Maybe Fate: A Novel (New Adult Paranormal Romance) (19 page)

It
all felt like information sitting just outside my reach.

“
Please,
Miss Everette,” my English teacher gestured towards my spot by
the window, “have a seat so we can begin.”

If
I leave, maybe it will draw him away. Maybe that's best, especially
since he's got to be here for me.

“
Miss
Everette?”

Taking
a step backwards, then another, I threw a fast glance at the twaelin
in the back of the class. “Sorry, Mr. Birch. I think—I
think I need to run, sorry. Really sorry.”

“
Wait,
Miss Everette!” He called out to me, but I was already out the
door, power-walking down the hall. Every step I took felt heavy, my
heels slamming down. The stampeding pattern, quicker and quicker,
matched my heart beat.

What
do I do, what do I do?

Briefly,
I wished Nethiun was beside me. He'd protected me before, couldn't I
rely on him to do so again?

Darting
around a corner, I finally pushed out into the October air. The sky
was dark, threatening rain.

Hugging
my jacket close, I kept throwing uneasy glances over my shoulder, my
pace taking me back towards my dorm.

Cutting
through the gap between the main building and the library, I felt a
flutter of excitement. The dorms represented safety to me, a place
where I could hide... hide, and...

The
world shimmered beside me, announcing what I'd come to learn as the
appearance of a twaelin. Any hope that it was Nethiun was crushed.

Firm,
a hand curled around my upper arm, stopping me in mid-stride.
So
fast,
I
thought in a daze, amazed at how he'd come after me instantly.

Thinking
about my delusion of being safe in my dorm filled me with shame. How
could I have dreamed I'd be any safer there, when these creatures
could apparently move through the very air like it was nothing?

“
You
left awfully fast,” he mused, turning me around with an easy
flex of his strength. I didn't need to know how powerful he was. If
I hadn't had a clue what he was capable of doing, I would still have
felt
it.

Felt
it in his casual stance, the cocky way he smiled down at me. The
very aura that surrounded him, it radiated with energy.
Am
I just getting better at sensing it, now that I know what I'm
looking for? Or is he broadcasting it because of... anticipation?

Looking
up at Ethlyn, at the stylish peacoat he wore, the thick white scarf,
I felt... angry.

“
Why
dress like that, if you aren't going to bother pretending to be
human around me?” I asked, gritting my teeth against my
warring waves of fear and frustration.

Ethlyn
blinked, thin brows lowering slowly. “That's an odd thing to
ask, shouldn't it be something about asking me to not hurt you?”

“
Do
people normally beg you not to harm them?” Narrowing my eyes,
I dared to shoot a look around.
Could
I scream for help? Would that even matter?

Flooding
with resentment over how easily he'd caught me, how helpless I felt,
I gave my arm a yank. Amazingly, he let me go; so suddenly that I
stumbled to keep myself from falling. “I—what?”

Lifting
his hands, Ethlyn looked insulted. “Just relax, let me try to
rephrase myself. I didn't
want
you to think I'd hurt you, of course not. That's just... well, I did
pop out of the air next to you, that would normally scare most
people.”

Rubbing
my skin where he'd gripped me, I didn't stifle the distaste in my
voice. “Guess I've gotten sort of used to that, then.
Nethiun's already told me all about you guys. Sorry to let you
down.”
Dammit,
I don't know what to do, where the hell IS Nethiun?

Wrinkling
his nose, Ethlyn folded his arms with an irritatingly handsome pout.
“Nethiun, yeah. I'm sure he's filled your head with some
wonderful lies.”

That
made me pause. “Lies? What do you mean?”

Snorting,
he shrugged his shoulders until the sharp edges of his coat brushed
his ears. “Exactly what I said. Nethiun is a terrible little
liar who clearly has an agenda, and I'm sure he's done his best
sidling up to you and pretending to be very nice. Especially,”
he whispered, smirking tightly at me, “if last night was any
indication.”

Dropping
my jaw, my hands balled at my sides indignantly. “Why the hell
would I believe
you
over him? What makes the word of my attempted murderer more
trustworthy?”

Slowly,
his gold eyes squinted at me. I could tell I'd offended him. “I
didn't try to murder you! If Nethiun hadn't swooped in, I would have
saved you in time.”

“
You
tried to drop a sign on me. That's hard to just explain away,”
I snapped.

Bristling,
he stood up to his full height. Towering over me, Ethlyn stepped
forward; once, poignant. “For someone who thinks they're
talking to a murderer, you've got some attitude.”

“
I'm
not scared of you.” I wished my voice was stronger.

“
You
put on a good act, but I can feel your fear wafting off in chunks.”

“
Shut
up,” I mumbled, wishing I could nonchalantly wipe the
perspiration from my face. “If you're not here to kill me,
then tell me what you want. I'm tired of being stalked by you and
your friends.”

Scoffing,
he turned partially away. “Nethiun isn't my friend. He's
trash, I want nothing to do with him. And,” he went on,
glancing back to me, “neither should you. He's bad news.”

“
You
still haven't told me anything useful,” I muttered.
I
already know Nethiun is bad news. Kind of, anyway.

I
didn't have time to dwell on that.

Shaking
his head, he scrubbed at his hair in exasperation. “Don't you
get it? I'm trying to help you!”

“
Are
you?” I asked, my temper growing sour. “You tried to
drop
a sign on me!”

“
I
was confirming for someone else that Nethiun was following you!”

“
Great!
That makes it better!”

“
I
already said I would have saved—”

Pushing
on, yelling over him, I wasn't listening. My confidence was growing,
I felt sure that I was in no danger. Ethlyn could easily kill me,
he'd had no trouble tracking me down. It was clear something was
stopping him.

Something
that was stopping all of them.

“
You're
also tricking my friend, which is extremely sick of you!”

Astonishment
twisted his features. “That... that's not...”

His
own surprise struck me silent, tamped down my rising rage until it
became nothing but slow burning uncertainty. “Is it something
else you were 'instructed' to do by the person above you? Which is
it, the King, the Queen? Or the Duke?” I asked, thinking about
the seals in the book.

He
reached out, like he was about to grab me. At the last second, he
halted, hands floating in the air uselessly. “You know about
them? How, did Nethiun...? No, even
he
wouldn't go so far as to tell you that.”

Not
entirely true,
I
thought silently.
He
did sort of give me the groundwork, he just never stated a title or
any names.

Inhaling
deeply, I looked Ethlyn over, considering what he'd said so far.
“You really want me to think you're on my side? Then let's try
this. Tell me who you answer to, and what they want with me.”

Kicking
at the ground, the way a scolded child might, he grunted. “I
can't tell you what they want with you, because I don't know yet,
myself.”

Rubbing
at my cheeks, I started to twist away. “So, you're no better
than Nethiun.”

“
No,
wait,” he said quickly, reaching out in a strangely appeasing
way. He acted nothing like the calm, asserted person I'd seen last
night, nor the frightening beast that had glared down at me while
fighting Nethiun. His reactions confused me, but... they were enough
to pull me back.

Sighing,
he met my eyes with his serious golden eyes. “Let me finish.
All I know, is that whatever Nethiun is up to, it's bad for you. His
Mistress is having him follow you, and I promise, whatever she is up
to is not good for you.”

His...
Mistress?

Does
that mean, Nethiun follows the Queen, what's her name again?
Canen-something. I'll look it up later.
“What
do you mean, not good for me?”

“
I
mean that there is no way someone like
her
has anything but something sinister planned for you, Gale. And that
includes Nethiun, since he answers to her.”

The
first icy, clawing talons of doubt began creeping up my back.
“Sinister? You're telling me you think I'm in danger from
him?”
It
isn't like I didn't have some suspicions, but... but he saved me, he
saved me and he didn't need to. Right?

Perhaps
he saw the consternation on my face, because he seemed to perk up.
“You're thinking about it now, aren't you? It isn't as if it's
difficult to imagine someone like him being dangerous, right? He'll
do whatever his Mistress tells him to, Gale. He's got no qualms with
brutality, you saw us fighting that night.”

I
did see that, but all I can remember is how scary Ethlyn was. But,
if I put that aside, Nethiun was just as intimidating. Is Ethlyn
right, am I not seeing the danger here? Am I being naïve?

Stepping
forward, I gave him a plaintive look. “Alright,
Ethan—no—Ethlyn, tell me about the twaelin
you're
answering to. You say you don't know what they want with me either,
fine, but you obviously know the name of the person above you.”

His
chuckle was grating. “So he told you my name. How nice of him.
Guess that shouldn't shock me.”