Ashes (Book 2 The Kindred Series) (9 page)

Slowly, reluctantly, he released his
hold upon her. Cassie gave him a small, reassuring smile before
heading in to swim with the sharks. The buzz instantly grew around
her; the murmurs became louder and nastier as she wound her way
through the crowd. She did her best to tune them out, but they only
got worse the farther from Devon she got.

Her rumbling stomach clenched, her
appetite vanished. Instead of all the talk dying down with time, it
seemed to be growing in force, becoming angrier. Regretting her
decision to leave Devon behind, she almost turned away from the
lunch line, but she could not give them the satisfaction of
realizing that they were getting to her.

She kept her chin held high as people
snickered and whispered behind their hands. Though she didn’t know
why they bothered to stay behind their hands, their whispers were
as loud as gunshots to her. “Well, look at who it is.”

She didn’t even bother to look up as
Mark Young appeared by her side. Mark had followed her around for
years, hounding her to go out with him. Having sensed something off
about Mark, Chris had cautioned her away from the muscular boy a
long time ago, but Cassie would have stayed away even without
Chris’s warning. She had never felt anything for Mark, but he had
been relentless in his pursuit, and often highly annoying. He had
also been one of the first people to turn against her when she
began to see Devon, and it had been his actions that had given the
rest of the student body an excuse to hate her.

“Ah but you’re not so special anymore
are you?” Cassie continued to ignore him as she moved slowly
through the line. “How the mighty have fallen. Guess that’s what
you get for being a slut.”

Though she had not wanted to give him
the satisfaction of reacting in anyway, she could not stop herself
from shooting him a dirty look. He chuckled softly, enjoying the
fact that he had finally gotten a reaction out of her. Cassie
shivered; her skin crawled with disgust as his arm brushed against
hers. “Truth hurts, doesn’t it?”

She kept her chin held high, but inside
she was a seething mass of raw nerves and revulsion. She wished
that she hadn’t sent Devon away, she wished that she had never
stepped foot in this line. She wished for many things, but none of
them were going to do her any good at the moment. She was here,
Devon was not, and Mark seemed determined to make her
miserable.

“Doesn’t it, whore?”

Cassie’s jaw clenched tightly as she
fought the fierce urge to punch him. If she hit him though, she
would probably hurt him. And no matter how much she wouldn’t mind
hurting him, she knew her conscience could not handle it. “I’m
talking to you,” he growled, his growing agitation evident in his
voice.

Her eyes flickered briefly toward him.
Shock riveted her. His eyes were feral, frantic. She was surprised
and horrified by the lack of control that radiated from him. He was
about ready to snap. Fear coiled through Cassie. She took a small
step back, her attempt at bravery forgotten in the face of his
wildly unstable persona. She did not know what was wrong with him
lately, but this was the second time she had seen him half crazed
as he came after her. The first time had led to the school hating
her, this time she was afraid it might lead to actual violence. She
wasn’t entirely certain that even if she did hit him, it would
affect him in his current condition.

Cassie glanced around the cafeteria,
searching for an escape, but they had slipped into the inner area
of the lunch line. A wall now blocked her back and students were
crammed around her. Students who would offer her no help right now.
Out of habit, and looking for something more to protect herself
with, Cassie grabbed a tray. She clenched it tightly, holding it
against her chest in a poor attempt to shield herself from his
bizarre behavior. It did little to help.

She glanced at the crowd still ahead of
her, silently urging them to move faster. “You always thought you
were too good for all of us. For me. Now you’re
nothing.”

She shot a fierce glare at him, anger
boiling up to replace the curdling horror inside of her. “I am too
good for you,” she retorted, unable to stop herself.

His eyes bugged out of his head, his
hands fisted at his sides and for a brief moment she thought that
he was going to hit her. “Bitch!” he spat.

Cassie had enough. Tossing her tray
onto the metal railing, she turned and began to shove her way
through the crowd, ignoring the disgruntled looks she received.
Pushing free of the crowd, she inhaled a shaky breath, wanting
nothing more than to be free of the cafeteria, and the
school.

A hand seized hold of her arm, ripping
her around. A startled cry escaped her as Mark’s hand tightened on
her, his grip becoming painful. “Don’t you walk away from
me!”

“Let go Mark.” She tugged on her arm,
but he wouldn’t release her.

Cassie’s hand fisted, she didn’t care
what happened she was going to knock him on his ass. Another hand
shot forward, seizing hold of Marks’ arm in a bone crushing grip
before Cassie could let her fist fly. Cassie’s eyes shot to Devon
as he stepped forward, fury radiating from every inch of his body.
“Let her go before I break your arm,” he snarled.

Mark’s mouth dropped, his eyes widened
in pain as Devon clenched down harder. Mark’s fingers released her,
not by choice, but because he could no longer hold her. Mark tried
to pull his arm free, but Devon held tight. His jaw was clenched, a
muscle twitched in his cheek as he glared violently at
Mark.

“I told you before to stay the hell
away from her.”

The words were spoken softly, but they
caused the hair on Cassie’s arms and neck to rise. She had thought
Mark was out of control, but she could sense the unraveling
restraint that Devon fought so hard to keep in check. Cassie
glanced at Mark’s arm; it would only take a little more pressure
for it to snap.

“Devon,” Cassie breathed, worry flaring
through her.

Chris appeared beside him, blocking the
curious stares of the students that passed by. “What’s going on
guys?” he asked brightly for the benefit of those surrounding them,
but his eyes were dark and turbulent as he studied Devon wearily.
He glanced at Cassie before focusing his attention on
Mark.

Cassie reached out, stroking Devon’s
arm, trying to reach him through the thick cloud of fury that
suffused him. His eyes flickered to her, burning hotly. She was
momentarily frightened of him, frightened by what he might do. She
had never seen him like this, wild, frenzied, so very close to
killing. Cassie’s breath caught in her chest, but she did not move
away from him. She would not abandon him now, this was her Devon.
No matter what, good or bad, she loved him with every ounce of her
being. She just had to reach him, to stop him from doing something
awful in front of so many witnesses. She had to stop him from doing
something that he would regret.

“Devon please, just let him go. It’s
ok.”

His eyes flickered briefly, light
coming momentarily back into them before the darkness descended
over him once more. He turned slowly back to Mark, who looked truly
petrified as he gaped down at the hand clenching his arm. Cassie
glanced pleadingly at Chris, but he remained silent, stony as he
glared at Mark. She felt hopeless, lost.

There was no one to help her now, no
one to stop Devon if he snapped completely. Devon took a step
closer to Mark, pulling his arm against his chest. Terror tore
through Cassie. He was going to kill Mark.

Abandoning all caution, she threw
herself forward, instinctively knowing that Devon would not hurt
her. Shoving her way in between them, she stood on tiptoe to grasp
hold of Devon’s cheeks and swiftly bring his mouth down to hers.
Shock slammed into him, stiffening him against her. She stood
awkwardly, her lips pressed against his compressed, hard mouth as
she waited breathlessly to see what he would do. His body remained
unmoving for a moment more, and then everything changed.

Cassie had only wanted to divert his
attention from Mark, to keep Devon from hurting him. She had not
expected that all of the frenzy he had been feeling toward Mark
would be diverted to her. His hardness melted away, he released
Mark as his arms clamped tightly around her. He lifted her off the
ground, pressing her flush against him.

Fear trickled briefly through her; she
had never felt him this wild, this savage. He clenched the back of
her head, his fingers threaded through the bottom of the loose
twist in her hair. His mouth was firm against hers, desperate,
fierce. Though she was certain that he would never hurt her, she
also realized that he was highly unstable right now, barely in
control of himself. His mouth opened against hers, his tongue
plummeted in.

A small moan escaped Cassie. She forgot
all her doubts and concerns as she melted against him. Heat
suffused her, pooling through her entire being, warming her
everywhere. Her heart hammered in her chest, she fit perfectly
against him. Her hands clenched tight at his neck, she wanted to
bury herself in the security and bliss that he provided her. The
entire world, and the awful events of the day, disappeared as she
became completely focused on him.

He was her everything, he was the one
thing that could make her whole, complete. He worked the knot out
of her hair, letting it free to flow down her back. His tongue
stroked over her mouth, tasting her, savoring her. He was hard
against her, the muscles in his arms rigid, yet she could feel a
small tremor working through him as his kiss deepened, becoming
almost bruising in its intensity. She did not utter a complaint,
did not make a sound. She knew that he needed this, that he needed
her.

She just hadn’t realized how
much.

A shiver of fear raced through her as
his teeth hardened and lengthened. She could feel them against her
bottom lip, fierce, needy. Deadly. Though she was scared, and more
than a little over her head, she could not stop the thrill of
excitement that raced through her.

Curiosity, and an overwhelming urge
that she could not deny, took hold of her. Gently, lightly, she
flicked her tongue over the tips of his engorged teeth. Devon
shuddered; his hands clenched tighter upon her, his kiss became
harsher. She was lost to him, lost to everything that he was, and
the wonderful sensations that he made her feel. Never in her life
had she experienced anything as breathtaking as this, and she
wanted more.

She wanted all of him.

Devon broke away suddenly, releasing
her as he took a swift step back. Cassie took a stumbling step
back, shocked by his abrupt release of her. It took her a moment
before she could get her wobbly legs firmly beneath her again. She
stared breathlessly up at him, shaken, and unfulfilled. His emerald
eyes were dark, tortured, wounded. Horror tore through her at the
sight of his anguish, his unraveling control, his desperate need.
For the first time it hit her just how hard it was for him to be
around her, how hard it was for him to control himself, and keep
her safe.

Tears sprang to her eyes, hating the
torment that radiated from him. Torment that she had caused him.
Her hand flew to her swollen lips; a choked sound of dismay escaped
her as the tears burned her eyes. The last thing in the world she
wanted was to hurt him, to upset him in anyway, and yet that was
exactly what she was doing to him. She was torturing
him.

“Devon,” she whispered, her voice
choked with horror and sorrow.

His darkened gaze turned to Chris,
small tremors ran through his fisted hands. “Mark?”

Chris cleared his throat, obviously
surprised and uncomfortable with what he had just witnessed. “Ran
off the first chance he got.”

Devon nodded briskly. “Get her out of
here. I don’t want her around these people anymore. I have to go,
but I’m leaving her in your hands.”

Cassie blinked away her tears as his
gaze turned back to her. She wanted to reach out to him, to comfort
him, but she instinctively knew that she should not. He was close
to completely unraveling and her touch might just push him over the
edge. Though his eyes were tormented, love also shone from them and
that would have to be enough for now.

With a shaking hand, he reached out and
briefly caressed her cheek before turning on his heel and
disappearing into the gaping crowd. Cassie blinked rapidly,
startled to realize that they were still in the middle of the
crowded, oddly silent cafeteria. Questioning, condemning stares
were focused intently upon her. Chris stepped forward, still
looking slightly shell shocked as he slid his arm through
hers.

“Come on Cassie,” he said
gently.

She stared helplessly up at him,
wishing that he could offer her answers to the questions and
confusion enveloping her. For so long Chris had been her rock, the
one person that she could turn to when she needed solace. Right now
he was just as lost as she was. He led her swiftly through the
crowd as it began to come alive again; the comments were no longer
whispered as accusations were hurled at her. She barely heard any
of them through the haze that surrounded her.

They reached the cafeteria doors as
Melissa came strolling around the corner, her books held tight
against her chest. Her eyebrows rose in surprise when she saw them,
her mouth parted slightly. Her gaze darted behind them, narrowing
as the buzz in the cafeteria increased. “What happened?” she
demanded fiercely.