Episode 4: The Truth He Shouldn’t Want
1184 Words
The shop smelled like blood.
Faint. Almost hidden beneath crushed petals and fresh flowers I hadn’t had the energy to replace properly.
But it was there.
And he noticed.
Of course he did.
Kael stood a few steps away from me, his eyes slowly scanning the damage. The broken window. The splintered table. The subtle cracks in the floor that shouldn’t exist.
Nothing about this looked normal.
Nothing about me was.
“You should leave,” I said quietly.
My voice was steady again. Controlled. Like nothing had happened.
Like I hadn’t just torn through three vampire enforcers in the middle of my shop.
He didn’t move.
“That’s the second time you’ve told me that,” he replied.
“And yet you’re still here.”
A faint pause.
Then—
“Maybe I don’t listen well.”
I exhaled slowly, turning away from him and kneeling beside the broken stems scattered across the floor. My fingers moved automatically, gathering what could still be saved.
Routine.
Normalcy.
Something to hold onto.
“You saw what happened,” I said. “That should be enough reason.”
“For most people,” he said.
I didn’t look at him.
“And you’re not most people?”
“No.”
Simple.
Certain.
That word lingered in the air longer than it should have.
Of course you’re not.
I already knew that.
I picked up a crushed rose, its petals bruised dark red, almost black at the edges. My thumb brushed over it gently.
Ruined.
Still beautiful.
Still dangerous.
“You’re not surprised,” I said.
Now I looked at him.
Really looked.
His posture was relaxed, but not careless. His gaze steady, not shocked, not confused.
Just… calculating.
“You didn’t react like someone seeing that for the first time.”
A faint smile touched his lips.
“You didn’t either.”
My grip tightened slightly around the rose.
“That wasn’t my point.”
“No,” he said. “It wasn’t.”
Silence followed.
Heavy. Pressed between us like something waiting to break.
He took a step closer.
Slow.
Deliberate.
“I’m guessing,” he continued, “that men like that don’t just walk into random flower shops.”
“No,” I said softly.
“They were looking for you.”
I didn’t answer.
Didn’t need to.
He already knew.
“And the one from last night?” he added. “Also not random.”
Still silence.
But this time, it felt louder.
Because the truth was already there.
Sitting between us.
Unavoidable.
“You attract dangerous people,” he said.
I let out a quiet breath.
“You’re one of them.”
That made him pause.
Just slightly.
Then—
“Fair.”
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then I stood, brushing dust and petals from my hands, putting just enough distance between us to breathe.
“You shouldn’t stay here,” I said again.
More serious this time.
“Whatever you think this is… it’s not something you want to be part of.”
His eyes followed me as I moved.
“You don’t get to decide that.”
I stopped.
Turned back.
“And you don’t understand what you’re walking into.”
“Then explain it.”
I let out a small, humorless laugh.
“You think I can just sit you down and say, what? ‘By the way, I’m being hunted by things you shouldn’t even know exist’?”
“Yes.”
The answer came too fast.
Too easily.
It caught me off guard.
“…You’re insane,” I muttered.
“Probably.”
But he didn’t look like he was joking.
That was the problem.
He wasn’t scared.
Not even after everything he saw.
That meant one of two things.
He was stupid.
Or—
He already knew more than he was letting on.
My eyes narrowed slightly.
“…Who are you?”
There it was.
The question that had been sitting in the back of my mind since the moment he walked in.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he studied me again.
Like he was deciding something.
Weighing options.
“You first,” he said.
Of course.
I crossed my arms, leaning slightly against the edge of the table.
“I asked first.”
“And you expect an honest answer?”
“No,” I said. “But I expect something better than silence.”
A faint shift in his expression.
Almost impressed.
Then—
“I told you my name.”
“That wasn’t your name.”
A pause.
Then, slowly…
He smiled.
Not casual.
Not light.
Something sharper.
“Careful,” he said. “You’re starting to sound suspicious.”
“I am suspicious.”
“Good.”
That word again.
Too calm.
Too certain.
I pushed off the table, stepping closer to him now.
Matching his distance.
Matching his presence.
“Let me make this simple,” I said quietly. “People are looking for me. Dangerous people. The kind that don’t stop.”
“I noticed.”
“And if you stay,” I continued, “you become part of that.”
Another pause.
This time, longer.
But not uncertain.
Deliberate.
“Maybe I already am.”
My breath caught.
Just for a second.
Too fast to hide completely.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
He didn’t answer right away.
Instead, his gaze flicked briefly toward the broken window.
Toward the direction the vampires had vanished.
Then back to me.
“They weren’t the only ones looking for you,” he said.
Cold.
Sharp.
Real.
My stomach tightened.
Of course not.
That would be too easy.
“And you?” I asked slowly.
His eyes held mine.
Unflinching.
“I’m here for a reason.”
The air between us shifted again.
Different this time.
Not just tension.
Something deeper.
More dangerous.
Because now—
It wasn’t just about what I was hiding.
It was about what he was.
“And what reason is that?” I asked.
For the first time since he walked in…
He hesitated.
Just slightly.
But I saw it.
And that was enough to tell me—
Whatever his answer was…
I wasn’t going to like it.
“…I haven’t decided yet,” he said finally.
A lie.
Or half of one.
I stepped back slowly, my chest tightening in a way I didn’t like.
This was bad.
Worse than the vampires.
Because they were predictable.
This—
Wasn’t.
“You should,” I said quietly. “Because next time they come back…”
My voice softened.
Not weaker.
Just… real.
“…I might not be able to hold back.”
He watched me carefully.
Taking that in.
Understanding more than he should.
Then—
“That’s exactly why I’m staying.”
My heart skipped.
Not fear.
Something else.
Something far more dangerous.
Because deep down…
I knew.
This wasn’t just coincidence.
This wasn’t just bad timing.
This was the beginning of something I wouldn’t be able to control.
And for the first time since I ran—
I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
- Writer
