Chapter Four - Thomas #2
I regard him coolly. Ketill stares back.
“Should I be embarrassed for both of us for that little line?” I ask. “I might actually have to walk away, it was terrible.” I pretend to stand.
Pearls of Ketill’s easy laughter scatter across the cabin. “Stay, stay!” He lunges forward to grab my arm, tugging me back gently.
The corner of my mouth quirks up, and I stay seated. “I guess I can be nice this one time since you saved me.”
“Ah, so I’m no longer a kidnapper, then?” Ketill teases, his hand still on my forearm.
“That depends.”
“On?”
“Tell me why the shifters were after you.”
I expect Ketill to hesitate, and the moment he releases my arm to grab the leather satchel at his side, I wish he had. The loss of his warmth is immediate.
He reaches inside and pulls out what looks like an egg. But the size of my head.
“A dragon egg,” he declares as if presenting something he won at a carnival.
“You’re making fun of me,” I huff.
His grin widens, his teeth startlingly white in the dim light. The rain beats against the window, causing patterns to dance across his smooth, pale skin, and for a breath, it isn’t a turquoise egg decorated with opalescent scales that’s beautiful, but…Ketill.
“Amazing, isn’t it?” he asks, boyish charm sparkling in his grey eyes, like even though we’d just met, he’s been dying to show me since the moment he stole the egg.
I’m surprised he thinks what I’m captivated by is this impossible thing, that’s expelling a gentle wave of warmth, when Ketill seems to read me so well.
And really, it should be. But for an unashamed flirt who entered my life in a way I’ll never forget, in this moment he’s almost… pure—innocent—in his excitement.
A small ping pulses next to my heart. I can’t explain why I reach for Ketill like I’ve known him all my life, like touching him is my right, as I carefully run my fingers over the curve of his lip where that now-dried raindrop was.
But when I breathe out, “Amazing,” and his gaze whips from the egg to my face, the unexplained doesn’t matter.
He matters. For whatever reason, Ketill matters to me. I’ve always known—even when I didn’t know him.
Unexpectedly, Ketill and I seem to go hand in hand.
Again, I expect him to say something stupid. But instead, he leans into me so I can cup his cheek, and he nuzzles the tip of his nose into my wrist.
“Amazing…” he replies, just as softly.
For a long time, bathed in the shadow of rain splashing across the window, we stay silent.
Neither of us wanting to break this fragile connection.
Not just between our eyes, but something deeper.
Something that, if I really think about it, could cause tears to swell with how wonderful I know it could be.
For now, I don’t question it.
But if history taught me anything, it’s that nothing stays the same.
A door somewhere slams shut, and I startle back. “What the…”
Ketill curses in a language that sounds familiar, but I can’t place it. “More shifters.”
Bolting upright, he grabs hold of me and takes me towards the counter. “I’m going to lead them away. You stay hidden, treasure.”
“How do you know they’re more shifters?” I ask, yelping when Ketill grabs hold of my waist and sits me up on the counter. “We haven’t heard from a single other passenger; it could be one of them.”
“Trust me,” he replies, nodding to indicate for me to get a move on.
“This time.” I swing my legs around and drop behind the counter, lowering myself until I’m hidden.
“Stay safe.”
“Y-you too!” I blurt out in a whisper just as he’s about to turn away. “I’d be very annoyed if you died.”
Ketill takes a cavalier step backwards, throwing me a devilish wink before spinning on his heel and bolting towards the door we came through.
I duck completely, only able to hear another door sliding open and more footsteps approaching.
“Looking for me, fuckers?” Ketill yells, then his feet pound away.
“Get back here!” Someone shouts, then chases after.
I suck in a lungful of air to breathe out a sigh of relief, then nearly choke on it when the crackle of a radio fills the empty cabin.
“Have you found him yet, Olly?” a crackling voice says.
My heart beats wildly, and I slap both hands over my mouth to keep silent.
There’s a click, and a gruff voice says, “Craig is after him. He’ll get Ketill.”
“What about the other passengers?”
“We drugged the water supply,” the voice says. “No one will be waking up anytime soon.”
“Good. And even if Craig fails, my team has a backup plan. We’ve blown up the bridge fifteen miles away, so either you stop him or in ten minutes, a nasty drop will. We’re getting that damn egg back.”
My blood freezes, yet my whole body is drenched in a panicked sweat.
“A heads up would’ve been nice,” The gruff voice complains.
“This is your heads up.”
“Fine,” the voice sneers, not happy at all. “I’d better get a move on then.”
“You better.” The voice on the other end of the radio says before sounding off.
“Bastard,” the gruff voice grumbles, his heavy footfalls thudding away before a door opens and closes.
Curses ring in my mind. I need to get to the driver. But what if I run into more shifters? I need to get Ketill, but the time is ticking down until this relaxing train journey becomes a coffin.
All I know is I can’t stay here. I bolt upright, coming face to face with a man with a mouth full of fangs.
“I thought I heard someone hiding here,” the gruff voice growls.