Shattered Grace - By K Anne Raines Page 0,53

know,” he said to Laney.

“How so?”

“We never should have told you.”

“Christophe thought it was the right thing to do and it was.” Laney pulled her chin up, meeting his gaze straight on.

The way Laney looked now, he could see where Grace got her stubborn resolve. “I’m not too sure it was. We’ve been keeping secrets from her since she was a little girl. It’s going to be hard to keep her safe, to keep her alive, if she doesn’t trust me and want me around.”

Quentin watched as Laney’s eyes narrowed into a threatening glare. “You’d better keep her safe, Quentin, because there’s nowhere I won’t go to hunt you down if anything happens to her.”

He met her eyes squarely as his lips twitched, knowing she wouldn’t find his amusement at all funny. “I wouldn’t expect anything less of you, but you don’t need to worry. I will keep her safe.” Stubborn resolve was one quality Grace got from her mother; the courage he felt from her was another. No matter how much these two women butted heads, the same strength of character ran through their veins, making them more alike than he knew either would ever want to admit.

“Good,” Laney said as she stood. “Then you and I won’t have a problem. I’ll see you in the morning. I’m tired too.”

Quentin’s gaze followed Laney as she walked toward the doorway. Before walking out, she turned back to him. “She doesn’t trust either one of us now. We both have a long road ahead.”

“I intend to do whatever it takes to gain her trust.”

“As do I.”

Laney disappeared through the doorway, and Quentin remained behind his chair. He tilted his face toward the ceiling; Grace’s room was almost directly above him. If he closed his eyes, he could almost visualize her curled up on the bed. He breathed a sigh of relief when she finally cried herself to sleep, the echo of her pain heavily lying over his heart like a paperweight. It killed him to know she was hurting. If only he could be a dream walker for a day, he could give her the dreams she deserved for a night.

Slowly, he made his way to his bedroom—the one directly across from Grace’s. He paused in front of her door. Softly, he placed his hand against the wood. Every breath, all the soft pulses of her heartbeat, each tiny sleeping twitch resonated within him as if they were his own. Yes, his bond with her was stronger than with previous Chosen, but he wasn’t too sure if it was solely from the seneschal band anymore.

When Friday came around, Grace found she didn’t remember much from the previous two days. Her emotions were so frazzled, she didn’t want to be around anyone. To make sure everyone at school stayed away, she told them she had a stomach bug, and it had been coming out both ends. As expected, they left her alone after that.

After spending lunch hidden in the bathroom stalls the last few days, she decided to make an appearance in the cafeteria. Getting only a bowl of soup, she sat at the table with her friends. No one really noticed her. Either that, or they all worried about catching whatever she had. Can’t catch this, guys, she thought glumly. With her spoon, she played with her soup.

“Hey, Grace,” Tommy said from the other end of the table. “You know, you don’t have to come tonight if you’re not feeling up to it.”

Geesh, guys, I have a fake stomach flu, not the bubonic plague. Aloud, she changed her tone, trying to sound upbeat. “Actually, I’m feeling better. I’m just a little tired. I still want to go tonight.”

“Okay, sweets, but if you change your mind, or you start to feel bad again, just stay home,” Emily said.

“I’m fine, I promise.” Grace tried to sound convincing. “Hey, Tommy, if you see Zeke, let him know I’m still going.”

“Why didn’t you tell him in Keyboarding?”

“Because I didn’t see him.”

Emily turned to Grace. “Who are you riding with tonight?”

“Myself.”

“Why don’t you ride with us?” she suggested. “We can pick you up after we pick up Leah.”

It only took her a minute to think about it. She didn’t want to drive by herself, and she certainly didn’t want to ride alone with Zeke. “What time will you be by to pick me up?”

“I have to be there at seven since the show starts at eight thirty,” Tommy said, before Emily could answer. “So we need

readonlinefreenovel.com Copyright 2016 - 2024