Guardian Of Fate (Fate Series) (15 page)

"I guess, in a way, yes. I don't know. It's really just a feeling. He's the one that told me about everything. And he's already protected me once from Caleb." Remembering the scene at Celestino's, I added quietly, "I think."

"What do you mean 'you think'?" my mom asked, at the same time that Nora asked,

"Caleb tried to hurt you?"

I decided that the best way to make them understand would be to tell them everything from the beginning; the night at Luke's, Celestino's, and everything Hunter explained to me about my bloodline. Of course, I left out all of the physical encounters we'd had. I was pretty sure they wouldn't understand how all of that fit in.

They listened in awe, stunned by how much had happened to me, with them only knowing bits and pieces, realizing the role they played, and how it already affected them; Nora, losing someone, and Mom with her accident. They knew then that it was Caleb. Or at least, I thought they knew.

"I still don't trust him, Cassie, and neither should you," my mom said. "It's just us three now. We can't trust anyone else. How do you know he's not the same as Caleb, and trying to lure you to him so he can turn you into one of them? I would think that the Elders would have said something to me if they knew there was someone here protecting you from these demons."

Nora looked quickly from me to my mom, "You know the Elders? That's where you were?" she asked her.

"Yes, I went to them when Cassie started seeing these demons in her visions. Why do you ask? You know about the Elders?"

Nora stared at my mom, as if waiting for her to say more, but she finally said, "Yes, I know of them. I thought all of the Guardians did."

"Anyway," Mom continued, "the Elders only told me that we needed to get you, Cassie, to them, and that is what the three of us are going to do as soon as I can get myself out of here. It's going to be only us, Cassie. I don't trust this Hunter guy and I'm not letting him come with us. I won't put you in danger without knowing who he really is. We'll ask the Elders about him when we get there."

I nodded, knowing she was right, but feeling a little less safe without him.

"Nora? You agree?" my mom asked her next.

"Yes, absolutely. We stick together on this."

"Okay, then. I'm going to call the doctor in here and get myself out of—" she looked up as the door opened, and a smile came over her face. "Hi, Doctor," she said. "I was just telling my daughter how I feel so much better, and I'd like to check out now."

I turned to gauge the doctor's reaction to this news, and my stomach dropped. Caleb stood in the room, adorned in a doctor's lab coat with a stethoscope dangling around his neck. His hands hung on each end of the instrument as he shook his head at her, "I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Sara. In fact, I can't let any of you leave right now. Not before we take care of business."

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"
Caleb," I uttered his name with dread as I stood and positioned myself between him, my mom, and Nora. I wasn't sure how I could protect anyone, including myself, from a demon, but I was ready to put up a hell of a fight trying.

He came closer to me, his smile turning more sinister as he watched my feeble attempt to play heroine. "Ahhh, Cassie. I've missed you,
really
. Our date, sadly, didn't go quite as planned, but here we are now."

I stood undaunted, or at least I pretended to be, as he came less than a foot away from me. He looked past me.

"Well, here we
all
are now," he continued. "I guess it's true - good things
do
come to those who wait. I'm getting the three-for-one Guardian deal here."

"No!" I shouted, bringing his attention back to me. "It's me you want. Leave them out of this."

"You do have a point there," he said thoughtfully. "Hmmm," he continued, as his hand came up to caress my face.

I cringed at the familiar electricity that his touch sent through my body; not long ago, a pleasurable sensation, now making my skin crawl.

"So what are you saying, Cassie? That you'll come back with me willingly if I spare the others? Will you? Because it's really not as bad as you think. You'll belong to me there, and I will give you anything you desire. Those tender moments we shared before were not completely false, you know. You ignite things in me that... Well, let's just say I wouldn't mind keeping the flame going with you for the rest of eternity. What do you say, beautiful?" His fingers trailed lightly down my neck, his eyes following their motion. My eyes closed at the sensual touch, as it brought shivers to my skin.

"Cassie, no!" my mom yelled. "Get away from
—" her words faded as Caleb waved his free arm behind me, fingering my collarbone with the other.

I turned around at the sudden silence and was horrified to see that my mom and Nora had vanished. They didn't get up and leave, they were just gone. Caleb had simply waved them away. I turned back to him in a rage, raising my fist to strike, but he anticipated my attack, grabbing it and forcing me against the wall. He pinned my arms above me with one powerful grip.

"Let's close this deal in peace, shall we?" he whispered. Before I could respond, his lips crushed down on mine.

The sudden force of his body against me, along with the pressure of his mouth on mine, suffocated me. I pushed myself to gain control, but I couldn't even take a breath, much less try to get him off me. Finally, a surge of energy ran through me, and I used all of it to free my hands from his grip. He pulled away, trying to wrestle my arms back again, and I used the opportunity to shove at his chest with everything that I had. I'd never felt so much power build up inside of me. It burst through my arms and smashed into his chest. I wasn't sure if the blow would be enough to impact him, since he was a demon. But when I saw him fly across the room and land in a heap in the corner, I stared in disbelief. Stunned, I tried to figure out how it happened. If anything, he should have reeled backwards from the shove I gave him, but his body flew sideways in order for it to land the way that it had.  

Out of nowhere, my body was yanked around. Instinctively, I struggled against the powerful grip on my arms, when the sound of Hunter's voice broke through my haze of confusion.

"Cassandra, are you all right?" He shook me when all I managed to do was stare blankly at him. "Cassandra, are you hurt?"

"I'm... I'm..."

"She would have been just fine if you wouldn't have gotten in the way again," Caleb said from the corner, standing back up. "I actually think she was beginning to like it."

Hunter flung me behind his body while he faced Caleb. "Touch her again, and I swear to you, I will make sure you rot in Hell," he said with such venom, I cringed. "You may live there now, Caleb, but I will personally make sure you suffer for the rest of eternity."

I peeked over his shoulder and saw the sneer that Caleb wore was made of pure evil that would have made the Devil himself proud. He didn't seem to be concerned with Hunter's threats at all. When he caught me peering over Hunter, his eyes blazed bluer, and I could almost feel them piercing my soul.

Caleb's body tensed as he turned his gaze back to Hunter. I was afraid he was going to attack him right there in the hospital room. I grabbed onto Hunter's arms, fearful of what could happen if these two forces battled it out.

"We shall see who suffers in hell, brother." Caleb seethed. "Soon, very soon." His warning made me shudder before he disappeared into thin air.

I knew I should have been relieved, but his final words refused to disappear with him, reminding me of the dream where he used the same moniker - brother. I let go of Hunter's arms and stepped around to stand in front of him. His expression was unreadable. I hoped to find a look of surprise on it, something telling me that Caleb's words were a mistake. Could they really be from the same blood?

"Why did he call you brother, Hunter?" I asked, not sure if I was ready for the answer.

He stared at me, his blue eyes searching my face for something I was oblivious to. Was he looking for trust? Understanding? I wanted to tell him that he could confide in me, if only to find out what was between Caleb and him. But the fact that I wasn't sure if I could trust in him kept me from opening up.

"Oh my God! What just happened?" Nora cried out from over by the bed. I kept my eyes on Hunter for a second longer before turning to go to my mom and Nora, who had re-appeared as if they'd never left. But in that split second, I saw Hunter slowly close his eyes and let out an almost imperceptible sigh. Was it relief or disappointment? I wasn't sure if I would ever find out.

"Cassie, are you all right? Did they hurt you?" my mom asked, panicking. She tried to sit up, wincing from the effort, but I got to her before she tried any further. "I'm okay, Mom, just a little shaken up. How are you two?" I looked them both over. "Caleb made you vanish, but where did you go?"

My mom shook her head, but it was Nora that answered. "I didn't go anywhere. It was as if I just lost time." My mom agreed. "How long have we been gone? Where'd he go?" Nora asked, looking around warily for Caleb.

"You weren't gone long. I think we scared Caleb off for now."

"Did he hurt you, baby?" Mom asked.

I told her I was fine, that he'd just bruised me a little, but my toned down version did nothing to ease my mom's nerves. "But how could he make us just disappear like that?" she asked.

"That is one of the many powers of a Seeker," Hunter said bluntly, walking towards us. "It helps them get the Guardian alone with them so there are no distractions in their attempt to seduce and turn them. They have the power to make anything disappear from sight. Those that disappear do not cease to exist, however. They are just... on hold, if you will."

"And how would you know this?" my mom asked.

"I've had experience with Seekers," he answered her calmly.

"I just bet you do," she said, her temper rising with every word. "I don't trust you, Hunter. And I want you to stay the hell away from Cassie... from all of—"

"Mom!" I shouted over her. "Hunter's the one that scared Caleb off. He's the reason that I'm still here right now. Stop this!" Even though I didn't completely trust him myself, it felt wrong to let my mom attack him.

"What if he did it just to have you for himself, Cassie? You don't know him any better than you know Caleb. No," she said adamantly, despite my protests, "I want you out of here, Hunter. Just get out!"

I could see my mom was getting really aggravated, and I knew it couldn't be good for her. I went over to Hunter and put my hand on his arm. "Just go, Hunter," I told him softly. "Wait for me out in the hallway."

"Cassandra—" he started, but never got the chance to finish because Dr. Lambach came into the room. He assessed my mom's state, along with the rest of us, and ordered us all out so he could give her medication to help her rest. She'd had enough, he told us. Hunter left the room right away, while Nora and I said our goodbyes, promising to be back as soon as she slept. My mom made me promise that I'd stay away from Hunter, which I obliged with crossed fingers, so she'd calm herself enough to get some well-deserved rest. As soon as she was better, we'd all have to leave and get to the Elders post haste, hopefully with no surprises along the way.

As I left the room, I contemplated what I was going to do about Hunter. I still didn't know whether I could really trust him. My mom was right, I didn't really know who he was or what he wanted from me. He could be staying close for his own evil purposes. But there was a nagging piece of me that refused to believe that. I felt safe with him.
I was an angel, right?
I thought to myself.
Wouldn't an angel be able to feel when someone was evil?
Regardless of how I felt, both my mom and Hunter were two very stubborn people. I wasn't sure I could persuade either one of them to do anything.

My head hurt from thinking about everything and I decided that I wasn't going to deal with any of it until I refreshed with a shower. I'd talk to Hunter after I recharged, tell him everything my mom told me, and gauge his reaction to it all. I walked up to him in the hallway, told him my mom was resting, and that I was going to ride home with Nora.

"I really need someone to watch over her. I can't leave unless I know that she's going to be safe while I'm gone. Will you stay?" I asked.

"No. I stay with you, Cassandra. But I will have someone else watch over her. Someone I trust completely. Let me make a call and then I'll follow you two back."

"She'll be okay?"

"It will be as if I were watching over her myself. This man is very loyal to me," he said.

"Great, more mystery men," I breathed. I started down the hallway, motioning to Nora. "C'mon, Nora. Let's go home. I need a shower. I need to wipe Caleb's scum off of me."

***

Nora and I sat in silence on the way home. I imagined she was trying to sort out everything that had just happened, just as I was, only from a different perspective. As we neared the apartment, I stole a glance at her and my heart felt a little heavy from the hurt expression she wore. I knew that I'd probably lost a little bit of trust from my best friend. I lied to her about much of what had happened the last few days. Sure, she'd kept being a Guardian from me, but that is what we, as Guardians, had to do. I, on the other hand, outright lied to her.

Hunter stayed true to his word of following us home. There was not one car that came between us during the whole ride. We all entered the building and walked up the staircase without speaking a word to one another. When we got to the apartment, I turned to Hunter and said, "You need to give us a little space right now, Hunter. Give me a chance to explain everything to Nora. I owe it to her." The tone of my voice made it clear that there would be no negotiation on it. He nodded and told me he'd be in his apartment if anything were to happen.

Once Nora and I were in our apartment, I sat down with her and told her everything; from my first visions of Hunter to everything he had told me that night in his apartment.

"And you've been dealing with all of this by yourself?" she asked me, shock and pity in her voice.

"To be honest, I really haven't had time to deal with anything. It's all happened so fast. And Hunter has been with me every step of the way."

"Cassie, do you really think you can trust him? I mean, what if your mom is right?"

"I thought about that so many times, Nora, my head is spinning. I don't know how to explain it, but I feel this connection with him. The visions I've had of him for so long make me feel like I've known him forever, like he's always been with me. I know this must sound crazy, and believe me, I still have my doubts about him, but I have to go with my gut right now. So far, he hasn't done anything to hurt me and I really don't think he will."

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Is there something more to your connection with Hunter? I see the way he looks at you. Has something happened between you two?"

I didn't really know what to tell her. Yes, I lost control when he touched me and my entire body melted into his? How do you explain something like that? Especially when it's about someone you don't even know if you should trust? Love at first touch doesn't happen in the real world. Was it lust? Maybe.

"We may have kissed a couple of times," I told her shyly. "But before you even ask me if I think he is just seducing me like Caleb, I don't. It's like there's this power surge I can actually feel when he's near me, and I think he feels it too. It's as if we're being pulled together by some invisible force." I looked down into my lap, embarrassed. "God, that sounds so corny."

There was silence for a few minutes before she put her hand on mine. "What you feel is not corny, Cassie. You're feelings don't lie. They're real. I just want you to be safe. Trust is an easy thing to give until it's taken away from you."

"I know," I answered her. "I will."

"Good, because we're all in this together now," she said with a smile. I squeezed her hand in agreement.

"Well then. I refuse to just sit around and wait for something to happen while your mom rests. I'm going to try and go about things as normally as I can, until we can go and get her. So, I am going to study for an exam I'll probably never end up taking," she laughed as she stood. "I suggest you do the same. Go take your shower. Refresh and relax. I'm sure you need it."