In Between Seasons (The Fall) (8 page)

The past seemed to be a toxic dream that I was struggling to claw my way out of.
I kept seeing Trevor’s face
and
the reality that my world was very much the same as Hunter’s.
It burned into me, and made me angry at the world. I knew there was no way I would ever truly understand what had happened.
How could I when the only ones who knew the real truth were obviously set on killing me?

“Stop staring at me while I sleep
. I
t
’
s weird,
” Hunte
r commented,
opening one eye with a crooked
smirk.

“I hated them. I never knew why.
I just felt something was wrong
,
so
I hated them for not telling me;
for lying to me,” I shot out,
sitting
up
and
picking at my sneaker laces.

Hunter sat up across from me
and
looked at his ha
nds before locking eyes with me,
“Hate is a strong word, Kate. I doubt that it was hate
back
then.”

“But it is now,
”
I assured him.

“It will eat you alive,
”
h
e sighed
.

“It already is.”

“Revenge
and
hate are the same beast. It’s easier to forget them bot
h,
”
he suggested, but his eyes were stern and demanding. He wasn’t asking me to forget, he was telling me to
.

“I know you know how I feel
,
but
how did you forget?” I asked
,
knowing that I had watched his hate slowly dissipate from the moment he had grabbed my arm.

His eyes looked through the fire to me
,
and
the flames danced in his eyes,
“You find someone who makes you forget.”

“Help me forget the
n?” I answered
,
trying to remember to breath.

“I’ll try
,
but
you’re stubborn as h
ell,
” Hunter replied
with a smirk.

“And you’re not?”

“Hey, I’ve talked
. I’ve told you things that I’
ll never tell another soul;
tha
t I would never have told,” He commented,
poking the fire with a stick
,
his eyes averted.

“I always thought I was the favo
rite
,
but
I guess that’s what
they wanted me to think. They always tried to make me feel special
,
but
somehow I always felt like I was an ex
ile,
”
I began to spill,
standing
and
kicking the tree behind me,
“I wonder if I was the only one who had no clue.”

“For what it’s worth I think they knew you were special
just
not
their kind of special,” h
e said
,
and
when
I turned with
narrowed eyes he continued,
“Their kind of special is talented at one
thing;
lies
and
you don’t seem to go for that.”

I let my hair out of my pony tail
and
shook it free,
“My whole life was a lie. I was just as much of a liar as them
,
but
they saw it. That’s why they sent Trevor after me
,
but
they gave me more credit than they should have. They thought I knew what they were doing. I had no clue. I wasn’t happy—“

“Why was that?”

“I guess my special talent is seeing through lies e
ven if I don’t understand them,” I explained as I closed my eyes and pressed my hand to my forehead.

“Second instinct, it comes natural.
You’re going to hate my home tha
n,
”
Hunter added
.

“You seem to understand things without them even being said.”

“Tha
t’s what made me a good general,” he responded,
staring at the flames again.

“You act
like you aren’t anymore?” I asked as I stopped
my pacing
and
looked
down into his eyes.

He held my gaze for a moment before looking at his hands.

“Hunter?”
I asked.

He looked back up at me,
“I don’t want to act anymore. I can’t go back to the way things were. I don’t want to be that person anymore now that I know I have a choice.”

“Then wh
y are we going back
?”

“If I don’t come back they‘ll
look for me,
”
h
e explained.

“Do they look for the other
generals that go missing?” I aske
d
as I blew
a piece of hair that was in front of my face away.

“I’m just like you
the chief’s only child—his only son,
”
h
e replied as he flicked a leaf into the fire and watched it explode into flames.
The revelation didn’t shock me because the way he talked about his father was much the way I would now talk about mine.

“So how exactly are we going to escape this?

“I haven’t
exactly
that
figure
out. Would you believe me if I s
aid trust me I’ll find a way?” he asked,
still watching the fire.

“Look me in the eye
and
say it.”

“I’ll find a way for
us to be free Kate. I swear it,
”
Hunter assured me.

“
I believe you.”

“Would you sit
and
stop pacing—you’re making me dizzy.”

“For some reason I doubt that,” I responded as I rolled my eyes
, “Especially seeing you can spin around kicking the shit out of people without stumbling.”

He raised an eyebrow
and
pulled me to sit next to him. I put my head on his shoulder
and
he wrapped hi
s arm around me,
“I can teach you how to do that.”

“Now you’re lyi
ng,” I teased
,
and
we both laughed.

“There’s something I don’t
really understand—why did your d
ad send Trevor?” Hunter aske
d
as his face waited
for a bad reaction.

“He always talked about how he wanted to leave
and
make something of himself. He was so unlikely to do that though
—
at least in my mind he didn’t have the gall or the skill for it. I remember him trying to impress me with a swinging kick
and
he fell right on his ass. I guess I saw a lot of things wrong
,
or
maybe
just
the way they wanted me to.”

“I wouldn't say he really had the gall for it. He ran off while I was fighting the other two. The look on his face showed he was afraid. One thing you never want to show is fear
,
even if you feel it.”

“
Have you ever felt fear?” I asked
as my eyes searched his face. He seemed invincible when he fought others, but at moments like this I realized he felt everything just as much as I did.

“I wasn't always like this
—
I was molded to be who I am.”

“I mean recently,
”
I pushed.
I was looking for a specific answer.

His eyes locked on mine
,
and
the look in his eyes
showed that very recently he had.

“
So what was your relationship with T
revor
?”
Hunter asked
, unwilling to answer my question.

“I
suppose he tho
ught I felt he was my boyfriend,
”
I retorted
,
unable to control my eye roll.

“
But you didn't?
”

“
He was pretty much the only guy there. He seemed to like me so I went with it. If
you’re
wonde
ring if I had feelings for him
tha
n no, he pretty much irritated
the crap out of me,
”
I answered.

Hunte
r laughed, “It seems
like
everyone did.”

I felt sick to my stomach
and
it must have shown on my face.
I didn’t want him to see me as a cynical person. I didn’t want him to see me as they had.

“
I didn't mean it like that Kate
—
I can't think of anyone that
doesn’t
irritate me from my home. It's like they're constantly pushing me to be what they need
—
what they want
,
but
they still hate me for it. I don't care that they hate me
,
but
I always feel—“

“
Trapped
?”
I finished
.

“
Exactly
.”

“
Everyone translated my temper into something it wasn't. I could always read it
on their faces,
” I said
,
sighing. It felt good to finally tell someone how I felt
,
but
I was filled with the anguis
h of the realization of my past with no real way of dealing with it.

“
Ice queen
,” Hunter suggested,
raising an eyebrow at me.

“Sounds like you’re
just the same as me.
”

“
They think I have no emotions. Sometimes it kills me
—
what I have to do,” Hunter revealed,
his face becoming serious.

“
I could see it in your eyes when you s
hot Trevor. It's wearing on you,” I noted as I put
my hand over his.

“
I'd do anything to protect y
ou
Kate,” he squeezed
my hand, “I knew Trevor
wouldn’t
stop if I
didn't
kill him. I
t will slow
your d
ad
down
in finding us.
He’l
l be waiting for someone
to come back long enough for us to figure someth
ing out
,
and
it might throw him
off that one person took on three of his.
”

“
You
’
r
e
special though
—
not everyone could do that right? Or are your hunters as deadly as you?
” I asked,
trying not to think of a person like Hunter actually wanting to kill me.

“
No
,
they aren't like me. They like their mold
,
so they haven't fought against it. I gu
ess that's what makes me better,
” Hunter said.

“
Are my
d
a
d’s
me
n
as good as yours?
”

Hunter nodded his head,
“
Some are
—
some
aren't. I don't know that your d
ad drives them like I do. I'm sure it will be a mess when I get back though.
”

“I don't get how I missed all of this right in front of my face
. I mean what was I thinking, that the clothes
and
everyth
ing just popped out of thin air
?
”