The Concealed (The Lakewood Series Book 1)

by Sarah Kleck

  “Is that why you warned me? Back in the alley.”

  Gareth looked at me for a moment. His eyebrows, pinched together above his amber-colored eyes, were almost completely gray. But his look was clear and unclouded. “Yes,” he said. Although I felt there was so much more behind this plain Yes, I didn’t have the courage to ask.

  Back in my room—I probably wouldn’t have found the way there without Jared’s help—my phone rang.

  “Evelyn, finally! Where the heck are you? I’ve been insanely worried!” Sally said. She was completely beside herself.

  “Everything’s all right, I’m with Jared.”

  “There was a fire in your dorm. Haven’t you heard?”

  “Yes, I know,” I said, still trying to be as calm as possible. “That’s why I’m with Jared. There was a gas explosion in my room—a leak in the heating system or something,” I fibbed. Good thing she couldn’t see over the telephone that I was blushing from embarrassment because of the lie.

  “In your room?” She was starting to sound panicked.

  “Calm down, Sally. I’m fine. I wasn’t even there when it happened.”

  “Are you living with Jared now?” she asked, finally seeming calmer after a short pause.

  “For the time being. Until I’ve found something else.”

  “Hmm,” Sally said distrustfully.

  “What are you up to these days?” I asked, to change the subject.

  “I have to turn in my assignment to Bronsen, and I’ve only got four pages so far.”

  “Oh, that’ll keep you busy this weekend,” I said.

  “Thank you for reminding me,” Sally said, irritated, though I heard a giggle.

  “Well, till Monday, then.”

  “Yes, till then,” she said and hung up.

  When Jared and I entered the dining hall for supper, all the members of the Circle were already sitting at the long tables, helping themselves to steaks, salads, sauce, and something in cast-iron pots that looked like bubble and squeak. You had to grant Legatum Merlini one thing: no one was going to starve here. Only when we were seated did I notice that, unlike at breakfast, Karen, Claire, and the two elderly Council members—I remembered their names were Judith and Montgomery—sat at our table. However, it seemed they were not in a mood for conversation and ate in silence. Only old Montgomery Grey, who had traded in his kilt for corduroy pants, grinned at me.

  “Hi, Evelyn,” Jessica greeted me shyly as soon as I sat down.

  “Hi, Jessie,” I said, smiling.

  “Would you like something to drink?” she asked, pointing at my empty glass and the pitcher with apple juice that stood next to it.

  “Why, yes, I would,” I said, and she filled my glass and slid it over to me.

  “Thank you,” I said, taking a sip.

  “One might think you’re in love with Evelyn,” Colin mumbled with a full mouth, whereupon Jessica made a face at him. I smiled. It really wasn’t so bad here.

  CHAPTER 18

  Blinking the sleep out of my eyes, I tried to orient myself and needed a few seconds to realize where I was. Suddenly something moved beside me. Jared lay on his back, in a deep sound sleep. The way he was lying there with ruffled hair, an almost childlike, satisfied expression on his face, and his lips slightly open—he looked like an angel. I could have watched him for an eternity, but a second later he opened his eyes.

  “Good morning,” he mumbled.

  “Good morning.” I smiled wide.

  “I could get used to this,” he said, leaning on his elbow and brushing my hair out of my face.

  “To what?”

  “Waking up beside you.” He tenderly kissed my mouth. “Every morning, for the rest of my life.” We looked at each other for a while in silence. “Are you hungry?” Jared finally asked.

  “Yes, a little,” I said.

  We got up, dressed, and headed out to the dining hall. I wouldn’t have believed it possible, but the tables were set even more opulently than the morning before. This was probably a brunch rather than just a breakfast. That’s the way it probably was here on Sundays, I figured. If this was going to continue, I’d have to buy new clothes because I wouldn’t fit into my old ones.

  Colin was already at the table, heaping large amounts of bacon, fried eggs, home fries, and baked beans onto his plate.

  “Are you going to eat all that?” I asked.

  “Well, what do you think?” he said. “Not all of us can live on three puny beans a day.”

  “Ha. I’m sure I’ve already gained two pounds since I came here.”

  “Three more wouldn’t hurt you,” Jared said, dumping a large pile of home fries onto my plate. “Eat up!” he said.

  “Are you meeting Sally today?” I asked Colin, struggling with my mountain of home fries.

  “No, she has to write a paper,” Colin said while chewing.

  “Oh, right. She told me yesterday,” I said, feeling a little sad about missing her.

  “Will you ever tell Sally about all this?” I asked.

  Colin stared pensively into space. “That’s not such a good idea right now,” he said.

  “But I thought you were so happy with each other and—”

  “That’s not what it’s about,” he said with an unfathomable expression.

  I frowned in surprise. “What, then?” I asked when he’d been silent for a while.

  Colin breathed heavily. “I don’t want to put Sally at risk,” he said quietly. “I’d never forgive myself if something happened to her.”

  I swallowed hard as I understood what he was getting at. The thought of one of those stinking, scar-faced monsters attacking Sally caused my stomach to turn.

  “It’s just too dangerous right now. I want to keep her as uninvolved as possible.”

  “Yes, of course,” I said. After reflecting for a moment, I said, “Then it’s probably best if I don’t spend as much time with Sally, either. If Morgana really is after me and tries to get to me through Sally . . .” I didn’t dare complete my sentence.

  “We’ll all have to avoid Sally for a little while,” Jared said while Colin turned away, nodding. It hit Colin far harder than he’d admit. Jared put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “We’ll work it out,” he said to us as encouragement, but neither of us answered.

  “You were really lucky Jared was nearby when the damnatus attacked you,” Colin said after a short while, observing me lost in thought.

  “I know,” I said, trembling inside at the thought of what might have happened otherwise.

  Suddenly, a determined expression returned to Colin’s face. “You need to learn to defend yourself,” he said.

  Jared uneasily looked back and forth between Colin and me.

  Colin grinned. “Don’t worry, I won’t be too hard on her.” Colin seemed to be his old self again. Jared didn’t say anything, but I didn’t miss the watch yourself look he gave Colin.

  “What does that mean?” I asked. “Are you going to teach me how to fight?”

  “How to defend yourself,” Colin corrected.

  “I hope you know what’ll happen if you injure her,” Jared said.

  “That I’m not going to train Evelyn the same way I train you should be obvious, shouldn’t it?” Colin said, irritated.

  “I just wanted to be certain,” Jared said, a bit more relaxed, and pushed his plate away.

  “Good,” I said. “When do we start?”

  “Right now if you want. Why don’t you put on something comfortable, and we’ll meet in fifteen minutes at the gym.”

  Jared accompanied me to my room, where I changed into jogging pants, a sports top, and my worn Chucks.

  “Done?” he asked, amused, giving me a smile.

  I looked myself over. “I think so—what do you think, will this do?”

  �
��I liked it better when you had less on.” He came toward me, placed both hands on my hips and pushed his fingers under my top. My skin began to tingle the moment he touched me, and my breathing quickened. He bent forward with a deep sigh and pressed his lips against mine. Jared’s hands slowly pushed under my top, moved along my back, over my hips, to my belly . . .

  Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

  “Remind me later where we left off,” he said, his glowing look nearly making me swoon. “Yes?” he called out toward the door.

  Jessica, Enid’s nine-year-old daughter, entered hesitantly. With a shy smile, the pretty blonde girl with blue doll’s eyes walked past Jared and gave me a roll of athletic tape. I took the narrow roll from her hand.

  “What’s that for?” I asked.

  “Colin said I’m supposed to give this to you,” Jessica said, somewhat embarrassed. Apparently she didn’t know what it was for, either.

  “Let me handle that,” Jared said and unrolled a few lengths of tape.

  “What’s it for?” I asked while Jessica and I watched Jared wrap the bandage tightly around my right wrist. Then he switched to my left.

  “For stabilization, to keep you from straining your wrists.”

  Jessica followed each of Jared’s movements as if she were trying to remember everything precisely.

  “Okay, let’s go,” he said, and I skeptically looked over my bandaged wrists.

  The gym was more like a splendid ballroom than what I’d expected. In addition to huge windows framed by golden curtains, this oversized room was furnished with several paintings and wall mirrors that made it look larger than it was. To top it all off, a monstrous chandelier the size of a small car dangled from the stucco ceiling. Only the padded mats scattered around on the polished wood floor told me we hadn’t stepped through the wrong door. Nevertheless, I felt out of place in this beautiful hall with my worn gym clothes.

  “You aren’t going to stay here, are you?” I heard Colin ask from the other corner of the hall while he casually walked toward us. “Because in that case we might as well stop right now.” I realized his words were directed at Jared and not at me.

  “I only thought . . . ,” Jared started, but Colin gave him an unyielding look. Jared sighed. “I’ll pick you up in an hour.”

  “Okay,” I said and nodded before Jared reluctantly left.

  “I promised Jessica she could watch,” Colin said. “She’ll start her training next year and wants to have a little preview, if that’s okay with you.”

  “Sure,” I said without knowing what I’d gotten myself into.

  Jessica smiled gratefully and went to find a suitable observation post in the huge room.

  “Okay,” Colin said, looking me over from top to bottom. “Do you have enough room to move in those pants?”

  What kind of question was that? “I think so,” I said and kneeled to check.

  “Good, then let’s start. For somebody like you, a combination of Krav Maga and Wing Chun is probably the most sensible. These martial arts are very effective because they’re based on the principle of using your opponent’s weight and strength against him.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean, ‘for somebody like me’?” I asked, inadvertently sounding a little huffy. I was sure he didn’t mean to be rude, but I somehow felt like a limp rag.

  “Well, you’ve got passable muscles from swimming, but you clearly lack the strength and mass to be a serious opponent for somebody like, well, me.”

  I raised my eyebrows. Maybe I should seriously kick him in the shin. Then we’d see if he’d take me seriously as an opponent . . .

  Colin looked at me apologetically. “Nothing personal, Evelyn, but we have to be realistic.” His detached, professorial tone startled me. I wasn’t used to it. But he was probably right, and I should trust him. “Okay.” He rubbed his hands together, stood upright, and said, “Hit me!”

  “Pardon?”

  “Well, hit me!” Colin said again.

  “You can’t be serious.”

  “I’m totally serious,” Colin said with a laugh. “So. Punch me in the face.”

  I looked around for help. But there was only little Jessica, whose big eyes were directed at me and nobody else.

  “Evelyn, we don’t have all day,” Colin said impatiently, but then his expression changed. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid you might hurt me, little water sprite,” he said with a provocative, crooked grin.

  Water sprite? Something tightened inside me. Felix had also called me something like that! Suddenly, anger rose inside me, which Colin acknowledged with a challenging smile.

  Well, as you wish. Faster than I even intended, I clenched my right hand into a fist and punched as hard as I could at Colin. Everything went terribly fast. Just a fraction of an inch away from his face, he grabbed my arm with a lightning-fast movement and twisted it with a firm jerk to my back. When I cried out in pain, Jessica put both hands in front of her mouth, and her eyes went wide. After seeing her disturbed little face, I clenched my teeth and silently bore my pain, though Colin immediately let go of me. If I hadn’t known for sure that he’d just twist my arm again, I would have given him a ringing slap in the face that would have left him with a bright red cheek for the rest of the day.

  “I’ll teach you that now,” he said.

  I figured out the move after only a few tries, and to my satisfaction Colin rubbed his hurt shoulder after I’d twisted his arm several times.

  “Well done,” he finally said, wincing in pain. “Next I’ll show you how to choke someone without using much strength or expending much energy.”

  I shuddered at the thought that he’d demonstrate that on me first.

  “If you manage to escape from your opponent’s grip, step behind him, put an arm around his neck, grip your elbow with your free hand, and pull up—that’s all.”

  I frowned as I tried to remember his words. “Arms around the neck, hand to the elbow, pull up,” I repeated.

  “I’ll show you,” Colin said, and I shrank back from him. He smiled. “I won’t hurt you, promise. I only want to show you the effect.”

  “Okay,” I hesitantly consented, casting a look at Jessica, whose blue doll eyes were still rigidly fixed on me. She was more afraid than I was.

  Colin stepped behind me, put his arms around my neck, and gently pulled up. Although he only made a tiny motion, the pressure it exerted on my throat triggered an intense coughing fit that almost drove me to tears.

  “I thought you weren’t going to hurt me!” I said between gasps for air.

  “Sorry, I didn’t know you were so sensitive,” he said.

  “It’s my turn,” I said resolutely and stepped behind him.

  “Gentle, Evelyn. This grip is very effective,” he warned, his hands raised.

  “You don’t say,” I said, put an arm around his neck, grabbed my elbow, and pulled up, to which Colin immediately responded with a gargling noise. I immediately let him go. He bent forward, wrestling for air and rubbing his throat. I turned to Jessica and winked, which she answered with a conspiratorial grin.

  “Okay, we don’t have to practice this one anymore, I think,” Colin said and coughed as he straightened up again. “I’d better show you how to get behind your opponent.” He needed a moment to catch his breath. “If an attacker approaches you—it doesn’t matter if it’s from the front or the side—you can simply steer him with a well-aimed kick in another direction and use his momentum to your advantage.” As soon as Colin was finished explaining, he demonstrated a series of kicks and punches that didn’t look particularly complicated. “Ready?” he asked, and again I nodded hesitantly.

  I attacked Colin as he instructed me, whereupon his hand quickly thrust forward to strike me on the cheek, completely unprepared because I hadn’t anticipated it. Although he hadn’t even caught me properly, it fe
lt as if I’d been kicked by a horse.

  “Damn it, Colin, are you nuts?” Jared shouted and several lightbulbs in the huge chandelier popped. Where had he come from so suddenly? Had he been watching without my noticing? A second later he pulled me to his side, glowering at Colin.

  “Sorry,” Colin said with an embarrassed look. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, it was an accident,” he said and extended his hand to my cheek, but Jared roughly pushed it away.

  “Oh, it’s all right,” I said, trying to calm Jared. “It barely hurts, and it was my fault, anyway. I focused on his legs and—”

  “Your fault? If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have to learn how to defend yourself at all! If anything, it’s my fault!”

  “Jared, stop it now!” I said, winding myself out of his grip. “If it wasn’t for you, I’d probably be dead!” I looked at him with glowing eyes. “You saved me from Felix and that damnatus, remember?”

  “If Madison hadn’t stolen your amulet for my sake, all that wouldn’t have happened!”

  “Are you yelling at me?” I yelled back, toying for a second with the thought of twisting his arm behind his back as Colin had just shown me. I was enraged by Jared blaming himself for everything. “Stop talking such garbage! You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, damn it!”

  Jared suddenly froze. “What?” he quietly asked.

  “You heard me,” I said, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

  His expression softened. He took a step toward me, put his arms around me, and tried to kiss me. But I was still mad at him.

  Colin laughed.

  “Oh shut up,” Jared said to him. “You’ve already lost your bonus for the day.”

  “Colin showed me some really neat moves,” I said, trying to defend him, but Jared gave both of us a warning glance.

  “Sorry,” Colin said, giving me an apologetic look.

  “It’s all right, but thank you. It’s good for today. I’ll head for the showers and recharge my batteries,” I said with a grin, which caused both Jared’s and Colin’s expression to brighten. Even Jessica, who’d hidden in the farthest corner of the room, was smiling again.