Michael (The Airel Saga, Book 2) - By Aaron Patterson Page 0,17
but he did not care. Let him die. He deserved it after all, did he not?
The blackness of his wounded and grieving heart suited him as he sheathed his sword into its scabbard on his back.
He then burned them. “Just a taste of what is to come.” He lit a single match and dropped it onto the hideous floor. Human remains spontaneously combusted, filling the air with burning sulfur and phosphorous. He watched the unholy fire wound the evening sky with red haze.
Airel. And the boy, Michael.
It is a lie. He tried to convince himself that the falseness that had been spoken into the air did not matter, that it was meaningless. But it mattered. He remembered Airel. And Kreios wept as his eyes reflected the light of the consuming blaze.
CHAPTER X
Sawtooth mountains of Idaho, present day
“HEY,” I SAID, WALKING toward Michael along the path to the little training shed. He was sitting there on the ground staring into space, the graying clouds of a potential thunderstorm looming over the mountains beyond.
He looked up at me when I spoke. “Hey yourself,” he smiled.
I sat down next to him, looking out at the view along with him. “So now we’re fake smiling at each other? We’ve come a long way in no time at all.”
“I’ve got a lot on my mind, that’s all.” He seemed agitated. “Look, I hate to ruin the mood, but we need to get out of here and quick. The Brotherhood is probably already headed in this direction. They will want to finish the job.”
“The job, huh. I know. That’s what Kim said you called me.”
He sighed. “That was the wrong thing to say.”
“Why? Seems like it was honest. What’s wrong with that?”
He let out a heavy sigh. “Nothing; I—”
I could tell I was irritating him. Not what I wanted. But I couldn’t help myself. “You know what…you have a lot of explaining to do.” How can I defend him to Kim and then stab him in person? Arrgh!
His eyes took on a deeper look. This time he did not sigh. “I know.” He was looking right at me—into me. “I know.” He looked back out into the mountains, the forest, the meadow, all of it on parade in front of us, a total gift. “If anyone knows where they stand, it’s me. I have a lot of work to do. But it has to start with getting us—you and Kim and me—out of here. Like now.”
“Michael, I—”
He grasped my arm and raised his voice a little. “Stop it. Trust me, I know. I know, okay? But you have no idea what kind of danger we’re in. If you’ve ever trusted me, you have to trust me now. You have to let me lead. This is the only time I will ask for your permission in this. I know I don’t have much to go on; you don’t have much reason—any reason, really—to open yourself to me again. Not after what I did. I know it; I know it; I know it. I don’t need you to freaking harp on me about it in order to know it.”
“Whoa, dude. Just stop right there.”
“Airel, we don’t have time for this! Don’t you understand that we’re in danger right now? Every second we waste talking about this touchy-feely bullcrap is a second taken away from our lives! I’m just concerned about our safety—”
“Oh, heck no. Michael, you are crossing a line. I’m not trying to attack you here.” But I was, in a way.
He stood and began to pace. He talked with his arms, pleading with me. “Airel, please. I understand already that you’re upset with me for what—for everything that I’ve done. I don’t need to talk about it—”
“Well, maybe I do! Did you ever think of that? Huh, traitor?” Oh, no.
My words cut him deep. I could tell that I would regret them for the rest of my life; it was one of those things I would never forget: how he looked at me then.
“Please…”
Who’s the traitor now. I reached out to She, but all I could sense was glib satisfaction coming from her. She didn’t care much for him from the beginning, evidently. Great. Just great. I can tell how this is going to end. “I’m sorry, but there is a difference between forgiveness and trust.” I was really desperate and confused.
He continued to look at me with those ice blue eyes. If it is true that the eyes are the window to the soul, I