The man pulled his suit coat back and flashed the badge attached to his belt. "I'm Agent Houston, FRU, a friend of Burnett's." The way he said "friend" seemed to mean something, though Kylie wasn't really sure what. "Burnett asked me to stand in for him while he went to pick up a suspect."
"Stand in for him for what? Suspect for what?" Della asked, or more like demanded.
The agent's gaze shifted to Kylie, as if he knew she'd understand. And she did. Burnett had brought his man to watch over Holiday, and obviously he'd gone looking for Blake. But understanding didn't make this stranger her ally. Sure she trusted Burnett, but the badge Agent Houston had just proudly flashed did him more harm than good when it came to her.
"I can't go into details," he said, "but you're going to have to trust me. Kylie knows."
Trust? Not likely, Kylie thought, but when his heartbeat didn't appear to be lying, Kylie looked at Della. "He's telling the truth."
"I know," Della said as if annoyed, but the color change in her eyes said she'd backed down. Or she had until she had Kylie alone, and then no doubt she'd verbally bludgeon Kylie for information. Della didn't like to be in the dark.
"I'm going in to see Holiday." Kylie looked at Della.
"She's popular this morning," Agent Houston said.
Kylie looked to the window and saw a male figure. "Who's in there?"
"One of the new teachers," Agent Houston answered.
Kylie tensed. "Hayden Yates?" She looked at Della. How had he gotten ahead of them? Della's expression matched Kylie's.
"No," the man said. "A Collin Warren. He said he was the new history teacher. Is there a problem with him?" The agent's voice deepened as he took a small step toward the office.
"No," Kylie said. "He's fine." But right then, footsteps echoed from down the path.
"You expecting someone?" the agent asked.
"Not really," Kylie said, but she suspected who it might be.
And she was right.
Hayden Yates, his hood back to covering his head, stepped into the clearing. "Good morning." He lifted his chin, his gaze on the tall FRU agent standing defensively.
"You know him?" the agent asked Kylie.
Mr. Yates squared his shoulders as if insulted.
"He's a new teacher," Della said, but her tone said more. It said she didn't like him, and the agent picked up on it. He took another step toward Mr. Yates.
Mr. Yates didn't back away. He held his ground, and she thought they might come to blows. Then Hayden's gaze shifted to her as if reconsidering his stance. "I mean no harm, just taking a walk," he told the agent in a resigned voice.
Kylie still felt something ... something not right, something not honest about the man.
Hannah's warning rang in Kylie's ears. And the day I was at Shadow Falls, I sensed he was close. I felt him and I knew. I knew I went to Shadow Falls because of him.
Could Hayden Yates be Hannah's killer? Could he have applied for the job here just to get to Holiday? It seemed unlikely, but Kylie wasn't taking any chances. And as soon as Burnett got back, she planned on sharing her concerns.
* * *
Kylie waited in the office's entrance for Mr. Warren to finish his conversation with Holiday. In a few minutes, both he and Holiday stepped out. Mr. Warren nodded politely and offered her a soft-spoken "Good morning."
"Morning." Kylie sensed again that he was as shy and unsure of himself as she was. Maybe even more. Sort of a male version of Helen. And yet he'd chosen to teach. No doubt his love of history pushed him down this path. For that, she had to admire him.
When he left, Kylie looked at Holiday and instantly went in for a hug.
They held on to each other for a second longer than normal.
"You okay?" Kylie asked.
"I will be in time," Holiday said.
Kylie heard Mr. Warren speaking to the agent outside. "Is this his first year teaching?" She nodded toward the window.
"How did you guess?" Holiday sighed. "He was recommended by a friend of a friend. He's not so bad when it's one on one. I hope you guys don't chew him up and spit him out."
Kylie grinned. "Perry might consider it."
Holiday frowned. "Promise me you'll not let that happen. He really seems like a nice guy and I think he'll make an excellent teacher. I'd appreciate it if you'd sort of take him under your wing."
Kylie chuckled. "Again, Perry might do that."
Holiday's grin, while a little forced, surfaced. She glanced at the clock on the wall. "You're up way early."
"Couldn't sleep," Kylie said.
"Did Hannah come by?" Grief snuck into Holiday's voice and Kylie's own chest swelled with the emotion.
"No. Sorry." There was a pause. "Is that coffee I smell?"
"Yeah, I ... normally don't drink it, but this morning I figured I could use it. Grab a cup, and then I want to hear how the whole vampire transformation happened."
Oh, crap, Kylie thought as she went to collect her coffee. It was either time to come clean or to get busy burying herself in lies. She could probably come up with a story that Holiday would believe-a story that didn't include her sneaking out of Shadow Falls to meet her grandfather. But lying to Holiday of all people felt wrong.
* * *
"You did what?" Holiday asked, setting her coffee on her desk when Kylie started her explanation a few minutes later. "How many times do I have to explain to you that as a protector, you have no powers-zero-to protect yourself? You didn't even know the e-mail was from him."
"I knew," Kylie said.
"How?" Holiday leaned forward.
Kylie bit into her lip. "He was the fog."
"He was what?"
"My grandfather and my great-aunt, they were the fog. They somehow transformed themselves into fog."
"How..." She let go of a deep breath and let the confusion settle around her, and then said, "You still can't just disobey rules."
"I was following the main rule. The one you've told me dozens of times." She paused. "To follow my heart."
Holiday stared at Kylie as if debating the issue. "You could have asked someone to go with you."
"They wouldn't have met me."
"You don't know that," Holiday said.
"Yes, I do. They left when Lucas showed up."
"Wait, Lucas went with you? He knew about this?" There was a reprimand to her voice.
"No. He and Perry followed me, but I ... detained them and took off. When Lucas caught up with me, my grandfather and aunt disappeared. They don't trust anyone here because of the FRU involvement with the camp. Considering everything that's happened, you can't blame them for that."