hits Sam’s shoulder, but when he doesn’t succeed in bringing him to the ground, he grabs Sam by his groin, pulling him down.
“You want to play this dirty, big guy?” Sam hisses through his teeth. “Come on, then. Let’s see how tough you really are when you’re not attacking a woman.” Sam gets up and head-butts Julien.
With a loud cry Julien stumbles around and tries to make it to the door, but in one smooth motion, Sam swings his leg around and executes a kick to Julien’s chest, dropping him to the floor immediately. “I wasn’t finished,” Sam growls and drives his knee into Julien’s abdomen.
Julien cries out again, and in desperation I grab my head. I have witnessed Sam’s almost supernatural strength and I am terrified that he will kill Julien if he keeps on like this. Frantically, I search for the right words to reach Sam. “Please, let him go,” I sob, begging. “He is not worth it.”
After a slight hesitation, Sam removes his knee. He picks my attacker up off the ground and smashes him onto the pool table. A deep moan echoes through the barroom, but Julien still doesn’t stay down. He pushes himself up—clearly dazed—and grabs one of the balls. With immense speed, it’s heading straight for Sam’s head, and this time I can’t hold back a scream. Just when I think the ball will smash his face, Sam brings his hand in front of his head and his fingers close around the ball. I can tell he is deliberating, and I let out a cry of dismay. If Sam throws that ball, I know Julien will be hurt fatally.
“No, don’t…” I say in a low voice.
His eyes flash in my direction, and then—with great control, as if it takes all his strength—he places the ball on the table next to him. Julien tries to crawl off the table, but doesn’t stand a chance in getting past Sam, who is already keeping him pressed against the green cloth.
“She just saved your life,” he says in a dangerously low voice. “But make no mistake, if you ever touch her again, look at her, or if you so much as just breathe her name, I’ll come for you. I will hunt you down, and then I want to feel every single one of your bones break in my hands. That’s two hundred and six to be exact and I assure you that I know where to find them all.”
I listen in terror to Sam’s eerily calm voice. He yanks Renee’s boyfriend—or whatever’s left of him—up, bringing his face up to a few inches in front of his.
“I hope you remember that for the rest of your sorry life, even after your brain is damaged by alcohol and your organs ruined by steroids.”
Sam releases him with a push. Still beside himself with rage, he slams his hand against the lamp that hangs over the table and the light flashes through the room. Then he takes a few steps back, folds his arms across his chest and points toward the door with a jerk of his head. “Get lost!”
Julien pushes himself to his feet and then notices all the blood on his white dress shirt. He grabs his nose. “You fucking broke my nose.”
Sam watches him coolly. “Lucky you. Now get the fuck out of here before I break your eye socket as well.”
Julien stumbles to the door, fiddling with his zipper. I am still on the floor and get on my feet to let him pass. I am relieved that he’s still breathing after Sam’s rage, but I hate him. I don’t feel an ounce of fear anymore, but the disgust is surging back up.
“And my sister thinks you’re some sort of hero… You’re just a pathetic loser. I’ll give her the message.” I clear my throat and spit right in his face.
Saliva is dripping off his broken nose and he sends me a vicious stare. “You crazy bitch!” he growls and limps off.
Julien hasn’t even left the bar or Sam pulls me onto a chair and crouches in front of me. He cups my face in his hands. His eyes are filled with deep concern and it’s hard to look at them after everything that’s happened tonight. It’s hard because something tells me it will be the last time.
“What did he do to you?”
“It’s all right, Sam. It really is.”
Carefully, he turns my face and softly touches my cheekbone with his fingertips. I hiss.
“Sorry. Did he hit you?”
“Yes.”
“Are you seeing double or do you have a blurred vision?”
“I have seen many strange things tonight, but diplopia isn’t one of them.”
“Just a simple yes or no will do.”
“No.”
“Have you been unconscious?”
“I remember that I fell to the ground, but not how I ended up against the wall.”
“Headache?”
“Yes.”
“What’s my dog’s name?”
I pull a face. “Storm and it’s not a dog and there’s nothing wrong with my memory.”
“I’ll be the judge of that. Where did you live before you moved down here?”
“Somewhere else.”
“Can you be more specific?”
“Yes,” I say uncooperatively.
“Then please do.”
“I lived in the Netherlands and spent my summers on the Wadden. Amazing sunrises, lighthouse, cute seals … I told you all about it earlier tonight, maybe you remember, out on the beach?”
“Cut the sarcasm. When is your birthday?”
“I really do know when my own birthday is, Sam. I would like to go to sleep now.” I want to get up, but he gently pushes me back into my seat.
“You can go to sleep in a few moments, first your birthday.”
“July fifth.”
“Can you tell me the square root of 576?”
“No, I can’t.”
Finally Sam smiles. “Perfect. Is there anything else I should know?”
“I don’t think so.”
His eyes soften. “I mean…” I catch a slight hesitation in his voice and he nervously strokes his hair. “Do you want to go to the hospital? Talk to a female doctor, if you find that easier? We could go right now. My car is outside.”
Horrified, I look at him when I realize what he is trying to say. “Oh, God, no! A shower to wash off that nasty smell is enough.”
In a state of anguish, Sam pushes himself to his feet and strides up to th
e bar counter. I hear him search through cabinets and turn on the tap. He comes back with a wet dish towel and a glass of water.
“Do you think I’ll live, Dr. Laurens?”
I detect a half-smile on his lips.
“You have no fractures and still the same stubborn character. You’ll be okay. You can put a cold wet towel on your eye tonight to stop the swelling, and if it’s really hurting, you can take a painkiller. Don’t be shocked when you look in the mirror tomorrow—the bruise will turn purple.”
“Shouldn’t I be woken up every hour, since I was unconscious?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Trust me, you can go to sleep without worries. You won’t die in your sleep.”
“Good to hear.” Suddenly, I feel a burning and throbbing sensation around my eye. “Where on earth can I find a painkiller at this hour?”
Sam hands me the towel and looks at me blankly. “I guess in the same place as you found those tranquillizers.”
“You’re hilarious, really,” I say and press the cold towel against my eye.
Sam places the water next to me. We look just great together in our still wet clothes, he in his shirt smeared with blood—which has to be Julien’s, because I don’t believe he himself suffered even a scratch—and me with my swollen face in the middle of broken bottles, alcohol vapors and a broken relationship. Oh no, that’s right, he doesn’t do relationships.
Sam kicks the leg of a chair, turning it, and he sits down. His elbows rest on his thighs. Suddenly, he rolls his eyes and rubs his forehead. He looks a lot worse for the wear.
“Are you okay?” Now I am the one who is worried.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s just a headache.”
I think of the way Julien forced Sam to the ground by grabbing him in the groin. “Did… did Julien hurt you?”
One side of Sam’s mouth curves up as if I just cracked a joke. “I’ve been through worse.” I sigh and Sam looks at me tormented. “If I hadn’t been so distracted earlier, this wouldn’t have happened, Laurel. That’s why I need to stay away from you. I’m not alert when I’m with you, I don’t see things clearly.”
I snort. “Alert? How could you have possibly known what was going on in here?” I frown. “Why did you come inside?”
He shrugs his shoulders. “I heard you scream.”
“You heard me scream… Of course you did.”
“Don’t overthink it, Laurel.”
“Is that what you think I’m doing? Overthinking it?”
“I don’t know what you think.”
“That’ll be a first,” I mutter. “Don’t you have a bag to pack?”
“Yes.” Sam gets up and kicks a bottle. “What do we do with all of this mess?”
I look at all the broken glass on the floor. “Nothing tonight. I’ll close up in here and clean up first thing tomorrow morning.”
Sam cocks his head. “Will you be okay?”
“How did you know I was in trouble?”
“I told you I heard you.”
“Is that really it?”
He looks at me with a straight face. “Don’t.”
“There we go again…”
“What else do you want from me?” he shouts with a cracking voice.
“The truth!” I shout back and get up from the chair. “I saw how you picked Julien up again and again, as if you were lifting twenty pounds instead of two hundred. That guy plays football! And the way you just carried me right off the beach, and that act you pulled during skiing… And sometimes I think you can read my mind. You are already giving me the answer before I even asked the question. I want to know who you are. There’s something inside you, I don’t know… that fanaticism in your eyes sometimes, it scares me.”
Sam lays his hand on his chest and laughs incredulously. “I scare you? Are you hearing yourself right now? You were just attacked and assaulted by your sister’s boyfriend and you are afraid of me?”
“I’ll never forget what you did for me tonight, and all those other times too. But…” I sigh. “At the beach you said it was too complicated for me to understand.” Be careful what you wish for. “Why don’t you try me?”
Sam clutches his head and kicks a chair with enough force that it smashes against the wall. The towel drops out of my hand and I take two steps back. My eyes are looking for the exit.
“Stay where you are!” he commands.
I stiffen.
“Dammit, Laurel, I’m not going to hurt you.”
Uncertain, I look up at him.
“All right. If you want me to tell you everything, then I will. I apologize in advance if you don’t like the answers.”
Completely overwhelmed, I stare at him and brace myself for a shocking confession.
“Yes, I come from an old and powerful family. And yeah, I’m strong and fast. I’m on edge day and night. I often know what someone wants to know before they ask, and sometimes I feel things before they happen, like tonight.” He pauses and pants heavily. “A life is chosen for me, so I can’t do the things I might have preferred to do, like making music. Everything was put in motion on the day I was born, and I have no say in the matter. And yes, I have to marry someone against my will.” His chest is heaving, and he swallows hard. “I must keep away from you, Laurel. We can’t be together.”
We stand in silence. I have taken in every word he has said, sucked it in as oxygen, and come to the conclusion that I still know nothing—nothing other than the fact that the guy standing in front of me is not ordinary, but I knew that already. A powerful family, his immense strength… it still doesn’t make sense to me, I just can’t connect the dots.
“I don’t want things to end between us,” Sam says with a pained look on his face, “but it has to be done.”
I look down because I can’t bear to look up in his beautiful, but pained, face any longer.
“Do it, Laurel!” he says sharply. “Tell me I have to stay away from you, that you don’t want to see me anymore, and I promise you I’ll stay away.”
“No.” I stand in front of him. I lay my hand against the side of his face. His skin feels hot, feverish. “No, you won’t hear me say that. You saved me tonight, Sam. I don’t want you to stay away from me. I may not understand your background and the danger, but I don’t care, I want to get to know you. Please, don’t make me say it.”
His arm shoots up and I’m clamped against his body. “Ah, baby…” The next moment, his lips are firmly pressed on my forehead. “I can’t be in your world, Laurel,” he murmurs against my skin.
“Why does that sound like a goodbye?” I whisper.
Instead of an answer, Sam releases me. He picks up the cue stick from the floor and smashes it back into the basket. The crunching glass under the soles of his shoes is the last thing I hear as he walks away.
With trembling fingers, I rub my arms. It seems like Sam took all the heat with him. And as I stand there, lost in the rubble, I make three promises to myself. The first is that I will find out who or what Sam is, the second is that whoever or whatever he is will make no difference, and the last, but certainly not the least, is that I will not just give up on him—no matter how dangerous that might turn out to be.
21
sampson
At the foot of Olympus, I make a short stop and flip Storm’s favorite snack onto the ground. He takes off growling. I take a bottle of water from my backpack and squat by a mountain stream. I open a message from Olivia.
Where the hell are you? You missed the meeting and now even the hecatomb is being held up because of you! You’re disgracing us. Pick up your phone! 12:17
With a curse, I shove the phone in my back pocket and put the bottle to my lips. If the dirt roads are in reasonable condition, I think I can be up there i
n two hours. The bulls will have to wait. Absentmindedly, I watch Storm tearing into the muscles and organs of the marmot. I have to focus on the Games this upcoming week—the combat sports we’re allowed to compete in for the first time. They might just be games to honor the gods for the normal athletes, but for us, there’s so much more at stake. It’s a chance to prove ourselves to the Keepers, to show that we’re worthy of our community, worthy of our existence and our parentage, but my head is messed up, and I’m far from focused. If I don’t find a way to get my head back in the game, I’ll risk losing and then I can kiss my privileges goodbye.
With a heavy sigh, I take another swig and think of Laurel, who has awakened a primal instinct deep inside of me—a survival instinct, not for myself, but for her. Every single time she is near me, my senses are on high alert and a natural urge to protect her takes over. I have no idea why or where this comes from, only that in my pathetic attempts to find out—to get to know her better—I have not only jeopardized her life, but also antagonized the Keepers. And gotten myself into a forced marriage with Philene to keep me in line.
Hanging out with mortals is permitted to a limited extent, and apparently I have crossed a line, although I can still face myself in the mirror. Last night had the potential of getting out of hand, but I came to my senses in time. And in the meantime, I still don’t know if Laurel is truly in any danger. After the attack last night, the urge to protect her has not diminished, but it’s time to let her go. She has already seen and heard more than is good for her. I wonder who has leaked our being together to the Keepers. The lightning bolt last night was just too close to be a coincidence. Just like the accident with the chairlift. Someone is watching me and is trying to get me in trouble with the Keepers.
I guzzle what’s left of the water and try to shake off the fear of spending a few more hours alone with my thoughts. Not much frightens me, except thinking about Laurel. She has made my carefree life damn complicated lately, and the way she looks at me with those cool blue eyes scares the hell out of me.
I get to my feet with a curse and walk up to the car. “Storm, get your butt over here!”
House of Guardians Page 20
