Resistance (25 page)

He gets this dopey smile on his face and comes into
the room, closing the door behind him. He sets the tray on the
nightstand beside the bed and then continues to awkwardly shift his
weight from one foot to the other. “Thanks. I brought some cookies
for us to share. My sister doesn’t need all these delicious
calories,” he says. “And coffee. Because, well, because I like
coffee and I thought you might like some—”

“That was very sweet of you.” I stop him when he
starts to ramble on. I ramble all the time and I wish someone would
stop me when I do. He bites his lip shyly and tries to smile at me,
and I pretend not to see the blush spread over his cheeks. I reach
out and grab one of the warm coffee mugs and inhale deeply. “I’ve
never tried coffee,” I admit. “It smells amazing.”

His jaw seems to unlatch from his head and he stares
at me while I sniff at the warm, creamy liquid in the mug. “How is
it you’ve never had coffee? You don’t know what you’re
missing.”

I shrug at him. “I dunno — just never had an occasion
to.” I take a small sip of the scalding beverage and feel my eyes
widen. The concoction is sweet and rich on my tongue, and I feel an
addiction begin. Eirnin must notice my newfound glee because he
laughs and I look up at him over the mug. Feeling rude, I lower it
back to my chest and clear my throat. “God, where are my manners?
I’m sorry. I’m Lumi, as you probably already know. You’re Fianna’s
younger brother, right?”

“I am, yes — yeah. My name is Eirnin, but most
everyone calls me Eir,” he says, and sticks his hand out for me to
shake. I remove one hand from my mug and shake his; trying not to
show my shock when his giant hand practically hides mine from view.
I’m suddenly reminded just how tiny I am and feel a blush come up
my neck and over my ears. “I wanted to introduce myself and see how
you’re doing…” He trails off, and I can tell he’s feeling dumb.

“Pleasure to meet you, Eir,” I say, and take another
huge gulp of coffee. He looks away from me and studies his feet;
glancing at the door like he thinks he should leave. “You look
tense. Please, sit. I don’t bite. Not without reason, anyway.”

He grins at the joke and seems to snap out of his
timidity. He edges toward the bed and takes a seat on the edge
before taking his own cup of coffee off the tray. “I think that’s
the first time anyone has ever said I look tense. That’s Fi’s gig,
not mine. Not normally anyway.” His eyes widen as he looks at the
wall and I swear I hear him mutter ‘oh God, shut up!’ to himself.
He clears his throat and blushes deeper when he sees I’m smiling at
him. “Would you like a cookie? My aunt made them and they’re
awesome.”

“Sure,” I say, as I try to ease him. I can’t figure
out why he’s acting so silly. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he
found me attractive somehow. I ignore the thought and grab one of
the treats. “You’re very sweet to bring these up to me.”

I feel like all the blood is coming to his face at
this point. He looks like he might pass out at any moment. “I was
happy to do it. So how are you?” He hesitates for a moment and then
reveals what he’s been trying to ask since he walked in. “Sean
didn’t hurt you, did he? I heard he got a little rough.”

“Oh, no,” I say, shaking my head at him. “He didn’t
really get the chance to. The Kitsune, um… Flint, stepped in and
distracted him before he could, uh…” I make a stabbing motion with
my hand and then remember I about poked his eye out. “Is his eye
alright? I didn’t mean to hit him, I was just—”

Eirnin leans over the bed to set his coffee on the
ground and suddenly his huge, warm hands are gripping my shoulders.
“I want you to promise me that if he ever bothers you again, you
will do everything to keep him away from you. Whatever you have to
do. Don’t feel bad for defending yourself! He wasn’t supposed to
touch you at all.” He seems to notice how he’s holding me and flops
back into his original position, seeming embarrassed. “I haven’t
seen him since you guys got back, but I’m sure the ass is still
alive. So, no feeling guilty — you hear me?”

I nod mutely, completely taken aback by this show of
protectiveness. I’ve known him for about five minutes now, and he’s
already shown more care for me than my entire family combined in
the past few hundred years. “I take it you don’t like him much,” I
manage after a few moments; pulling my coffee back up to my
mouth.

“I shouldn’t have grabbed you like that,” he says,
and looks at me sadly. “I’m sorry. I’m really not a
Neanderthal.”

“You didn’t ‘grab’ me, sweetheart, relax.” I nudge
him with my toe and tut at him.

He smiles and rests his hand on my ankle, almost like
a natural action. I’m not sure he even notices. “The ass is my
cousin. I can’t stand him.”

“Just because he’s blood doesn’t mean you have to
like him,” I tell him. Boy, do I know that statement is true.
“Family doesn’t technically mean loyal or trustworthy, either.”

“That’s good, because I never will. I think my sister
is finally starting to see him for what he really is.”

“I suppose I can understand his frustration to a
point.” I shake my head. “My family’s the one with a poor
background for the treatment of humans.” I find I am having a hard
time trying to defend his case and quickly change the subject. “New
topic. Tell me about you.”

His smile is back and I have to say I’m relieved by
it. “I’m really not that interesting. I like to read, and I take
the job of driving my sister insane very seriously.” He shakes his
head and shrugs. “What do you want to know specifically, Lu?”

I giggle at his job description and shrug back at
him; enjoying the new nickname. “Nothing specific,” I tell him.
“I’m just a curious one.”

I stare at him more intently. He greatly reminds me
of one of the humans back at the mansion, one of the captives.
They’re built differently, of course, but they both have the same
bright blue eyes, the same smile and dark hair. I can’t bring
myself to ask, though, and Eirnin is already replying again before
my mouth opens and the question has the chance to fall out in spite
of myself.

“Well, okay then,” he says with a wink. “I’m a bit of
a slob sometimes. My birthday is this month,” he drops his voice to
a whisper, “and I’ll be seventeen this year. I love my family,
except for the giant ass who hurt you…and I’m really glad you’re
here.”

“Aww, thank you.” I smile at him and realize my next
sentence is one hundred percent genuine. “I’m happy to be here,
too.” Then I sit up as I realize sadly that my coffee is gone, and
shove his shoulder as I set it down. “When’s your birthday? Don’t
tell me I missed it.”

He laughs. “It’s the twenty-seventh. You made it in
time.”

“Well Happy Birthday early, Eirnin.” I beam up at him
again and then lean forward to press a kiss to his cheek. His eyes
soften considerably but he sits there for a second; gaping like a
fish. His face deepens in color until his eyes are nearly popping
out of his skull. “Thanks,” he manages slowly; his voice small and
shy and I giggle at him.

I don’t want him to leave, but our conversation has
reached a lull and I don’t know how to fill the silence. Of all the
times to have an awkward pause! But what can I say? What could I
ask him and not make a fool of myself?

I notice he’s staring at my mouth and I’m suddenly
aware I am opening and closing it, trying to make words come out. I
blush and he smiles, and as if he read my mind, he drops his head
and asks quietly, “Wanna play Twenty Questions?”

I have no idea what that is, but I’m not about to
admit it and put a damper on the mood. I’m sure I’ll pick it up as
we go along, right? So my grin gets even bigger and I nod my head
at him. “Sure.”

I look away from the book on my pillow and out the
window for the umpteenth time, hoping again the sun will be high
enough in the sky that I won’t bother anyone if I get out of bed.
Alas, no. The sky is still a grayish, navy blue and the stars are
still winking at me. It can’t be later than four a.m. I huff and
turn back to the novel that is simply not getting my attention this
morning.

My brother’s face woke me up again. The same
nightmare has been with me for the past week or so — him plowing
through this life I’ve made with the family who abducted me; a
family that cares about me more than my blood one ever did. I am
usually jolted awake when someone screams and Khan begins to
laugh.

I’m broken from my morbid reverie when the smell of
coffee wafts up the stairs and into my room. I pull in an
appreciative sigh and then remember the time. I glance over my
shoulder again. The stars are still visible and the sun has yet to
peek over the horizon. Who could be up at this hour?

I stick the pressed leaf I’ve been using as a
bookmark back in the book and roll out of the bed. Quietly I pull
the door to my room open and peek around the corner. No signs of
movement up here. Aodhan is seated at the top of the stairs with
his head propped on his hand. The boy didn’t want his dad up all
night, so he volunteered to do both shifts. He’s been shadowing me
for almost twenty-six hours and he must be exhausted.

“Aodhan?” I whisper; moving up behind him and trying
to get a look down into the first floor. When he doesn’t respond, I
tap his shoulder. “Aodhan.”

He startles and shoots upright, looking up at me and
flushing. I giggle and he ducks his head. “Hi.”

“Tired?”

He bites his lip and looks down. “I’m okay. I’m
sorry, I—”

I hold a finger over my lips so whoever is downstairs
doesn’t hear him apologizing. “It’s okay,” I tell him, and gesture
for him to follow me to the kitchen. He rubs his eyes and nods,
stumbling down after me. He looks anxious, like he thinks I’m going
to rat him out or something, but I plan to do the opposite.

Fianna is standing by the coffee pot, glaring at it
while it does its thing. She looks like a woman on a mission;
someone who isn’t in the mood to wait for the coffee to brew.
“You’re awake?” I say, skipping over to the counter. I hadn’t
expected her to be an early riser.

Fi stops and looks over her shoulder at me in
surprise. She smiles at Aodhan and me and nods. “I am! Coffee?”

“Please!” I grin at her look of shock. She probably
hadn’t expected anyone to be awake at this hour either. “I didn’t
know anyone was up as early as me. I was just telling Aodhan he
should head home and get some rest. He’s been fantastic, but I know
he must be tired.”

“Oh!” Fi says, looking as though she’d like to smack
herself. “Aodhan, I’m so sorry. I didn’t even think to ask if you
needed a shift change. Head on home — I’ll take care of Lu until
Uncle Sea wakes up.”

Aodhan smiles tiredly and looks at me with gratitude.
I wink at him as he slips out the back door before looking back at
Fi. “He’s a good kid.”

“Yeah he is,” she agrees and smiles back. “As for
your previous statement, I’m always awake early. Now, how do you
like your coffee?”

“Uh…I don’t know.” I wince and shake my head, feeling
silly. “However your brother makes it, I guess. He’s the one who
showed it to me.”

Fi laughs. “I see. So you take a ton of sugar and
milk.” She shakes her head with a smile on her face, obviously
amused by something I am not picking up. “How would you like to
have breakfast with me in the library? I don’t want to hang out
down here…just to be safe.”

Understanding that she doesn’t want Sean to walk in
and cause a fuss if he were to see us chatting, I nod. “Sure!”
Frankly, if I could, I would avoid Sean for the rest of my days
here. He kind of scares the crap out of me.

“Excellent!” Fi smiles. “We can bring everything up
to the library in one of these fantastic baskets my aunt makes. Can
you grab the milk for me?”

“Yep.” I move around the counter and stick my head in
the age-old refrigerator to retrieve the pitcher. When I look back
at Fi, she is pouring coffee into a thermos and balancing two mugs
and spoons on top of the coffee cake in a basket. “Do you want me
to carry something else?” I ask. “I have decent balancing skills
with food.”

Fi considers this for a moment as she puts the sugar
and napkins in the basket. She shakes her head and smiles. “Nope,
just the milk. Follow me.”

Impressed, I nod and follow her back up the stairs.
We go up two flights of stairs and end up in a vast library. The
shelves stack all the way to the ceiling, and each one is full to
bursting with novels. If this had been in my house, I would never
have left the room. I close my eyes and inhale the indescribable
smell that comes from book paper and hear Fi giggle. “There’s a
sofa and a table in the corner where you can eat, but please take
your time and look around. You can feel free to read anything you
like.”

“Thank you,” I tell her, grinning. “I love to read.
Keeps me sane, you know?” I see a book with a worn spine, some tape
holding it in one piece and pick it up. The title is worn and
scratched away from repeated use, and that mystery alone draws me
in. I hug it to my side and move to sit with Fi. “You have an
impressive selection here.”