Chapter 4

Letting out a sigh, he flopped back onto his bed.  She may have been in his room, but as quiet as she was being, it felt like she had left already.  That was a lie; he knew she was there, he knew she was standing near his door, and he knew that as soon as she left, he would know it.  For some reason, his senses decided to hone on her.  Every fidget she made, he was aware of it.

“You want to tell me who this person is that you made a pact with?”

“No,” she mumbled, “but it is a pact.  I cannot go back on it.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to,” he replied.  “If you did, then you would be a coward whose word means nothing.”

Her footsteps slapped the floor as she walked towards him.  Sitting on the edge of the bed, by his feet, she smiled at him.  “That was the way I saw it.  With my people, your word is very precious.”

“Clouded leopard, huh?”

“How did you know?” she asked with narrowed eyes.

He leaned up further on his bed, putting his back to his headboard.  “Your coloring,” he answered, “it gives you away.”

“What if I were wearing contacts?”

Shaking his head at her, he knew they weren’t contacts.  How he knew, he had no clue.  He couldn’t delve into her mind, he couldn’t force the answers from her, but he just knew that those were her eyes.  Those light brown eyes that shined at him had to be hers.

“The hair?” she asked.  “I could have dyed it.”

Again, he shook his head slightly.  It was too thick, too rich of a black color to be faked.  If he knew her people as he did, he knew that such things were frowned upon.  In her life, dying her hair wasn’t something that was done. 

“How do you know?” she asked, tilting her head to the side.

His lips threatened to curl up in a half smile, but he kept it off his face.  “You are you.”

“Honestly?” she said with a frustrated groan before throwing herself back onto the bed.  He barely had enough time to jerk his legs out of the way, as she fell onto his bed. 

This time, he couldn’t help but smile.  “Why were you crying?”

Her expression became guarded, and he immediately wished he had kept the question to himself.  To be honest, he did not know why he had asked in the first place.  He had opened his mouth, planning to say a simple yes, but instead, the question had left his mouth.

“It is not important,” she said, turning her head away from his gaze as if he could read her from just staring at her face.  He wished it were true, but sadly, he couldn’t figure this woman out no matter how hard he tried.

He leaned forward until he was staring down at her, his hands braced on the bed.  “You will be staying here for a while; I say it is important.”

“Fine,” she huffed, turning her head towards him.  Her face was inches away from his, and the closeness seemed to surprise her.  It didn’t surprise him, though, nor did it surprise him when she shifted away slightly.  “I just got overwhelmed,” she said, embarrassment clear on her face. 

He shrugged.  “It happens.”

“I bet it never happens to you.”

Leaning back, he sat down next to her instead of looming over her.  “I let my emotions rule my decisions.  I just don’t allow others to know that I do.”

Her eyebrows drew together, her nose wrinkled as she thought, and she nodded her head.  “I’m beginning to understand what you’re saying.”

Silence met her statement.  There was nothing for him to say, but as she stared at him in expectation, he blurted, “That’s nice.”

She let out a laugh and shook her head at him.  “Is Barron always like that?”

“Hmm,” he asked, not used to abrupt change of topics.  Usually, he was able to read what a person would ask before they even spoke, but with her, all her questions took him by surprise.

“Barron,” she said slowly, “is he always so creepy?”

He shrugged.  “I don’t find him creepy.  We are all a little protective over Ally and the children.  I think these two months of nothing have sent us on edge.  We’re all waiting for questions to be answered.”

Moving quickly, she sat Indian style, facing him.  “What kind of questions?”

“Where is Marcus?”

Her mouth snapped shut as she shook her head at him.  Letting out a sigh, he answered her question.  “We know that Sebastian’s grandfather was the one who started the murder of the black shifters, but we do not know why.”

“I thought it was to turn rule to another kind of leopard.”

“That is the most popular belief,” he admitted.

Her eyes widened, excitement bloomed on her face, and she leaned closer to him.  “But you know differently, don’t you?  What do you know that the others don’t?”

“Ally knows,” he defended, “and so does Sebastian.”

“And they are the only ones who need to know?” she guessed, and when he nodded his head, she simply rolled her eyes at him.  “So, are you going to help me?”

He nodded again.  “I’ll help you as much as I can, but as much as Ally claims that I know these things, she can be wrong.”

“I doubt there is much you don’t know.”

He tapped the side of her head.  “There is a lot that I don’t know about you.”

Her head tilted to the side, an action that he realized came from her cat side.  “What is it that you want to know?”

Pulling his hand away from her temple, he shook his head at her.  There was a lot he wanted to know, but nothing he was willing to find out.  “Just picture a wall going up in your mind.”

Her mouth opened, but she just shook her head and closed her eyes.  Concentration crossed her face, and he knew she was trying too hard.

“Ease up,” he coaxed.  “Don’t overthink it.”

“I just can’t decide what to make my wall out of.”

He let out a surprised laugh.  Out of all the things he thought she would be thinking, that one had never crossed his mind.  Her eyes snapped open, and a smile crossed her mouth.  “What’s so funny?”

“Make it out of pink bricks if that is what you want.  It doesn’t matter what you use.”

She shook her head.  “Pink isn’t my color.  Plus, I want something more durable than bricks to protect my mind.”

The smile stayed on his face as she closed her eyes again, building her wall.  As complete serenity crossed her face, he knew she had found her material.  Opening her eyes, he saw the faint glow to them as she told him, “Got it.”

He nodded, but inside, he was slightly shocked at how quickly she learned.  Studying her face, he knew he would have to keep a close eye on this one.  With the power she had, people wanted her gone, with the way she learned, she would soon know all their secrets.  Charlie may come in an innocent looking package, but he had a feeling she would pack a mean punch.  Strangely, he couldn’t wait to find out.

***Banner of Charlie on the side by Platypus1987!  Thanks so much :)***