Through the Fire (Daughter of Fire, #1)(18)



“Get the hell away from my daughter, and get the fuck out of my house!”





CHAPTER EIGHT


“GET OUT of my room, Dad!” I screamed in response to the threat in his voice. I sat up and tried to force my eyes to adjust to the morning brightness. When I could finally see again, the sight horrified me.

Dad barely acknowledged me as he stood with his rifle in one hand, aimed squarely at Clay. “I said get away from her!” he growled.

“Dad, stop it!”

“Evie, come over here.” Without taking his eyes off of Clay, Dad nodded his head to indicate he wanted me to get behind him. “He has three seconds to get out before I pull the trigger.”

“Don’t do this,” I warned, wondering where the easy-going man from yesterday had gone. The man in front of me now was someone new—more extreme than even I ever imagined he could be. “You’re making a fool of yourself.”

“He’s Rain,” Dad hissed.

I turned to Clay, wondering how my dad could so easily tell his history. There were no outward signs of his past, at least none that I could see. Aside from a scar that ran over the length of his left bicep and the hint of another couple of scars that the inch or two his shirt revealed on his stomach, he was just an ordinary young man. In fact, his hair was almost laughable, with each strand of the dark chocolate mess sticking up in random directions, and it hardly screamed danger. A thick gold chain hung loosely around his neck, the circular gold pendant attached to it lying on the pillow near his head.

With a concerned expression on his sleep-strained face, Clay held his hands up in surrender before pulling himself up to a sitting position. Then, taking care to move slowly, he grabbed the loose pendant and slipped it under his shirt before giving me an apologetic smile. Seemingly unwilling to make any sudden moves, he climbed off the bed with extraordinary care, his hands held high the whole time.

“No, Clay. You’re not going anywhere.” I moved to stand between them. “Dad, put the gun down before you hurt somebody.”

“I’ll hurt someone all right,” Dad hissed.

“Dad, this is the boy. I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t think you’d understand that he’s different until you actually met him. That’s why I wanted you to meet him yesterday.”

“You mean to tell me that you know he’s Rain?”

“He’s the boy,” I clarified. “The one from Ohio. And I love him.” I slapped my hands over my mouth, and my face flushed red the moment the words came out. I’d never meant to add that because it was crazy—as Clay had pointed out, we’d only really had a few months in high school to get to know each other. Even if we’d slipped almost straight back into that same relationship like a pair of comfortable shoes, I couldn’t love him yet. Regardless, I cared for him a lot and didn’t want him riddled with holes.

As if my confession spurred him on, Clay came and stood by my side before wrapping his arm around my shoulder. “Sir, I care for Evie very deeply as well. I couldn’t imagine ever hurting her. The reason I was waylaid yesterday was because my family learned that I was in Charlotte, and I didn’t want to tip them off. I couldn’t bear it if they found out Evie is here.”

“Where are they now?” I could see in Dad’s careful assessment that he was taking the time to consider what he saw in front of him, but was also ready to react if it was necessary.

“It was only my sister who came, and she left in a mood last night after I refused to go with her.”

My Dad lowered the gun a little. “Why are you still wearing the pendant then?”

“Pendant?” I asked.

“That thing around his neck.”

“It’s a symbol of the oath I made to the Rain,” Clay explained to me. “But it’s also a family heirloom. It originally belonged to my great-grandfather. Nana Jacobs had my name engraved on the back when she gave it to me for my sanctification.

“So you won’t get rid of it?” Dad challenged.

Clay pressed his hand against the pendant beneath his shirt for a moment before sighing and looking toward me. “I will if Evie wants me to.” He clearly didn’t want to if he could avoid it though.

Both Dad and Clay stared at me, and I shrunk back a little. It was clear they each wanted me to take their side on the issue, and although I didn’t want to hurt either of them, my next statement would have to go against the wishes of one or the other. There was nothing else to it, I would have to try and be as diplomatic as possible. “I don’t care what it means to some organization,” I said thoughtfully. “I only care about what it means to you. If you want to keep it, I understand.”

As I was talking, Clay’s hand had shifted from my shoulder into my hair. For a moment, I was lost in his eyes.

“Thank you, Evie,” he murmured. “I promise you that the Rain dove on it means nothing to me anymore.”

“I don’t believe it,” Dad said finally. “A sympathetic Rain. I never thought I’d see the day.”

I smiled because that was his way of giving his approval.

“Pack up, honey,” he said to me. “We’re leaving today.”

“But—”

“It’s a good idea,” Clay said, seemingly unaware that he’d both cut me off and sided with my father. “Lou only gave me a small window of opportunity, and the longer we stay, the more likely it will be that she’ll find out about you.”

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