Strike ( Book 4: Stronger Series )

22. Crooked Lines

Now that Kayla and I were officially barricaded in my bedroom, the adrenaline and drama of the night had faded away into the background and all I felt now was exhaustion. It was almost midnight, and I wanted nothing more than to be out of this goddamn dress and under my fucking bedsheets so I could finally close my eyes and let the day end. But no, I had to wait on Darren.

Six guards stood inside the room, including Clive and Owen. Two were Matt's guards, watching Kayla, who was sitting silently on the couch next to me. Her eyes were red and blotchy as she stared at the floor, her folded hands clutched so tightly her knuckles were going white.

"Kayla? Are you okay?" I asked softly as I turned to her.

Her mouth was in a tight line as if she were trying to keep from crying, her body shaking slightly.

"Hey, Kayla, look at me," I urged gently, rubbing my hands up and down her arms in a failed attempt at comfort. "Look at me, breathe, it's going to be okay. Everything is fine."

"You..." she attempted to say. "You just... You just killed someone," she whispered, her eyes wide with shock. "You didn't even blink! You just caught that knife like it was no big deal and then threw it right back at him!"

It occurred to me that I didn't exactly feel anything about what I had done. And wasn't that the point? I shouldn't feel bad about killing people in this kind of world I'd been forced into, especially those who tried to kill me.

"He tried to kill me, Kayla. I did what I had to," I replied gently.

"You threw a knife into his throat," she murmured. "How did you do that? I've never seen that much blood in my life."

I didn't know how much I should reveal to her, but she needed to know we didn't live in civility or democracy anymore. It was survival of the fittest, and I intended to survive for as long as I could.

"I've undergone a lot of training since we last saw each other, Kayla. Knives are kind of my specialty now."

"But you almost died!" she shrieked, mascara tears now starting to stream down her pretty face. "I almost watched you die! I almost lost you!"

Shit, wasn't the first time I'd heard that.

"Shhhh!" I shushed her, trying to quiet her down. "But I didn't die. I'm fine. You gotta calm yourself down. Everything's okay now."

Just when she started to quiet, the door to the bedroom swung open and in walked Darren and Matt, both wearing scowls.

"Kayla," Matt called Kayla's name as he moved toward us. Eyes downcast, she immediately rose to his side without a sound. Rising myself, I couldn't help but notice Matt was completely clean, still in his black suit, unmarred and kept, not even his hair was out of place. Where had he been the entire time? Fucker.

Wrapping his arm around Kayla, he nodded to Darren and led her out of the room.

Darren hadn't even moved; his eyes stared me down with an intense scowl that had my stomach clenching and my left foot slowly moving behind me.

"Out," he ordered, and the remaining guards cleared the room in seconds.

That intense stare remained on me, causing my heart rate to spike and my shoulders to shift in anticipation. Why was he pissed at me?

And then he moved in on me, maneuvering quickly enough to cause me to jump slightly, but my breath caught in my lungs when his hands only captured my face, holding it up and forcing me to look directly at him.

He sighed as he stared down at me, his thumbs caressing along my cheeks in a soothing manner, unconsciously revealing the regret in his eyes that dared to peek through.