Shadow Soul (Narun Book 1) Page 12

  “Sure.”

  “Then go back to them.”

  Finally, Leo lifted his eyes off his food. “We all have our callings.” He winked as I silently questioned him. What is he hiding?

  I prepared myself with a burdened inhale.

  It was time for the discussion.

  Chapter 19

  “Why do they think we’d make a good team? It doesn’t make sense. If you’ve always gone Solo, why send you on an impossible task to hunt down a…well, me. On top of that, I’m a Defender and you’re an Attacker.”

  “The reasons aren’t always clear.”

  “Oh come on, Leo. I’m not stupid. There’s got to be more to it.”

  “Think about it, with your gifting and my reflexes… We’re the perfect team.” Leo grinned but it came across half-hearted. He stabbed a piece of meat, taking no notice of my dubious frown.

  “Do you ever feel left out being a Solo?” During my time as Guard, I’d only met a handful of people who fought alone.

  Leo laughed. “Am I supposed to?”

  “I guess not. It’s what you’re used to, right?”

  “Exactly.” He continued to eat as if he’d already forgotten my prying. But I wasn’t done.

  “How long are you going to be waiting? For real?”

  “Let’s put it this way… I knew it wasn’t going to be an easy task.” Something flickered in his eyes, but I failed to catch its meaning.

  “I know you’re not telling me everything.”

  “Duly noted, inspector.”

  His cheek was asking for a slap—it was like he was proud of his secrets.

  Leo set his empty plate on the floor. “So,” he lifted his feet onto the bed and slid down on the chair, “my turn to ask the questions: what’s going on with you and Sebastian?”

  Sebastian’s black eye came back to me. That’s right. I had a bone to pick with Leo. Besides the usual.

  “I can’t believe you hit him! And went all third-degree on him. What’s the matter with you?”

  “I didn’t hit him; I fought him. Fair and square. It’s not my problem his skills aren’t up to scratch, and there’s nothing wrong with asking the guy a few questions.”

  I shook my head in disbelief. “Why on earth would you go see him in the first place?”

  “I don’t like him.”

  I waited.

  “Okay, I was there to vet him,” he confessed. “He gives me a funny vibe.”

  A funny vibe? He’s one to speak.

  “Stay away from him. Stay away from all my friends.” I grasped the fork to eat some more, needing to occupy my hands.

  “So, you’re just friends? Nothing more?”

  Selective hearing—and jealousy? “What’s it to you? Who I spend, or do not spend, my time with is none of your business.”

  He moved his leg, making his plate rattle on the floor. I flinched more from the black look on his face than the sudden noise.

  Robustly, I chewed a few more mouthfuls before placing the plate down on the bedside table. I avoided Leo’s eyes like they passed on malaria.

  “I think he likes you,” he finally said, conceding. “You should be careful, that’s all.”

  “I don’t agree, but sure, I’ll watch out for date rape drugs.”

  “Seriously.” He pointed at the water bottle beside me. “If your jokes are so dry you must be parched.”

  I smirked and slid deeper under the covers. I appreciated how the heavy duvet acted as a shield.

  “You’re still in love with your partner, aren’t you?”

  I ground my molars, my defences instantly rocketing sky-high. “I don’t wanna talk about it.”

  “You’ll have to talk about it one day.”

  “Why? I definitely don’t have to talk to you about it.”

  “True. But I’ll say one thing and then I’ll leave it, okay?” He waited until I marginally dipped my head. “You have to let him go. The pain won’t stop until you do. And you won’t be able to let him go if you keep bottling it up.”

  I fought against the stinging in my eyes. It was easy for him to say. He didn’t know what it felt like having your entire world torn from you and being the one responsible for it.

  I rolled to my side and forced my thoughts in line. Tomorrow was a new day, and everything would be back to normal.

  *

  “We won’t win,” I gasped as a battalion of Gorahites emerged from the tree-line. He was beside me, oddly calm, gripping two samurai swords in each hand.

  “Stay focused. One battle at a time. It’ll be okay.”

  I glanced at him. It’ll be okay? Was he not seeing what I was seeing? We were about to be killed. Or worse— captured.

  The thought sent shivers over my skin. Him captured, tortured…no.

  I flipped my Sais nervously in between my fingers. The soldiers nearing us were strong, trained, ferocious. They came for blood. The blood of our kind.

  “Kali, focus,” he said again, much more sternly but I got the feeling it was him who needed to hear it. His mind was split.

  “Get your head in gear,” I snapped back, and he exhaled, giving me a glance. A longing glance. Did he want us to die?

  “Head in gear, now!” I shouted back as the first soldiers reached us and I turned my full focus on my inner voice yelling orders at me.

  “Left side!” I voiced, and he reacted.

  Chapter 20

  A mix of scents hovered in the air as I woke up: stale Chinese food, slightly burned toast, cleaning detergent, and a hint of cologne. Flashbacks of the day before confirmed my whereabouts.

  It felt late. Late in the day. Thankfully, the queasiness had passed; the foreign substance had cleared my system.

  A new day.

  Leo and I exchanged a few strained words, not sure where we stood after last night, and then he drove me home.

  Outside my flat, one leg out of the car, I debated on the right thing to say. “This being drugged thing and the weekend in general… Can we keep it between us?”

  “If that’s what you want,” Leo said curtly, one hand on the gear stick, eyes fixed ahead.

  Come on, Kal, swallow your pride. “T-thanks for…helping me out, Leo. I appreciate what you did for me.”

  “This is it, then?” Leo angled himself towards me but looked slightly past me. “Everything goes back to normal, like last night never happened?” His voice was steady, but his eyes were so dark I struggled to unravel them.

  I squeezed the door handle. “Nothing’s changed, Leo.”

  “I see.” He lowered his chin, and I slammed the door shut before he had a chance to give me a piece of his mind.

  It took me a few attempts on the rusting lock before I could slip inside to my comfort zone. As soon as I had showered and changed, I headed to the park to train—I’d wasted enough time. I had a goal and now I needed to do something about it.

  Day one of becoming a lean, mean, Gorahite-killing machine. Again.

  *

  The clock digits claimed 6:27 a.m. on Monday morning when I jumped out of bed, startled by a thump, supposedly coming from the hallway.

  I pulled out a kitchen knife from my bedside table drawer and dashed to check the door in stealth-mode, only to stop short. A brown package lay on the floor, looking as if it had barely made it through the letterbox.

  It was way too early for mail. Besides, had I ever received anything other than takeaway menus?

  I placed the knife down and picked up the package. My name was written in neat, yet manly handwriting on the cover. It definitely wasn’t from Tony—his scribbles were hard to decipher even with a code.

  The wrappings yielded to my ferocious fingers and revealed the contents: a black mobile phone.

  I stood still, phone in hand. How…? Leo? It had to be, no one else knew I had lost my old one. I rummaged through the paper and bubble wrap and came across a folded note.

  ‘Hope this does the job. I added a few numbers. Leo.’

  I re-read
the words. He was being too kind, and I wasn’t comfortable with it. Walking to the lounge, I pushed the start button and within a few seconds the phone switched itself on.

  Fully charged.

  I glanced at the note again and scrolled down to Contacts. All there apart from Sebastian. I saved Sebastian’s number from memory and typed a simple ‘Thanks’ to Leo. The phone pinged with a reply within seconds.

  ‘It was worth it for that overwhelming show of gratitude.’

  Whatever.

  A few hours later, I walked into the lecture theatre, searching for Tony. Four rows back, he sat by himself.

  I nudged his arm as I took a seat. “Morning.”

  Tony glanced up, dark circles giving away a late night. “Hey, what’s up?”

  “You tell me. I texted Jill my new number and she said she has big news.” I pulled out a notebook from my bag and placed it on the narrow table. “She won’t tell me until this afternoon.”

  Tony rubbed his eyes with his knuckles. “I hope she won the lottery.”

  “Come on, you must know what’s going on. Apparently, she’d been calling me all weekend.”

  “Right, her…thing.” Tony grazed his stubble with the back of his hand. “Yeah, no, if I say a word I’ll die a slow, agonising death.” He crossed his arms on his chest. “Speaking of yesterday, what you doing losing your phone? I worked hard teaching you how to use that thing.”

  “It must’ve fallen from my pocket. Sorry.” I hated lying.

  “Fallen out? Well, get one of those woman bags to keep it in… Honestly.” Tony shook his head as the lecturer made her way down the stairs to the podium. A clatter of voices resumed as she fixated on the computer without addressing the students.

  “The real question is,” Tony lowered his voice, “how’d you manage to get a new one without me?”

  “I’m not stupid.”

  “Well, let’s see.”

  I protested as Tony beckoned with his hand but gave him the phone. What is it with men and technology?

  “Not bad.” He fiddled with it between his fingers and pressed a few buttons. “Suitable for you obviously: basic and old-fashioned.”

  I kicked Tony in his shin. Had Leo gone for simplicity for a reason? Do I really care?

  “Did you get a good contract?”

  Pants, hadn’t even thought of that. “Good enough.” I snatched the phone from Tony’s hand. I’d have to ask Leo how much I was going to be paying.

  As the lecture finished, Tony rushed off and I met up with Jill. Huddling into our jackets in the near-gale force wind, we walked to the café across the campus, surprised to find it nearly empty. I ordered drinks and returned with a cappuccino for Jill and a peach ice tea for myself.

  “So, the news?”

  Jill’s hands disappeared under the table, and then she popped her left hand on top. It hardly took me a second to register the source of the bling. I’d learned what a ring on that finger meant a few months after arriving in England.

  “You’re engaged? Tony proposed?” I nearly knocked over my drink grabbing Jill’s hand. She shrieked excitedly, drawing the attention of the few other customers. The white-gold band dressing her finger had a large, slightly angular diamond, neighboured by two smaller diamonds of the same cut. I shot up to wrap her into a hug, and a moment later sat back down, still eyeing the ring.

  “I can’t believe Tony managed to keep this quiet!”

  “He was under threat of death.” Jill sniggered.

  “He mentioned. How’d he pop the question?”

  Jill recounted the story of a midnight walk by a canal. By the arch of a bridge, Tony had bent on one knee and asked her to be his wife. The ring had been in a small, ballerina shoe-shaped box in honour of Jill’s dedication to dancing in her growing up years.

  “Have you set a date?”

  “Not quite, but it’ll be the summer we graduate.” Jill wiggled her fingers, the light catching the bling. “We are, however, having a bit of an engagement party, well, two actually.”

  “Great. Am I invited?”

  “Of course, silly,” Jill rebuked, tongue-in-cheek. “We’re having a party for friends on Thursday, and the week after we’ll have a family meal with the bridal party, which leads me to a question… Would you be one of my bridesmaids?”

  I choked on the ice tea, causing a coughing fit that made Jill’s forehead knit.

  “You don’t have to if you—”

  “No, no” — I was forced to pause for a cough— “I’d be honoured! You caught me by surprise, that’s all. Jill, I’d be honoured.”

  Jill clapped her hands together, eyes sparkling, and then she grimaced. “I have to warn you, though… Tony is going to ask Leo to be the best man. Provided he can make the wedding, of course, but he’ll be there for the parties.”

  I only guessed her worry was for my reaction rather than travel arrangements to and from Narun.

  “Don’t worry about that. Tony can have whoever he wants as his best man.” Though seriously, why pick a guy you’ve only known for some weeks? Then again, I hadn’t known Jill for much longer than that.

  “We can coexist for a few nights,” I assured her and shifted the focus back to Jill.

  We talked for another hour or so until Jill had to go. I was strolling home elated by the news when a dinging text message brought me back to the grey pavements.

  ‘Meet me in the park near you at 7 p.m. It’s important.’

  Chapter 21

  “My, my, you actually came. I must be doing something right to tame the shrew.” A well-humoured Leo leapt down from a park bench.

  “Tone it down. If you value your life, that is.”

  “I’ll take my chances.” Leo grinned. “How are you feeling today?”

  “Normal.” I jerked my chin forward. “The phone—how much do I owe you?”

  “Ah, I see you’re back to your charming self.” He motioned us to walk and I followed. “It was a gift. It’s pay as you go, but I bought some credit in advance.” He handed me an envelope. “Here’s the fine print.”

  “Thanks, although I will pay you back.” I took the envelope and rolled it into a scroll. “Was this why you summoned me?”

  “No.” Leo matched my pace as I walked down a slope. “Did you hear the news about Tony and Jill?”

  “Yes.” The slightly swaying trees drew my focus. “They make a good team. But seriously, why’d you want to see me?”

  Leo veered off the path, starting towards an incline in the greenery.

  I stopped. “Where’re you going?”

  He dipped his head to the side, beckoning me to follow. “Come. It’s more private over here. Isn’t that what you want?”

  “Wait, what…?” I called but he disappeared in between the willow trees. Groaning, I followed.

  Behind the treeline was a flat area, nicely tucked in, hidden from the paths.

  “See?” Leo stood tall, hands on his hips. “Perfect.”

  My eyes darted around, searching for the punch line. “Perfect for what?”

  “Training. You ready to start?”

  I froze, rubbing my fingertips with my thumb as I drew a quick list of pros and cons in my head.

  It was an ideal location and training with Leo would be great practice in getting back into shape. And boy, was I curious to go a few rounds with him. On the downside, I didn’t want to give into him or let him see the eagerness detained just under the surface.

  I rolled my eyes. I was blatantly going to give in.

  “Fine, since we’re here.” I feigned disinterest. “Not for long, though.”

  “First, eat this.” Leo tossed something—a protein bar, I judged as I caught it.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  “Of course you’re not. I do wonder… Do you actually have an eating disorder, or is this not eating thing just another way to get back at yourself?”

  Blunt much? I gave him a dirty look but unwrapped the bar and took a bite.

  “Anyw
ay,” Leo smiled, seemingly pleased I was eating, “if we’re going to do this, we need to do it properly.”

  “Meaning?” I went for another bite. I was a little peckish.

  “Meaning you follow my lead and do as I tell you.”

  I swallowed a chunk too big and coughed into my hand. “I have a problem with that.”

  “I know, Rosebud, you have a problem with everything, but you know how this works. If I’m going to teach you, you have to do as I say, like in real training.”

  I stuffed the half-eaten protein bar in my pocket. “Let’s just get one thing straight—”

  “Yes, I know.” The roll of Leo’s eyes should win one of those shiny, golden men. “I’m no better than you. The only reason I’ll ‘teach’ you is that you have been out of it, and no, this doesn’t mean you’ll hate me any less, et cetera, et cetera.” Leo whisked a hand in the air as if bored of the words he needed to speak.

  I suppressed a grin. “What makes you think I was going to say that?”

  “I can see it on your face.”

  “How?” I challenged.

  “It’s smug.”

  “My face is not smug.”

  “Smug,” Leo countered.

  “It was suggestive at most.”

  “Fine, suggestively smug.” Leo threw his hands in the air. Again, I had to stop the corners of my mouth from lifting. “So,” Leo stood waiting, arms again folded, “can you manage that?”

  “Whatever.”

  “Whatever…what?” Leo cupped his ear toward me. He is loving this.

  “Whatever, Bar’Elikai.” I curled a lip at the honorific title and watched as he unleashed his fiercest crooked smile yet.

  I thudded on to my back. For the sixth time, the thick bed of grass cushioned the blow. Frustrated, I went over what I’d done wrong this time, once again arriving at the same conclusion: Leo was too fast.

  “Need help?” A hand appeared in my vision, along with Leo’s face. His dark hair pointed to all corners of the world.

  I held up a finger and spread my limbs, my joints relieved of the break. Leo sat next to me, knees bent.