The Weight Of Remaining

CHAPTER 13

My body moved before I gave it permission. The world around me stretched, sound thinned. The bells became distant. The shouts blurred together.

I ran... Fast.

Breaking my rules to not show too much of what I can do, but rules became much harder to follow when a child was about to be torn apart.

The creature dropped as the child looked up.

I reached her first, barely.

I grabbed the back of her coat and threw myself sideways, pulling her against me as the creature hit the ground where she’d been hiding.

Wood got shattered everywhere and the stone beneath the monster cracked.

Pain shot through my shoulder as I rolled across the pavement with the child clutched against my chest. For a second, I couldn’t breathe. Then the girl started crying and I forcefully pushed myself up on one elbow despite the pain.

“You’re okay,” I told her, though my voice sounded rougher than I intended. “You’re okay.”

She stared at me with wide, terrified eyes.

Behind me, the creature unfolded itself from the wreckage. A shadow fell across us. And as the creature opened its mouth I tightened my grip on the girl.

Then a line of golden light wrapped around the creature’s neck and yanked it backward.

Rowan.

The monster slammed into the side of a building.

“Caelyn!” he shouted, sounding far less amused than usual. “Move!”

I was already moving.

The girl clung to me as I pushed her toward the nearest guard.

“Take her.”

The guard blinked at me, probably because I had appeared out of nowhere with a child in my arms.

“Take her,” I repeated this time with more urgency in my tone.

This time he listened.

I turned back just as the smaller creature lunged. Kaiden appeared between us. One second there was empty air, the next there was black leather and a very irritated expression.

He lifted one hand and the creature’s body twisted mid-jump, one shoulder jerking backward as if something invisible had caught it.

Not enough to stop it, but enough to ruin its aim.

It hit the ground beside him instead of on top of him and Kaiden drove his knee into its skull. The crack echoed down the street, with that the creature collapsed, then twitched. Still alive.

Because apparently nothing could be simple.

Kaiden looked at me, his eyes moving quickly over my face, my shoulders, my hands. Checking if I was hurt.

“You were supposed to stay with Elias.” he said with visible irrigation.

“I did.”

“For about thirty seconds.” His eyes narrowed.

“Thirty important seconds.” I gave a polite smile.

The corner of his mouth twitched. Then his gaze moved past me. The amusement vanished.

“Behind you.”

The smaller creature had risen again. Its claw swept toward me.

I ducked on instinct.

The strike passed over my head close enough to move my hair.

Very graceful, Caelyn. I thought to myself. Definitely didn't almost die.

I grabbed a broken piece of wood from the ground and slammed it into the creature’s throat. It staggered. Kaiden moved beside me and together, we forced it back.

The creature hissed.

Then Finn appeared from nowhere and drove a blade through the back of its skull.

It dropped instantly. The smaller creature was dead, finally.

I stared down at it.

Then at Finn.

He pulled the blade free with an expression that suggested this was a normal Tuesday.

“It was recovering too quickly,” he said with an empty expression.

“Thank you for the incredibly calm explanation.” I said.

Rowan jogged toward us, slightly out of breath. His eyes moved from the dead creature to me. Then to the child being carried away by the guard. Then back to me.

“Did you just cross half the street in, what, two seconds?”

“One and a half,” Finn corrected.

“Not helping.” Rowan pointed at him without looking away from me.

“I was motivated.” I wiped dust from my sleeve.

“That is not an explanation.” Rowan stared at me.

“It’s the one you’re getting.”

Kaiden’s gaze lingered on me a bit too long. Not suspicious exactly, more like he was concerned. Which was somehow worse. But before he could say anything, the larger creature roared again, unfortunately this one was still alive.

Great. The night continued to improve.

The monster had torn free from Talia’s stone restraints and now charged towards me. Talia cursed and threw both hands forward trying to chain it again, but failed.

I moved, but...

Too slow.

For the first time that night...

Too slow.