“No, it doesn’t,” I said finally. “There is something…odd here.”
“Other than you?” he said.
Several responses lined up, but I pushed them away. Arguing with him in the middle of the woods at night wasn’t on the top of my list of things to do. “Why did you want to talk, Daemon?”
He clasped a hand on the back of his neck. “What happened yesterday at lunch is only going to get worse. You can’t be friends with Dee, not like the kind of friend you want to be.”
A hot flush crawled down my cheeks, spreading over my neck. “Are you serious?”
Daemon lowered his hand. “I’m not saying you have to stop talking to her, but pull it back. You can still be nice to her, talk to her at school, but don’t go out of your way. You’re only going to make it harder on her and yourself.” Every hair on my body rose all at once. “Are you threatening me, Daemon?”
Our eyes locked. His were full of… what? Regret? “No. I’m telling you how it’s going to be. We should head back.”
“No.” I dug in, staring at him. “Why? Why is it wrong if I’m friends with your sister?”
A second passed, and his jaw tensed. “You shouldn’t be out here with me.” He drew in a harsh breath, his eyes wide. He took a step forward. A warm breeze kicked up, scattering fallen leaves and tossing my hair back. The gust seemed to come from behind Daemon, almost as if it were fueled by his mounting anger. “You aren’t like us. You are nothing like us. Dee deserves better than you, people that are like her. So leave me alone. Leave my family alone.” It was a smack in the face, only worse. Out of everything I was expecting him to say, he went for a doozy. I drew in a deep breath, but it hitched in my throat. I took a step back, blinking away the rush of angry tears.
Daemon didn’t take his eyes off me. “You wanted to know why. That’s why.”
I swallowed thickly. “Why…why do you hate me so much?”
For a brief second, the mask cracked and pain contorted his features. It was so quick, I couldn’t be sure I’d actually seen it. He didn’t answer.
The tears building in my eyes were about to spill down my cheeks. I refused to cry in front of him, to give him that kind of power. “You know what? Screw you, Daemon.”
He looked away. “Kat, you can’t—”
“Shut up!” I hissed. “Just shut up.” I headed around Daemon and started walking. My skin felt hot and cold, my insides burned with fire and ice. I was going to cry. I knew it. That was what that choking feeling was in the back of my throat.
“Kat,” Daemon called out. “Please wait up.”
I picked up my pace until I was almost running.
“Come on, Kat, don’t walk so far ahead. You’re going to get lost. At least take the flashlight!”
As if he cared. I wanted to be free of him before I lost it. There was a good chance I’d hit him. Or I’d cry, because whether I liked him or not, what he had said hurt. Like there was something wrong with me.
I stumbled over a few branches and rocks on the ground I couldn’t see, but I knew I could find my way back to the road. And I could hear him behind me, his feet snapping twigs as he kept up with me.
Raw hurt opened up in my chest. I stomped ahead, needing to get home, to call Mom and somehow convince her that we needed to move, like, tomorrow.
Run away.
My hands curled into fists. Why should I run away? I hadn’t done anything wrong! Angry and disgusted with myself, I tripped over a root sticking out of the ground. I nearly fell flat on my face. I grumbled.
“Kat!” Daemon cursed from behind me.
I gained my footing and rushed forward, relieved to see the road up ahead. I nearly broke into a dead run. I could hear his footfalls now, echoing in the distance. I reached the dark road, wiping the back of my hands over my face. Shit. I was crying.
Daemon yelled, but his voice was drowned out by the twin headlights of a truck racing toward me, no more than fifty feet away. I was too shocked to move.
It was going to hit me.
Chapter 15
A loud crack of thunder—only more powerful—reverberated through the valley. It was like a sonic blast that shook me to the very core. There was no time for the driver to see me or stop. I threw up my arms, as if they could somehow protect me. The truck’s loud roar filled my ears. I braced myself for the bone-shattering impact, my last thought of my mom and what my mangled body was going to do to her, but the impact never came.
I could’ve kissed the bumper; it was that close. My hands mere inches from the hot grille. Slowly, I lifted my head. The driver sat motionless behind the wheel, eyes wide and empty. He didn’t move, didn’t blink. I wasn’t even sure if he was breathing.
A cup of coffee was in his right hand, frozen halfway to his mouth. Frozen—everything was frozen.
A metallic taste filled the corners of my mouth. My mind balked.
The engine was still running, roaring in my face.
I turned from the frozen driver to see Daemon. He seemed to be concentrating, his breathing heavy and his hands were clenched at his sides.
And his beautiful eyes were different. Wrong. I took another step back, now out of the path of the truck, my hand held in front of me, as if to ward him from coming close to me.
“Oh my God…” I whispered, my already-pounding heart faltering for a mere beat.
Daemon’s eyes glowed iridescent in the dark, lit from the inside. The light seemed to be growing more intense, and his fists started to shake, the trembling moving up his arms until his entire body seemed to be reverberating in tiny, miniscule waves.