I fall to the ground as the blade of Thrane's knife slides across my arm, leaving a long cut but nothing life threatening. The knife clatters on the dirt beside me.
I moan from the pain of landing on my broken ankle but roll quickly away from Thrane so Gavin can get to him.
Gavin wastes no time and pounces on him before he has a chance to get up. Gavin punches Thrane in the face repeatedly, avenging me with each blow of his fists. After a few good hits, he is shoved hard away from Thrane, who jumps up from the ground and pulls the dagger from his side. Quickly, he shoots it back at Gavin and I gasp as I watch the small blade pierce the air in slow motion, headed toward Gavin's chest.
Without hesitation, I throw a small amount of energy at the knife and the air around it shifts slightly so that the dagger makes a clean slice along Gavin's shoulder.
Gavin grips his bleeding shoulder and turns to me with wide eyes, momentarily distracted. This gives Thrane the opportunity to body slam Gavin and land on top of him, gaining the upper hand. Thrane wraps his hands around Gavin's throat while he holds him down with one of his knees. Gavin is struggling to break free but Thrane's grip is too strong. I sit in my spot, unable to move and try urging Gavin to try harder. "Come on, Gavin. Don't let him win!" I shout with a dry throat.
Gavin pulls hard on Thrane's wrists but is still unable to free himself.
I dig my hands into the soil beneath me and feel my body heat up out of fear and nervous energy. I try with all that I have to push myself up off the ground, my eyes never leaving the two powerful men fighting to the death in front of me. I am shaking from the fear of losing Gavin and I say a silent prayer for his life before releasing all of the heat through my hands and into the earth. The forest floor in front of me vibrates against my hands. Slowly, mounds of dirt climb up Thrane's legs and start to pull him below the ground, inch by inch burying him alive.
Thrane releases Gavin and pushes against the dirt, trying to get it off of him with no luck. The ground continues to pull at him until I feel like I might pass out from using so much of my energy. I fall back to the ground, completely spent and struggle just to breathe in and out.
My eyes feel heavy, but I try my hardest to keep them open, not wanting to leave Gavin.
The dirt stops piling and Thrane is chest deep in the ground, punching the area around him furiously. "What did you do to me, you stupid witch?!" he screams at me, his black eyes seeming to grow impossibly darker.
Gavin walks over to me and snatches Thrane's knife off the ground. My vision starts to get foggy and everything sounds muffled as Gavin responds. "You won't ever speak to her again, demon." He bends down in front of Thrane, his demeanor calm and calculating. "Go back to hell, where you belong," he says in a quiet voice before jamming Thrane's own knife into his neck. He wiggles the knife from side to side, the noise sickening, until he completely severs Thrane's head from his half-buried body.
I feel sick again and start to see spots in front of my eyes. I close them, wanting to escape the gruesome scene in front of me, but more because I can't hold them open any longer.
Warm arms scoop me up and I am held against a hard chest, feeling safer than I have in a long time. Gavin's steps are smooth as he carries me away from everything. "I've got you. Just rest now, okay?" he whispers in my ear, his warm breath tickling me.
His lips brush across my forehead and I sigh from the wonderful electricity charging my dull senses and sending me into a comfortable sleep.
Chapter 11
I am woken up by Gavin's gentle voice. "You need some water, Aella. Please open your mouth and drink for me."
I try to open my eyes, but my body refuses to cooperate. I squeeze Gavin tighter against me to try and pull myself up, but I just end up holding him. I feel a warm finger glide along my bottom lip and my mouth opens instinctively. Cold water pours over my dry lips and I welcome it by drinking every last drop.
"Thank you," Gavin whispers to me and I am able to open my eyes enough to see his face only inches from mine. His eyes are closed tight as if he is in some sort of pain. I scan what I can see of him and don't see any visible injuries.
I blink against the new daylight and realize that I must've been asleep for a few hours if the sun is already rising.
My eyelids close again on their own and I drift back to sleep, too exhausted to stay awake.
***
When I am able to open my eyes again, it is midday, though the large trees block the sun rays from reaching my skin. I am laying on a thin blanket on the forest floor, but my head is resting on something warm.
I can hear Gavin's heart beating at a slow and steady rhythm under my head, so I push myself up as gently as I can, trying not to wake him. I watch his handsome face as he sleeps, and I lightly touch the rapidly growing fuzz on his strong chin.
I sit up and run dirty fingers through my hair, fighting against the impossible tangles but ultimately failing. I look over myself and notice that my cut arm is bandaged in gauze and tape, and my ankle has been wrapped tightly in an ace bandage. I can't help but smile at the thought of Gavin taking care of me as I slept, while also feeling a little mortified that he has had to see me in this condition.
Gavin stirs in his spot, so I turn back to him while he pushes himself up on his elbows next to me. He rubs his sleepy eyes and studies my face. My goodness, he is so cute.
His expression shows pain as he watches me.
Suddenly, I feel worried again. "Are you hurt?" I croak out, my voice barely above a whisper.
Gavin searches my eyes for a moment. A small smile tugs at the corners of his mouth but not enough to produce a dimple. "I'm not hurt. I heal a little faster than humans, so I will be perfectly fine."
"Why do you look like you're in pain then?" I ask.
"It physically hurts me to see you so broken." He sits all the way up and traces my bruised cheek with the back of his hand. "Every time I look at your cheek where that monster must've hit you, I curse myself for not being there to prevent it."
I take his hand in mine, not wanting him to focus on my ugly wounds. "Everything that happened doesn’t matter anymore. You saved me, Gavin...again." I force a small smile, showing him that I will be fine too.
He shakes his head at me and points a finger in my direction. "That was you, super star. You're really the one who saved me. First, with redirecting the knife and then creating that crazy dirt worm hole." He looks at me like I'm some enigma. "How did you do that stuff? And how did you even escape him in the first place?"
I shrug. "I actually didn't try to move the dirt. That was a pretty big surprise for us both. I guess I was just really scared that he was going to kill you and my Seer body kind of took over." I sigh, still feeling like it was all a dream. "I did try to use wind to move the knife though. I knew that I could manipulate air because that's how I escaped."
"What did you do? Where did he even take you?" Gavin asks.
"He took me to this old beautiful house in the woods. I don't know where it is or how we even got there in the first place." I look down at the ground, not wanting to tell him why I didn't know.
"What do you mean? How did you not know?" His voice is persistent. He wants answers.
I tuck my hair behind my ear. "He uh...kind of drugged me. He stuck some nasty pill in my mouth that made me really dizzy and drowsy." I look up at him and his face is murderous.
Gavin tightens his fists and closes his eyes but remains silent.
I give him an apologetic look and continue talking. I tell Gavin everything that has happened since I was taken. He hangs his head and sighs when I tell him that I don’t think Thrane touched me while I slept. He gets angrier as I talk though, especially when I tell him about Thrane busting my ankle, but aside from a few angry huffs, he stays quiet and lets me tell my story.
His golden eyes grow wide at my relay of busting the window and then scaling the brick wall. When I tell him how I could feel a tugging from inside my chest I stop, realizing that we haven't exac
tly talked about our connection before. "I don't really know what that was about, but I just knew I had to go that way. That I would find home," I finish, feeling shy all of a sudden.
Gavin watches me fiddle with my fingers and doesn't speak for a little while. I am grateful that he doesn't bring up the awkward situation that we are in. He reaches behind him and into a backpack that I didn't notice before. He pulls out a water bottle and hands it to me, along with a granola bar. My stomach growls loudly at the sight of food.
"Thank you," I say as I take the items from him. "I don't know how long it has been since I've actually eaten something." I take a long drink from the water bottle.
Gavin stares down at my hurt ankle before he whispers something that I can't make out.
"What?" I ask.
"Three days," he says a little louder this time. He still isn't looking at me.
I stop chewing my granola bar. "What are you talking about?" I ask, not understanding what he is saying to me.
He looks up at my confused eyes and sighs. "You haven't eaten anything in three days." He looks pained again. “Assuming the creep didn’t feed you.”
"That's impossible," I say, thinking about everything that has happened. "That would mean that I would've been passed out for a day and a half from Thrane's drug." I feel like I am just barely waking up from the nightmare.
He nods. "I was looking for you for over two days before I found you limping through the woods. And it's been almost another day since then. You have been in and out of consciousness for a while. I was getting pretty worried, so this morning I had to practically force you to drink some water."
"I'm so sorry, Gavin." I slouch, feeling so drained, even after the remarkable amount of sleep I've had in the past few days. "I shouldn't have run off on my own like that. I knew what kind of trouble I was in and I acted like a child."
He grabs my chin, turning my head so that I am forced to look up at him. We lock eyes for a moment, and I can see so much worry in him. "Don't you apologize to me. All of this was done to you and you did everything right. You didn't ask for any of it and I'm the one who is so sorry that this is your experience with my world." His voice is low as he speaks to me. "You are an incredible warrior, Aella."
I feel like I could cry again at his sweet words. I have felt so miserable and weak but somehow when he speaks to me like this and looks deep into my eyes, I feel like I could do or be anything. "Your world isn't all bad. I know that." I whisper back to him, unable to find my full voice.
"Good, because you’re perfect for it," he says, his eyes falling to my parted lips. "I’ve never come across anything like you, before."
My heart races as I watch him lick his perfect lips. His hand moves from under my chin and glides softly along my jaw to the back of my neck. I shiver from the electricity that follows his touch.
Gavin's eyes flick back to mine and I watch as they darken slightly. He scoots his body closer to mine and leans in close to me, his hand still gripping the back of my neck. I want so badly to feel his lips on mine, but my mind stops me.
Gavin closes his eyes and touches his nose to mine. I close my eyes as well but breathe out my next words like a whisper. "Please don't kiss me."
Gavin's entire body stills, and he pulls back from me. His eyes open again and search mine for answers, but he doesn't take his hand from my hair. "Why?" He asks in a sad voice.
I sigh and close my eyes again, feeling like there is a large spotlight on me. "Because." I say but know that I need to say more. I don't want to have any regrets. "Gavin, if you kiss me now, I will never be able to stop loving you.” I rush the words out, immediately wanting to take them back but knowing I can't.
Gavin is so quiet that I have to open my eyes to be sure he didn’t disappear. He is watching me, looking confused but with a slight lift to the corner of his mouth.
"You love me?" He asks in a quiet voice.
I nod, feeling hot tears start to come. "I'm so sorry, Gavin. I tried not to, but I just feel so..."
Gavin groans deep in his chest and pulls me hard against him, our lips connecting perfectly. It takes me a half a second to realize that he is kissing me, but when I do, my eyes close and I am falling. My first taste of Gavin's soft lips is intoxicating. They brush against mine gently, in a slow rhythm.
Gavin separates us for a moment, breathing heavily. He takes his hand and rubs his thumb along my bottom lip. I look up into his eyes and see flames in the golden irises.
He whispers against my mouth. "You have blown into my life and spun me around so many times, completely capturing and captivating me. I am so in love with you, Aella Lundon. You are my magnificent whirlwind."
He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me onto his lap and up against his warm body. His lips find mine again and I smile against his kiss. He brushes my lips softly with his, but the kiss soon turns fast and needy, both of our hearts needing to be healed from the events of the past three days.
My hands slide up his strong arms and tangle in his messy hair. I pull him closer to me, needing more. He tugs gently on my hair at the base of my neck, causing my head to tilt back, giving him better access to my mouth. A quiet gasp escapes me, and I find it difficult to breathe.
I pull away from him slightly, so I can take a much-needed breath. Gavin is breathing heavily along with me and there is a beautiful smile gracing his perfect lips.
He rubs his hand up and down along my back, sending warm energy into me. My lips are buzzing from the electricity that just passed between us. "Wow," I say and instantly feel like an idiot.
Gavin chuckles and kisses me lightly on the tip of my nose, causing a heat to spread across my face. "Wow, is absolutely right," he says, his adorable dimple finally appearing in his cheek.
I lay my head against Gavin's chest and cuddle against him, unable to stop my own goofy smile from emerging.
***
Cuddling into Gavin while straddling his hips is about the best feeling I could imagine, other than when he kisses me of course. We have been holding one another for a few minutes but my mind runs wild with questions, so I finally speak up.
"When did you start loving me, exactly?" I ask him.
Gavin holds me tightly to him and is quiet for a moment, just leaving the sounds of the woods surrounding us. "That day that Thrane attacked you in the woods outside my mother's house." I lean back and look up at him, surprised.
"Why then?" I ask, shocked that he has felt this way for so long.
He shrugs, suddenly seeming shy which just makes me want to kiss him again. "When I heard you whisper my name, your voice sounded so scared. My heart broke instantly, and I just knew that I needed to see you and make sure you were okay. It's then that I realized I couldn't survive if anything ever happened to you." He looks into my eyes and I know that he is being sincere.
I brush my fingers across his cheek, wanting to reassure him that I'm here and okay. He leans into my hand with his eyes closed.
"How have you known that you loved me all this time and been able to stay away so easily?" I ask.
Gavin scoffs, his eyebrows shooting up. "Easily?" he asks way too loudly. "That was the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life! I knew that I wanted to be with you and also that I needed to stay away. I was completely miserable."
I laugh at his outburst. "Why didn't you just tell me then?"
He absently traces the lines on the palm of my hand. "I knew how difficult it had to be for you, coming into this whole world and practically being forced to participate. I knew you were scared, and I didn't want to scare you more.” He stares down at our linked hands, avoiding my eyes. "Lex wanted me to tell you but I was just so afraid you wouldn't choose me, especially after I heard that you found out about Intendeds. Sophia said you were pretty freaked out and you didn't look happy about it, so I thought that meant you made your decision."
"It's not a decision, Gavin," I say, drawing his attention back to me. "I've known that I wanted you from the moment you
crashed into me in class that first day. I was only so upset at finding out about our connection because I thought you had been avoiding me because you didn't want to choose me ." I laugh softly. "I guess we were both being stupid."
Gavin leans in and brushes his lips softly against mine, proving to me that he is here, and he is mine now.
"If I have my way, you will be so sick of me that you'll wish you never told me that you loved me," he whispers against my eager and smiling lips.
I smile. "Impossible." I say before I tangle my fingers in his thick hair and pull his mouth back against mine, getting lost in him as all of my fears and pain float away.
Chapter 12
Gavin keeps telling me that we are close to where he left the car, but I’m seriously doubting his definition of the word. 'Close' to Gavin has been hours of hiking through a very thick forest. I am about to complain again like a little kid who has to pee, when I see his mother's red Tahoe parked across a small clearing.
I sigh loudly, grateful that we have finally made it. "Thank the heavens!" I shout, ready to collapse.
Gavin laughs and turns back to me. He takes my walking stick from me and tosses it into the weeds. He bends down and sweeps me up, cradling me in his arms. I giggle and rest my head against his shoulder.
"All right, complainer, I'll carry you the rest of the way.” He grins at me.
“My hero!” I snuggle into his chest.
I think about how he found me out in the middle of nowhere. "How did you even know where to look when you realized I was gone?" I ask, wanting to hear his side of the story.
He shifts me higher in his arms. "When I followed you into the woods by my house, I could feel you nearby, and then the tug on my heart became extraordinarily strong, like you were moving away from me too fast. I guess that's when Thrane took you. I panicked because I knew that you couldn't have run that fast yet."
Gavin sets me down when we reach the vehicle and grabs the keys from his backpack, unlocking the car with the push of a button. He helps me into the passenger’s side and then blurs to his side. I don't know if I'll ever get used to that .
Intended Series Collection: Books 1-6 Page 17
