by C. L. Stone
He didn’t have much time.
In a flash, he calculated his options. He had one shot at this. He’d either scare her off into the night, or maybe if he was lucky, he’d simply scare her back inside the house. He’d have to watch out for her, make sure she stayed inside. Hopefully he wasn’t sending her back in to be hurt, or into a dangerous situation. She didn’t look abused, but abuse didn’t have to be visible on the surface. He knew that too well.
“Max,” he said in a whisper. “Let’s go.”
Max was up and at the stairs in an instant. Kota stuffed his shoes back on, grabbed a poncho and was throwing it over his body as he dashed toward the stairs.
Out in the garage, he stopped, checking out the scene again. For a moment, he lost her in the dark. He swallowed, hoping she didn’t take off in the minute it took him to get outside.
No. There she was. Standing. Waiting. For what?
His heart thundered. His hands were normally steady. Nothing shook him up, not after so many years of seeing such disturbing and amazing things. The Academy trains you to think on your feet, to be aware, that no matter what, you are protected, so never fear anything. Fear weighs you down and can be distracting.
He was afraid now. What if he tried to stop her, and she called the cops? What if her parents heard her rushing back in, fearing for her life, and they came out looking for him? Or what if doing so caused her to get into major trouble?
Max stood by his feet. His nose was up, sniffing the air. Kota sensed his dog could tell someone was out there. He was being quiet, waiting for a command. Kota reached for his lead hanging from the wall. He was forming a plan, but unsure exactly how to execute.
Kota wouldn’t move until she did. He was wondering if she was reconsidering. Maybe she realized it was a mistake. It was raining, a little cool for an August evening. It was only going to get worse tonight, with thunderstorms later. It was late. Maybe she had planned it, but hadn’t totally thought it through. If she went back inside, he’d look out for her, and tomorrow if she went to the woods, he’d be sure to intervene somehow.
She needed someone. Staring at her now, he felt it so strongly. Maybe she didn’t know it, but he could help. Whatever it was, he knew people who wouldn’t turn her away. The Academy could do amazing things for the right type of person.
One, one-thousand. Two, one-thousand. He counted, only because he didn’t know what else to do. The waiting was difficult.
When he got to ten, the girl moved. She picked her foot up, and placed it on the street. She turned in his direction and started to walk. Slowly, keeping to the shadows.
He had to take a chance. In the few seconds she started moving, he came up with a thousand different scenarios, each one he didn’t like. He wanted her to trust him, to talk to him. How?
“Max,” he said. He shifted Max’s lead in his hand, gripping it.
Max stood quickly, his nose pointing out, waiting for the command.
Kota bit his lip, debating one last time, but the Academy doesn’t want team members to hesitate. If it really is the right thing to do, go for it. Kota could only hope she wasn’t going to get hurt, as this was already risky.
“Get her,” he commanded. “Take her down.”
Max took off in a shot, heading right for the girl.
Sang
Kota cringed as his dog took off toward her. The moment Max ran at her, Kota was sure he’d made a big mistake. She’d run into the garage. She’d scream. She’d break her arm.
Max didn’t hesitate. Once the order was given, he’d see it through. Kota held the leash and ran after him.
Max collided with her, and the shadow dropped back. Her book bag fell away. No scream.
A sudden thought that Max might have knocked her out scared him. “Hey!” He called, hurrying. “Are you okay?”
She moved, looking at him. She was in shadow, so he couldn’t get a good look, but the fact that she was moving was a good sign. Max sat on her legs, holding her down like Kota had trained him to do.
Kota slowed to a jog so as not to scare her. When he got to her, he caught Max licking her arm. At least Max knew she wasn’t a threat. Maybe he went easy on her. “I’m sorry,” Kota said. He made a motion with his hand. “Max, get off of her.”
Words tumbled around in his head, mostly a billion questions. He was worried she was really hurt. He wondered if she’d run once she was upright. He wanted to say something, anything to make her not run away. Give me a chance. You can talk to me.
The fact that she wasn’t saying anything, not even yelling at him about his dog, worried him.
When Max climbed off of her, Kota’s instincts took over, and he knelt beside her. He slid an arm around her shoulders and started to lift, but then hesitated. It was a normal reaction, helping someone when they’ve fallen, but he could already feel her stiffening. “Are you hurt?” he asked.
She shook under his touch. Now that he had an arm around her, she felt small, fragile, and he had a strong desire to lift her at that moment, away from the dirty street and wet ground and out of the rain. He resisted the urge.
She shifted, shoving her arm toward over her chest, and spoke through gritted teeth. “It’s okay,” she said, her voice soft. He’d never heard her voice before, but it had a flowing sweetness to it. “It’s fine.”
He could only see the outline of her face—shadows covered her features—but he knew she was lying. “No, you’re not,” he said, trying to keep his voice light and friendly. “You scraped your arm.” She hadn’t pulled away yet. She’d barely even moved. He shifted and put an arm around her waist. Maybe she’d run, but at least he’d help her up. “You can stand, right?”
“I think so,” she said.
He stood slowly, testing her to see if she winced at any point. The wind picked up, sending a fresh wave of rain and chill around them. Kota moved, trying to shield her from it as much as possible. What a night to be out.
But now that he was up close, he clearly saw the book bag was packed full, and she seemed nervous, even in the shadows. She stayed quiet. She didn’t want anyone to know she was out there. She wasn’t pulling away now. Maybe this was his chance. Maybe he shouldn’t risk it, but if he made what he was thinking sound like it wasn’t a big deal, she might go for it. “I’m going to take you to my house,” he said, realizing after it probably sounded more like a command.
She turned her head, and her face caught a bit of light from down the road, giving her features an angelic glow.
His heart was pounding as if he’d done a hundred pushups. His cheeks heated as he realized he was hanging on to her. He wanted to help, but couldn’t stop thinking about how pretty she was.
He sucked in a quiet breath. No need to get carried away. She’s in trouble.
He spotted the book bag, and moved to pick it up. It was heavier than he’d expected. Was she carrying books with her? How long was she planning on being gone for? Maybe she was trying to run away.
Maybe he caught her just in time.
“Let me take it,” she said.
“No.” Kota lifted the bag over his shoulder and then wrapped an arm around her. He turned her toward the street. Her clothes were soggy. His poncho stuck to her. How far was she planning to go in clothes soaked like that? “Let’s get you out of this rain. We’ll assess the damage inside.”
“What about your dog?” she asked.
He started to smile. She was the one hurt and she’s worried about Max, the dog who had knocked her down? “He’ll follow.”
She started to shake a little, and he held firm, steady. He wasn’t sure if it was the chill or if she was in pain somewhere, or maybe it was from fear.
He wished he could convey to her she didn’t have to worry. He knew trust took time, but right then, he wished there was a way to make her believe. She seemed to need it right now.
Kota guided her two houses down from hers, back toward his garage. He crossed in front of the security light, triggering it to help guide his wa
y into the darker garage. The wind pressed the poncho hood against his head, almost in his face, but he could see enough to get them inside.
Max went to his crate, expectant.
“Not now,” Kota said.
Max sank to the floor, his head dropping.
The security light went out, but Kota was far enough inside to get to the door. “Come on,” he said to her, trying to sound encouraging. If he got her inside quickly enough, maybe she wouldn’t be so scared. He tenderly reached for the arm she cradled, tugging her inside.
Once they were in the downstairs hallway of his house, he released her, and she fell in behind him. He checked over his shoulder. She followed close, her eyes squinting in the dark.
If she really wanted to leave, she probably would have. Kota blew out a breath, crossing his fingers that if she’d come this far, she might actually tell him what was going on.
He thought about taking her into the kitchen, but didn’t want to risk waking Jessica or his mother. He opened a door in the hallway, revealing the staircase that lead to his bedroom above the garage.
He started up, checking again to make sure she was following. She seemed to hesitate at first, but then started climbing. He hurried over to the computer desk in the corner, touching a lamp a couple of times to brighten the place up.
He turned, and seeing her in the better light, he froze. He’d seen her during the day and had tried to determine her age, but worked out that she had to be his own age: sixteen or close to it. Her blond hair was wet, making it darker, and it was pulled back, messy now. Her cheeks and nose were pink from blushing or from chill or both. She was wearing a poncho, and he hadn’t realized it until now. Her jeans and shoes were wet.
Her eyes, light green in the light, really drew his attention. Beautiful, aware, terrified, haunted…and above it all, curious.
He hadn’t been able to get this close to her since she’d moved in. She was stunning from a distance, and more so even now. He tried to smile to show he was friendly, and started counting: ten fingers, two eyes, one, two, three, four…light bruises on her arms but they appeared old. Was that a light scar at her elbow? And then he noticed the bright red scrapes along her arm. He felt a pang of guilt, and even more guilt when he realized that while he was sorry for hurting her, he was entirely relieved that she also wasn’t too injured and managed to trust him enough to follow him. Try looking on the bright side.
“I’m sorry,” she said, jarring him from his thoughts. “I should probably have taken my shoes off. They’re soaked.”
Internally, he was grinning at her concern, but he tried to suppress it a little. “I’m not worried about the carpet right now. One thing at a time.” He took the book bag off his shoulder, and then headed to the bathroom. He wanted to get a good look and bandage her up. “Take that poncho off and let’s look at your arm.”
The bathroom was snug, even for one person. He pressed a palm against his forehead, wiping away some of the remaining drops of rain.
She struggled for a moment with the poncho sticking to her. When she managed to get it off, her shirt was sticking to her body.
He swallowed, urging himself to turn quickly, but he couldn’t help but look. Part of it was expecting some other form of injury, and part of it was her shape and the sudden surprise of seeing it in such a way.
When she tried to fix her shirt, he realized he was staring and focused on the poncho, taking it from her to hang over the curtain rod. Focus, he told himself.
He reached for her arm, trying to turn it enough to check it. There was a gash, and she lightly tugged, wincing.
He looked closer, testing it, and the guilt settled harder into him at seeing the blood. “My god,” he said. “I’m sorry. Really. This was my fault.”
She shook her head. “It was your dog. Not really his fault. He was excited, I guess.”
If only that was how innocent it really had been. He’d meant well, of course, but he wished there had been a better way. “He was excited,” Kota said. He moved quickly to stop the urge to tell her more, worried he might reveal something he shouldn’t. He found the first aid kit, and took out a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. She didn’t appear to need stitches, but he’d have to clean it up to find out how bad it really was. At the same time, he came up with what he’d prepared for his story, trying not to out and out lie by talking about real things that were technically true. “I’ve noticed the lead was getting thin in the middle for a while. When he smelled or heard you, he took off and it broke.” Okay, small lie. Did he have to explain everything? “He’s not usually that bad. He needed to go out but hates this weather. So, I’m sorry about that. I should have replaced the lead before now. And I don’t know why he jumped on you. He never does that.”
Was he rambling? He stuck his tongue to the roof of his mouth, stopping himself from talking any more. He started arranging what he wanted to use to clean her arm, and then looked up, noticing her stare. He looked quizzically at her. Did she know? Could she tell when he lied? He wasn’t sure if he had many tells left, maybe a few, but some people were more perceptive of others. Maybe she…
“…name,” she said, in a soft voice.
He stopped for a second, confused. “Hm?”
“I don’t know your name.”
He started to smile. Of course. “I’m Kota.” She stood quietly, and he found it hard to read her. He released a chuckle. “What’s yours?”
“Uh…Sang.”
There was a short pause, like he expected more to it, or that maybe he’d heard it wrong. “As in, I sang a song?”
She nodded. “I know it’s weird.”
Weird wasn’t the term he would have used. Unique was better. “No weirder than ‘Kota’.”
She smiled, and the subtle change boosted Kota’s confidence. This had to be the right thing. She had to feel safe here. Mr. Blackbourne and the others couldn’t say anything against this.
Part of him didn’t really want to mention it. Maybe he didn’t have to. What if he could talk to her and figure out what the problem was? He normally wouldn’t hesitate to bring anything to Mr. Blackbourne or the other members of his team, but if he could solve it himself quickly enough, or at least provide some support for her, there wouldn’t be a reason to ever tell them.
He wanted to believe, but she was standing in his bedroom late at night after she’d tried to run off. There couldn’t be a simple reason for that. Most girls wouldn’t have followed him home. Most girls would have been suspicious. But this one didn’t seem like most girls.
He prepped a clean cloth with the peroxide quickly. “It’s nice to meet you,” he said. “And please don’t hate me.”
“For what?” she asked.
He took her arm, and as gently as he could, applied the cloth to her arm. She stiffened hard at first, like it was unexpected, and then started shaking.
Kota grimaced and tried to clean her arm quickly. She turned her head away, and he assumed it might be easier on her if she wasn’t watching what he was doing. The gash was raw, and bled a bit, but looked like it was mostly a surface wound. He could imagine it really stung.
He found a large bandage to cover it. She didn’t say anything, or reach to do it herself, so he went ahead and applied it. “I think you’re patched up,” he said, rubbing the edge of the bandage to make sure it stuck, and then tossed the wrapper away. “Anything else broken or bleeding?” Please say no. Not that he wouldn’t fix it, but the arm was enough to feel guilty about.
She shrugged and shook her head. “I’m fine.”
Kota wasn’t really sure if that was true. She did fall, so he imagined a few more body parts struck the ground pretty hard. Maybe she meant there wasn’t anything scraped up like the arm. If that was the worst of it, then--while it wasn’t perfect--it wasn’t so bad. He nodded. “Okay. Well, Sang, I hope this won’t ruin your impression of me right off.”
“What do you mean?” she asked. She looked…alert. Curious. Her eyes darted around, her body shook.
She was nervous, and he understood, but that spark of interest in her eyes captured his attention. She wasn’t too afraid of him.
He thought of an angle he could start from to figure out what was going on. It was on the tip of his tongue to simply be blunt and ask outright, but he got the feeling she might not answer, or might quickly get uncomfortable. It’d be better to ease into it to gain her trust. “I mean we are neighbors, right? Your family just moved in?” It was an obvious question, but he had to start somewhere.
Her eyes widened. Was she surprised by the question? Or surprised that he noticed they’d moved in? Maybe it felt like he recognized her, and she didn’t recognize him. “Yes,” she said. Her head shook a fraction. “No.” Her head moved slightly in a nod. Kota’s training would normally say she was lying, but it felt more like she just wasn’t sure how to answer. “I mean, don’t worry about it. It was just an accident.” She pressed her lips together.
Kota struggled with how to ask, because her lip movement usually meant she didn’t want to reveal too much. Instinct told him she maybe wanted to talk, but wasn’t sure if she should. She didn’t trust him that much yet. Still, he thought if he asked, she’d at least try to answer. “So what were you doing out so late?”
Short pause. Her eyes darted, and Kota knew it was a lie before she even said it. “Just taking a walk. I couldn’t sleep.”
“With a book bag weighing a ton on your back?” he asked. He was trying to be delicate in calling her out. “In the middle of this weather?”
Her cheeks turned red. Her lips twitched like she wanted to say something, but couldn’t find the words.
Worse than he thought. He tried to look sympathetic. “Hey, I’m sorry. Look, it’s personal. Whatever it was, did you have to do it in the middle of the night?”