by Abby Tyson
Chuckling, he pressed his forehead to hers.
Savi was losing herself. She could feel it. If she let him keep kissing her, she was going to lose the tenuous strand of willpower she still had and give in to this handsome, kind, strong guy who loved poetry.
She pulled back -- not enough for him to lose his grip on the back of her neck, but enough to give herself breathing room.
"I cut you off before when you were trying to tell me about yourself," she said. "About why you're different. I want you to tell me -- if you still want to."
Marley's body stilled, the air between them thickening. Savi both feared and hoped she'd ruined the moment, although the need to think all this through faded as his hand slid up into her hair.
"I'll explain everything," he said, his other hand tracing her face. Her skin ached for more of his touch. "But I've been waiting twelve years to kiss you. Now that it's happened, I can't think about anything except how much I want to do it again." He leaned forward, pulling her toward him. His lips brushed against hers -- lingering, but not kissing. "Can I kiss you again?"
Savi searched for the voices telling her not to do it, not to give in, but all she heard was her heart, singing from Marley's touch, Marley's smell, Marley's voice. She leaned into him, closing the breath of air between them. She reached up, the stubble on his cheeks tickling her palms.
The blanket crumpled into her lap, but she didn't even notice.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Savi woke up alone in Marley's bed. He'd been beside her when she fell asleep, and his absence made her anxious.
You don't need him, a voice said.
"I know." Her voice filled the dark room.
In the weak yellow glow of the nightlight by the door, Savi could see that the other bed, where Nissa had been sleeping when she and Marley came in around four, was also empty. She glanced at the clock.
10:13 AM.
Did you expect him to just lie there watching you sleep? the voice scoffed.
Savi shook her inner cynic away as she got out of bed, lured by the scent of toast, and the fear of getting home late.
Nissa, wearing a baggy t-shirt, lay back in the recliner watching a cartoon, a plate in her lap and a half-eaten jelly bagel in her hand. Her dark hair was wet.
"Where's Marley?" asked Savi. Nissa shrugged without turning from the TV.
On the surface, the scene couldn't have been more typical: just a kid watching morning cartoons. But the fact that this kid was an ancient, magical being made the sight of her watching My Little Pony too surreal to absorb. Savi wanted to ask how old she really was, but instead, she asked, "You like cartoons?"
Keeping her eyes on the screen, Nissa replied, "I'm a child." Savi couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic.
"No you're not."
"I am now." The emptiness in her voice made Savi regret bringing it up.
Making herself a bagel, she sat on the couch, glancing at the door with every bite. She was back in the kitchen washing the plate when the door opened.
Marley crept into the apartment, quietly placing his keys on the TV stand and gently closing the door, his back to Savi. He wore the same kind of dark fatigues he'd worn over the weekend, except the camo shirt was slung over his shoulder, leaving him in a tight brown t-shirt that showed off his impressive muscles. His head abruptly turned to the side and slightly upward, reminding Savi of how Warren had sniffed the air when she was near him. Turning around, he brightened with a dazzling smile when he saw her.
"You're looking better this morning," Savi said. The scabs on his lips were hardly visible, and his eyes were nowhere near as bulging or bruised.
Marley didn't answer. He just stood there, smiling.
"Good morning?" she asked. She made a show of looking behind her, then back at him. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"I've never seen you with your hair down."
Savi instinctively tried to flatten it as he closed the space between them. "I don't have my conditioner. It's always super --"
His passionate kiss cut her off. His arms wrapped tightly around her -- too tight. Only when Marley brought his lips to Savi's ear to whisper, "You're beautiful," did he notice her gasping.
"Sorry," he said, loosening his embrace but keeping his hands on her shoulders. "It takes about a day for me to get used to... the whole..."
Chuckling nervously through her heavy breath, Savi said, "Superhero status?" He let out a relieved laugh, but his eyes held their worry.
Being so close, she did sense something different about him. He looked the same, but there was something intangible that made her... not nervous, exactly, but definitely uneasy. Was he brighter somehow? Was she imagining it?
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"I'm fine. Where were you?"
Marley hugged her gently, burying his face in the crook of her neck. His skin was warm as always, but his hair was cool on her cheek.
"Not where I wanted to be," he said, leaving a trail of kisses from her shoulder to her ear. "I could lie in bed and watch you sleep all day."
Savi squirmed, every kiss sending a hot electric current down her spine. Giggling, she said, "You've got to bring me to my car. I have to be home by noon, or my mom's going to kill me."
"I'll talk to her," he said. "She'll love me." He pressed his lips to hers, one hand getting lost in her tangle of curls, the other moving dangerously low on her back.
All of this unexpected attention was only serving to knock Savi further off balance. After their ardent kisses in the shack, Marley had been a perfect gentleman, scarcely touching her except to help her walk and administer the werewolf tears to her myriad injuries. He would have slept on the bedroom floor if she hadn't made him get in bed, and even then he gave her a chaste peck on the cheek and slept with his back to her. Now that things were getting so hot and heavy so suddenly, the pounding in her chest was starting to feel a lot more like panic than excitement.
He jerked back, looking as jarred as though she'd slapped him. "What's the matter?" he asked.
A little out of breath, Savi asked, "What do you mean?"
His bright green eyes were full of confusion. "You smell scared."
"I smell scared?"
He almost smiled. "Superhero, remember?"
"Oh, right."
Barely whispering, he asked, "Are you scared of me?"
He said it with such fear in his own eyes that Savi's anxiety fell away. Glancing over his shoulder, she saw Nissa, still engrossed in her show.
Arms by her sides, she said, "You just caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting..." She laughed. "I wasn't expecting any of this."
Marley held his worried look for a moment, then kissed her lightly on the cheek. When he pulled back, his eyes were mischievous.
"I have a surprise for you."
"I don't think I can take any more surprises this weekend," she said, leaning her back against the counter.
Marley mimicked her stance. "I went back to Marcia's barn this morning."
At Marcia's name, Savi's chest tightened, and her stomach clenched. Marley was instantly at her side, drawing her to him.
"Hey," he crooned. "You're okay."
"I know I'm okay," she said, trying not to snap at him. She sidled out of his arms. "It's just going to take a while before I don't get anxious thinking about... all of that, that's all." Giving him a sideways glance, she added, "Are you always going to know exactly how I'm feeling?"
Marley bit the inside of his lip. "If I'm close enough to you, I can hear your heartbeat. And when your body has a strong reaction to something, like if you're scared or really nervous, I can tell because you smell different. But I'm not a mind reader." He paused before asking, "Does that freak you out?"
Savi wasn't a mind reader either, nor could she smell his fear, but she could see it well enough in his face.
"A little," she said. His whole body sagged. He stared at the kitchen table.
"I just have to get used to it," she said, wanting to comfort hi
m, but self-conscious about putting her hands on him. "Just don't pounce all over me whenever my heart rate goes up, okay?"
Marley glanced in her direction, but remained sullen.
"What's your surprise?" she asked. "You went back to the barn, and...?"
It took another moment, but he perked up enough to move in front of her, taking her hands in his. "I went back for Hettie. Most of the cars were gone, but there were a few people still there. I kept out of sight, but the only redhead I saw was a guy."
Savi was at a loss for words. His thoughtfulness was unexpected and overwhelming, but she was heartbroken that he hadn't found Hettie.
"That was really sweet of you," she said, holding back tears. "Thanks for trying."
"When I was skulking around the barn," he continued, the hint of a smile creeping into his lips, "I saw a basket with a bunch of phones in it." He reached into his pocket. "Mine and Ren's were in there, and so was this." He held out her phone. "This was the only flip phone in there. I peeked at the contacts and saw Hettie, so I knew it was yours."
Tucking one of many loose strands of curls behind her ear, he said, "I took the liberty of adding my number to your contacts -- which I should get a medal for, by the way, considering how antiquated that technology is."
Savi smiled at her phone as she took it. "Thank you."
"I know it's not equitable in any way to your best friend, but at least --"
It was Savi's turn to cut him off with a kiss. It wasn't as passionate, or as smooth, as his had been, but he was pleasantly surprised, which was what she'd been going for.
Just when he started to pull her to him, the door opened again. They both turned to see Ren in the doorway, staring at them, stunned.
Feeling her cheeks start to warm, Savi said, "I'm going to try calling Hettie." She slipped out of Marley's arms and scuttled into the hallway, closing his bedroom door behind her.
With every ring her heart sank. Marcia knew Hettie and Savi were friends. What if Marley had gotten there too late? What if Marcia had already taken her anger out on Hettie?
Savi almost didn't leave a voicemail when it picked up, but just in case... "Hettie, this is Savi. Please call me back as soon as you get this message. I'm going to call you every hour until I hear from you. I have to know that you're okay." She dropped the phone in her lap and dug her palms into her eyelids.
The bedroom door opened. Marley stepped in. "I couldn't help but hear."
Wiping her face, she said, "I didn't think I was that loud."
He pointed to his ear. "Superhero."
"Hettie and I never say goodbye," she said, feeling herself start to crumble. "We say, 'You're my hero' instead. I don't even remember when we started doing it or why, but I never realized how true..." If she finished the sentence she would cry, and Marley had already seen her cry more than anyone else except her mom.
He started walking across the bedroom to her when the phone rang.
"Hettie!" she shouted, nearly dropping the phone in her excitement. "Hettie!" she cried into the phone.
"Savi? Where are you? Are you okay?"
"Oh, Hettie!" Savi fell back on the bed. "Where are you? Are you home? Is Colby okay?"
Marley closed the door, giving her some privacy, or the illusion of it, at least.
"We're okay, but what happened last night? Almost all the saviors woke up in the woods. The others didn't care about being naked so much, but they were nice enough to let me walk in the back. When we got to the barn, Marcia and everybody else was gone. I checked in the lab but it was all busted up, although I did see your backpack and grabbed it for you. Top's van was crashed into a tree and all bloody, some of the cabins had burned down -- it looked like a war zone. There were also," Hettie paused and lowered her voice, "four fresh graves that the other saviors said hadn't been there before."
Wiping away her happy tears, Savi said, "I'll be over in a couple hours to tell you everything. Where are you now?"
"One of the other saviors who had their car drove us back to Colby's car at the campsite. We're just leaving now."
Savi swallowed. She didn't want to ask, but she had to. "Did you see Tara or Eric?"
"Who? Tara Clarence? That Eric?"
"Yeah," Savi said, a lump in her throat.
"Why would they be there?" Colby asked.
"I guess that's a no."
"What happened to them, Savi?" asked Colby.
"They were there last night. They were altered."
"Oh." The worry evaporated from Colby's voice. "You made it sound like something bad happened to them."
Savi's retort stayed on her tongue. Instead, she said, "Hettie?"
"Yes?" It was so good to hear her best friend's voice.
"I'm really happy for you about finally getting together with Colby, and I'm sorry for being too caught up in my own crap this past year to notice what you were going through. The fact that you could deal with all that and still come through perky and hopeful..." Savi's voice stopped working as her throat closed, her emotion overwhelming her. "You're my hero, really."
When Hettie answered, Savi could hear the same emotion in her voice. "You're my hero, Savi. I'm sorry I called you selfish. I love you."
"I love you too." Savi's voice was trembling, and they both laughed at themselves and each other. "I'll see you soon."
Even though she knew Marley had heard everything, Savi waited until she had collected herself to step out of the bedroom. As she neared the door, however, angry shouts told her that perhaps he had been otherwise occupied.
"How could you?"
Savi peered around the corner and saw Ren and Marley standing on opposite sides of the kitchen table. They both radiated that same unidentifiable quality that Savi had noticed on Marley earlier. Were they bigger?
"You told Nissa," yelled Marley.
"She wouldn't tell me how to save Dad unless I told her," Ren growled in frustration. "Besides, she's an origin. Savi's just a girl."
Marley looked at Savi, glued against the wall. "She's more than that."
Ren threw his hands up in the air with a groan. "You're always romanticizing everything. This was a mistake, and you know it."
Unnoticed by anyone except Savi, Nissa turned the TV off and started putting her shoes on.
"It wasn't a mistake," Marley said, moving to stand beside Savi. "She may have saved Dad's life. You think she doesn't deserve to know what we are?"
"No," Ren barked.
"Nissa?" Savi called. "Where are you going?"
Nissa was walking toward the door. "None of your concern."
Rushing over to her, Savi said, "You'll get picked up by the cops walking around by yourself, especially wearing only a t-shirt. Can we give you a ride?"
"Not unless you're driving to Florida."
"Florida?" asked Savi.
"Tallahassee. It's home to the biggest Alter facility in the country. It's where my kuta is."
"Kuta?"
"What you would call a soulmate."
"Soulmate?" Disconcerting as it was to hear a girl who looked like she belonged in elementary school talk about her soulmate, even more disturbing was the sudden thought that this child might have children of her own.
"Listen to my words. Don't repeat them," Nissa snapped. "She's being held captive as I was."
"She?" Nissa glared at her. Savi cringed. "Sorry."
"You're not going to try and rescue her, are you?" Marley asked.
"There are others. They may help me."
"We'll help you," he said, though his eyes were on Savi.
Ren laughed, though without humor, then turned a disbelieving glare on his brother.
Nissa shook her head. "You owe me nothing."
Marley knelt beside her and tried to take her hand, but she snatched it back. "We would have been killed by werewolves dozens of times over if it weren't for you," he said. "And we wouldn't have been able to save Savi without you."
"That's not why I went back."
"Top," Sa
vi whispered, trying to push the gory memory away.
Nissa's eyes traveled to the blank wall. She appeared, for once, as old as she probably was. "That debt has been paid."
Savi wondered what Top could have done to merit such a gruesome death, but she didn't dare break the silence.
Turning to Marley, Nissa said, "You'll slow me down."
"We'll make up for it during the day. We can drive."
Nissa looked back and forth between the brothers, settling on Ren. Savi followed her gaze, noticing for the first time that Ren was wearing the same brown t-shirt as his brother, and that his skin was darker against it.
After returning her stoic gaze for what seemed an eternity, Ren asked, "Are the others far?"
"I won't guarantee you'll be back for the next moon cycle."
Ren's jaw stiffened. "I'll have an answer by sunset."
"I won't wait," said Nissa.
"Come on, brother," Marley said. "It's the right thing to do."
"Is your soulmate's wolf also silver?" he asked.
"All torra are silver, but only during the halving."
Turning to the kitchen window, Ren stared out at the blue sky. Savi wondered how he could be so different than Marley, so grave and reserved all the time.
"Okay," he said at last, "but we need some time to heal and gain our full strength. We'll leave in one week." He walked toward the apartment door.
"But --" Nissa began.
Ren slammed the door behind him, and a cloud of dust rained down from the ceiling.
Nissa frowned at the closed door, then at Marley. "I accept your company," she said, and turned the TV back on.
Glancing at the clock on the wall, Savi sighed. "It's almost eleven. I still have to pack up all my camping gear. There's no way I'm getting home on time."
Marley walked over and grabbed his keys. "Call your mom. Tell her you accidentally slept in." He opened the door and waited for her to follow.
"She won't buy it." Stepping past him into the hallway, she said, "Oh, I know." She opened her phone and dialed. As it rang, she motioned with her head for him to follow.
Turning to Nissa, Marley asked, "Will you still be here when I get back?" Nissa ignored him. "I'll take that as a yes," he said, closing the door.