Secret of Betrayal: Book Two of The Destroyer Trilogy (30 page)

My hands being behind Milo’s neck is the only
thing that allows me to keep my secret. If he puts me down he’ll spot the link
at once. I glare at Braden, hoping that will make him back off. All I get in
return is a steely look.

He promised to help me keep our link a secret
from Milo! Surely he won’t come over here. I shake my head at him, begging. He
keeps marching forward.

He would! I can’t believe him! What is he
thinking? My arms tighten to a stranglehold around Milo’s neck. He looks down,
and I think he’s about to kiss my forehead, but my panic stops him.

“Libby, are you all right?”

Braden catches my panic as well, but he
continues marching toward me, looking rather determined. “Milo, I don’t feel
very well. I want to go back.”

Milo frowns. “I better get you to my dad to
check you out. Braden was at least right about needing to go to the hospital.”

“What?” I hiss. “I’m fine. I don’t need a
doctor.”

Milo looks confused. “I thought you just said
you weren’t feeling well?”

Milo looks around, thinking correctly that
something I saw has upset me. I panic and latch onto him more tightly so he
can’t look behind him. Now Milo looks even more worried.

“Fine,” I say, “I don’t feel good. I just don’t
want to go to the doctor, even if it’s your dad. You know how much I hate
hospitals.”

“Libby, my dad isn’t going to hurt you,” he
chides. “I’ll be with you the whole time, anyway. Come on, I’ll take you back.”

Relief sweeps through me as I feel Milo reach
for his Spiritualism so he can take me back home. Part of me thought Braden
must not have been thinking about our link being revealed if he showed up here,
but his shoulders fall as Milo prepares to leave, making it clear Braden knew
exactly what he was doing.

Chapter 2
3

Impossible Feat

Convincing Milo’s dad that I don’t need to be
taken to the hospital proves impossible. It takes both Milo and Lance pulling
me along behind them to get me out of the car. Milo very nearly has to carry me
just to get me into the building. Milo and Lance have both been through this
with me before, so they are prepared for my reaction to the smell of antiseptic
and latex. Braden, on the other hand, watches from a distance, an amused smile
plastered firmly on his face. Not even my shame at acting like a huge baby
keeps me from glaring at him.

At least I don’t have to wait in line, a perk of
Milo’s dad being an ER doctor. He draws the curtain around me and gets started.
The only consolation I have occurs when he motions to the bed next to me and
tells Lance to get on it. Dr. Hanover is not as sure as Lance that he’s
perfectly fine after being attacked by Saia’s Sihir and later passing out.
Lance doesn’t look thrilled when Dr. Hanover mentions stitches for the cut and
a CT scan for his head, but throws me a haughty look as he climbs up without a
word of complaint. Jerk. When Dr. Hanover turns away from us to get a blood
pressure cuff, I stick my tongue out at him. I’ve wanted to do that all day.

Milo rolls his eyes at both of us. He should
just be happy Lance has been much less antagonistic toward him lately. Mine and
Lance’s relationship has changed slowly since I broke my block, but somehow
he’s reverted back to the protective, and mildly annoying, big brother figure
he was all through our childhood. I know it bothers Milo that Lance and I have
become close friends again, but I have truly missed this side of Lance. I feel
as if I have gotten back a brother, not a possible boyfriend. I hope Milo
understands that, because I don’t think I could give Lance up if he asked it of
me. Even though I hated Lance fiercely after he tried to kill me, there was
still always some regret that I would never again have him in my life. I feel
good about where we are now.

My thoughts and my moment of pleasure are
squashed when Dr. Hanover turns around with a giant syringe. Okay, maybe it
isn’t any bigger than normal, but I stiffen and try to flatten myself against
the hospital bed. Lance snickers at me. I can’t even force myself to turn my
head so I can glare at him. My jaw is clamped too tightly to tell him to shut
up. Milo squeezes my hand more firmly. It doesn’t help.

“Libby,” Dr. Hanover says, “I’m just going to
draw some blood, okay? Braden mentioned the sensitivity to cold you’re still
experiencing. I want to do a full workup to make sure you’re all right.”

My bones seem to grate together as I turn to
face Braden, who has snuck up beside me somehow. I must really be a mess if I
didn’t feel him approach. “Thanks a lot,” I growl at him.

He doesn’t say anything in his defense.

“Just try to relax, Libby,” Dr. Hanover says,
“I’ll be as quick as possible, okay?”

Relax? Yeah, that’s really not going to happen. Unclenching
my fist is pretty much impossible, right now.
In fact … a
wave of calm ripples over me.
My body releases its tension slowly, but
it happens. Shocked by such a sudden change, I close my eyes and try not to
lose the calm. Only after a second with no other distractions do I feel the
slight point of pressure on the side of my arm. Light and small, I recognize
the feel of Braden’s skin against mine immediately. My calm deepens knowing
where the feeling is coming from. I don’t open my eyes, though. I don’t want to
see the needle in my arm. Even more, I know I can’t keep myself from looking at
Braden.

The rest of the examination passes quickly and
Dr. Hanover goes over to check on Lance. As soon as he leaves, Milo leans over
and kisses my forehead. I finally open my eyes.

“You did great, Libby.” The pride in his eyes
makes my stomach turn.

“Thanks,” I say weakly.

Braden says nothing. In fact, he’s unusually
quiet for the rest of the evening, except to advise that I cancel my training
for tonight.
But just me.
Everyone else is still
planning on going on with what they were supposed to be doing tonight, even
Lance after getting cleared by Milo’s dad. Thankfully, everyone else
already having
plans to train cuts the night short.
Although, it does mean I’m going to miss out on time to work on my Naturalism
tonight, which is a shame because I’m getting really good at it. But I do need
a break. Convincing Milo I’m fine driving myself home is impossible. He pulls
into his usual parking space much faster than I would have liked and kills the
engine.

Popcorn, a movie with Milo, and the bag of
chocolate truffles I’ve been saving are what I want tonight.
Along
with a chance to cry for my friend.
It takes being attacked by a crazed
spirit that used to be my friend for me to get a night off. I shudder at the
memory of Saia’s face twisted by madness. I shy away from using her death as an
excuse to take some time off, but I can’t bear the idea of doing any work
tonight.

Milo walks around the car and opens my door. He reaches
in to help me. I take his arm, though I don’t really need it, and let him walk
me to the door. Once inside, he makes sure I’m comfortable on the bed before
sitting down next to me. When he doesn’t move to snuggle up with me like I
want, I look up at him questioningly.

“You aren’t staying?”

His expression is torn. “I want to, but Casey
called to remind me about working with her tonight. I know how much you want me
to figure out doing an Inquest, but it’s been a hard day for you. I don’t want
to leave you alone.”

I’d forgotten about Casey completely. It
wouldn’t be a big deal to push training with her back one day, but I know she’s
going to be out of town all next week.
With as close as we
are to being ready to rescue the Ciphers, waiting another week makes me
nervous.

“Maybe you should go,” I say, trying not to let
my disappointment show through.

Milo slips his arm around my shoulders. “I’d
rather stay. I know you don’t want to be alone tonight.”

“If Casey weren’t going on vacation …”

“But she’ll be back.”

“What if that doesn’t leave you with enough
time? We’re so close to being ready, Milo.”

I don’t say it, but once we figure out the last
few steps of the escape route, all we’ll be waiting on is Milo to master the
Inquest. I hate putting pressure like that on him, but I could definitely use
his help when we make our attempt. I keep these reasons far from my lips, but
I’m sure Milo is thinking the same thing.

“Do you really think Casey can help me?” he
asks.

I nod. “She has such a gentle nature, I’m
positive she’ll be able to show you how to use your power more calmly.

“What should I do?”

Stay with me all night, I think. I don’t want to
let go of him, but then I’m being selfish. The Ciphers need him to master an
Inquest so he can help me free them. “Why don’t you call Casey back and tell
her you’ll still meet with her tonight? It’s been such a long
day,
I think I just want to go to bed, anyway.”

Milo doesn’t move. “Libby, I can stay.”

“No, you should go. I’ve been worried about
this, and I know you have too. We’ll both feel better if you work with Casey.
If she can’t help, we’ll try this again tomorrow night, okay?”

He frowns, but a little relief shows in his
expression as well.
“Okay, but only if you’re sure.”

I nod and kiss him. “You can tell me how it went
in the morning.”

“Okay, get some rest.”

I walk Milo back to the door. In my head I am
begging him to ignore my words and stay regardless of what it might cost. Will
a week really matter that much? Will he even be able to perform an Inquest on
the Ciphers? It’s very possible I’m the only one who can. I don’t want him to
leave. Please, I plead silently, forget Casey and stay with me so I have
someone to cry for Saia with when her death finally hits me as I know it will.

I stand in the warm summer air, reluctant to let
Milo go. His arms slip around me in a hug. When he starts to pull back, I hold
him tight for a few more seconds. Finally, he steps away with a goodbye kiss
and slides into his car. I watch him pull away, unable to hold back my tears. I
know it’s silly to cry when I told him to leave, but I can’t help it. I turn
back toward my room. The flash of headlights stops me and pulls me back around.

I wipe away my tears quickly at the sight of the
Aston Martin. Braden peers at me from behind the windshield as he parks. He
steps out of his car slowly. Silence falls between us like a stagnant cloud. I
stay in my doorway and say, “That was a dirty trick you pulled today.”

He stares at me, innocent as a newborn lamb. I’m
not fooled.

“I can’t believe you came to the spirit world
while I was there with Milo. You didn’t care at all if he found out about our
link.”

“No, I didn’t care,” Braden says firmly. “I
loved Saia. She has been more of a mother to me over the years than anyone else
has ever been. I wasn’t going to miss her memorial just to keep a secret I
don’t even think needs to be kept. Not everything is about you, Libby.” Braden
runs a hand through his hair roughly, his frustration palpable. “But I was also
worried about you. Without me there, I wasn’t sure you’d have enough strength
to stay. I didn’t want you to miss the memorial either.”

Feeling more than a little bit chastised, I look
away. The anger in my voice a few seconds ago has disappeared when I ask,
“Braden, what are you doing here?”

“Just making sure you’re okay,” he says.

“Well, I am.”

“It doesn’t look like it,” he says. “Where did
Milo go? I didn’t expect him to leave you tonight.”

Instantly defensive, I say, “I told him to go.
He needs to master an Inquest before it’s too late, so I told him he should go
work with Casey like he’d planned earlier.”

“Sill, I didn’t think he would leave after
everything that happened today.”

Neither did I, but it was my own fault. The echo
of Braden’s words is clear. He wouldn’t have left me. He’s obviously proven
that, but maybe he expected Milo to leave. Is that why he’s here? Milo’s
birthday dinner wasn’t the last time I’ve slipped his mind in favor of
something Cipher-related. Milo should have been with me earlier today, but it
wasn’t his fault. He was working. No one can fault him for that. Regardless of
that fact, tears burn at the corners of my eyes. I refuse to cry again. “Milo
needed to go. He understands how important it is to me to have him master an
Inquest.”

“Does he understand how important you should be
to him?” Braden asks quietly.

Dropping my head to avoid his seeing a rogue
tear slide down my already stained face, I say, “Go home, please.”

He doesn’t leave. I sigh and rub my hand across
my face to banish the tear. I don’t want to do argue about this right now. I’m
about to go inside and lock the door when Braden speaks.

“What happened today … the Guardians purposely
turned Saia into a Sihir so she would kill you, didn’t they? You kept
mentioning them, you even told me about what you knew, but I didn’t think it
would ever happen. I guess I never thought I’d really be confronted with a
Sihir.
They’re
are real, and the Guardians know how
to create them and use them for their own purposes. I’ve heard the stories and
rumors, of course, but before today I never really believed they were real, or
understood what they could actually do. Even if it was true, I never thought
the Guardians would do something like that. They killed an innocent woman just
so they could use her as a weapon.” His body sinks in on itself. I think he’s
just realized how truly corrupt his “brothers” actually are. I walk over to him
and sit down on the hood of his car.

“You honestly didn’t know about the Guardians
using Sihirs?”

“I knew they claimed they could do it,” Braden
says, “but I thought it was just an empty threat to scare people.”