KAYLEE
The smell of burned herbs wasn’t something I would ever consider soothing or refreshing. Yet those were the words the man had used. “Stupid lying bastard,” I muttered under my breath as I squeezed my nose and tried not to sneeze again.
Fanning my hand in front of my face, I raced over to the window and struggled to open it with one hand, since I didn’t want to release my nose just yet. As soon as it was open, I practically pressed my forehead to the steel bars and inhaled to my lungs’ capacity.
Smells of exhaust fumes, overcooked food from my neighbor’s house, and the usual day-to-day life of an area like the one I lived in met my nose. It wasn’t pleasant, but at least it didn’t smell like charred vegetables.
Luckily, Zeke was asleep in my bedroom, and I had closed the door t
