Graze Her Heart

Chapter 10.

BOOM.

Thunder shook the room as Greya jolted upright.

She'd been splayed across the ridiculously large bed of the new room in Oakland. She and Quin had landed a few hours ago.

Her companion was uncharacteristically solemn and brooding the entire flight. Unsure of what to do, she nudged him a few times only to receive strained smiles and quick glances.

After they'd reached the motel, Quin didn't waste time telling her not to move an inch outside the door and that he was going to be back soon. Greya subconsciously made a note to remind Quin soon didn't mean five hours.

BOOM

Lighting flashed and lit the room in an eerie glow. The windows shook with the sound.

Greya slipped off the bed and padded her way to the small window. She always did love the chaos of storms, she thought tracing the stream of rainwater behind the pane of glass.

Her mind turned to Quin. As it did too often for her liking. He'd been stressed since Helon had appeared at Target. It was clear there was a history there. Quin hadn't volunteered information so Greya hadn't bothered to ask, not wanting to prod.

She couldn't stop thinking about how they both had the same otherworldly blue. They were likely related. Brothers? Cousins maybe.

A stiff knock sounded at the door. Greya's head swivelled toward it. She crouched down slowly and reached into her boots.

Kandyan knives. Beautifully curved pieces of forgery. The blades were courtesy of the High Master.

The Jenkov made it a point to never own personal objects or momentos, but a few had tattoos or jewelry. Greya had her knives. They were stolen along with her, when the Jenkov took her from the circus.

When she was twelve she went snooping around the temple. She slipped into the High Master's quarters, cloaked in shadows. There, she'd found the pair of blades. She recognised them, then stole them. They'd belonged to the same knife thrower who'd sneak her little toffees when they thought her mother wasn't watching. She'd called him Uncle Senehas.

Greya felt a pang of sorrow and longing for the man who'd treated her with fatherly love, as she palmed his masterfully made twin blades.

Another round of knocking pulled her out of her dark reverie.

Gliding to the door, she hid herself. She'd be obscured from the line of vision of anyone who barged in.

Blades out and knees bent, she waited. Greya knew it wasn't Quin. The man had the only key given to this room.

She heard a deep sigh from the other side of the door and suddenly the knob blew straight off the door, flying past Greya's face.

The door was slowly pushed open and a head poked in.

"Pet? Hello?" Called a lilting voice. Helon. Soft thumps echoed across the carpet as he strode to the center of the room.

Greya shifted slightly and Helon suddenly turned to the corner she was settled in.

"Hello pet," he greeted with a wide smile. It was so comforting and warm Greya might have smiled back if she hadn't noticed how his fists were clenched so tightly, his knuckles were white from strain.

Not replying, she took a few steps forward, her weapons in hand. She didn't trust the spaghetti noodle looking man. She barely trusted Quin. She wasn't making the novice mistake of letting her guard down for a smile. Instead, she kept her face blank.