this happening? Leo is a lifelong Watcher, from a Watcher mother. And his father—
His father died before Leo was born. I’ve never actually heard anything about him. Dead fathers aren’t remarkable in our community, but I suspect Leo’s father was extremely remarkable in the worst possible ways.
“Let’s stop saying sorry so much,” I say. “But I am sorry for this.” I push up off the tree, jumping in the air and kicking him in the chest with both feet.
It’s like hitting a mountain. I bounce off, landing hard on the ground.
“Ow,” I whimper.
Leo picks me up. He sets me on my feet, keeping his hands on my shoulders. “Any injuries?”
“What are you?” I know with a despairing and fearful certainty that my kick would have sent any human flying. “How are you still standing?”
His smile is as sad and empty as a good-bye. “I defy gravity. Rhys will explain. We have to—”
I twist out of his hands and dart past him. One of my ankles is sore from the impact with his chest, but I race as fast as I can. I know where I’m going. I’ve been there enough times in the last few hours to have the path memorized. I still have my stake, but I can’t imagine plunging it into Leo’s chest.
Buffy once had to slide a sword into her boyfriend’s heart. Oh, Buffy. You are so much stronger than I am. But I have an idea.
I slide to a stop in Doug’s campsite, snagging the torn Coldplay T-shirt just as Leo grabs me.
He swings me up and around his shoulders so I’m facing the same direction he is, my body bent around his upper back. I’m locked in place by one arm around my knees and his other one bracing my neck. He looks down at my face.
And I shove Doug’s damp-with-psychotropic-demon-ooze shirt right in his mouth.
Leo staggers back. He shakes his head, then drops me to pull the shirt free. “What did you—” The tension in his body melts away. His expression turns sweet and open with bliss. It shows exactly how careful his expressions have always been. Even when he was smiling at me with what I thought was sincerity, he held back. I had been viewing Leo through a carefully constructed screen.
Now?
“You’re so pretty.” He reaches down and grabs my hands to help me stand. Then he gently brushes the hair from my face, letting his fingers linger there. “When I came back and saw you again for the first time, it was like—it was like magic. All the magic that was gone went right into you.”
It’s even worse than if he hit me. It hurts. “Would have loved this information before you tried to kidnap me.”
“Oh, right.” Leo tries to frown. His face wars with itself before resettling in his dimpled smile. I didn’t know his dimples even went that deep. Another detail I would have loved before suspecting him of being evil. “Rhys’s waiting for us. We should go. It’ll be fun. I’ll go with you. I should run away too. I don’t want to be me anymore.” He beams, holding up a strand of my hair to a ray of sunshine breaking through the thick trees. “I can’t believe a color like this exists on people. It feels like magic. Everything about you feels like magic. You’re too good to be a Watcher. They hurt people. You don’t hurt anyone.” He strokes my hair. “Magic.”
I steer Leo to the bench and push him down to sit. “Explain yourself.”
He laughs. “It doesn’t matter. None of it matters. The only thing that matters is us. Let’s be happy.” He stands up and tries to kiss me.
I put my hand on his chest and gently push him back to sitting. “No, sir. Not just because I think you’re not human and maybe, possibly a murderer as well. Oh gods, please don’t be a murderer. But also because you’re super high, and it would be like taking advantage. Why were you kidnapping me? And what are you?”
Leo giggles. It’s adorable and awful and useless. Just my luck, the demon drugging didn’t loosen Leo’s tongue, only his happiness.
I try changing tactics. “Rhys and Cillian are safe, right? You didn’t hurt them after I left?”
“I would never. I don’t hurt anyone. Even when I’m hungry.”
“What? You eat people?”
“It’s not like that. Besides, I like Rhys and Cillian. They’re nice. But not as nice as you.”
Please let him be drugged enough to be telling the truth. I