Chosen at Nightfall (Shadow Falls #5)(24)

Kylie, sitting on the sofa beside Holiday, nodded. "I know." She bit into her lip and tried to focus and fill him in on everything that happened. She covered Mario and his parting threat. Then she started at the beginning again and told him about Jenny coming to the window.

The thing she didn't tell him was about Jenny being Hayden Yates's sister. She wasn't even sure if Burnett had figured out Hayden was a chameleon. Then she explained one more time about Derek showing up in the woods. She purposely told him again about the invisible person she sensed there before they took off. And she reminded Burnett that she believed this person to be her grandfather and he'd been there not to stop her from leaving, but to check on her.

"But you didn't speak to him?" Burnett asked. "So you don't know for sure it was him, or even if his being there meant he wasn't behind all this."

Kylie frowned. "I know my grandfather. I don't think he'd do this. Even Jenny said he was different from the other elders. And I don't want you to start thinking of him as the enemy."

Burnett's jaw tightened. "He cares about you, Kylie. I sensed this when we spoke. But he never hid the fact that he didn't trust me or Shadow Falls. He very well could justify his actions because he felt your life was in danger. He may think he has your best intentions at heart, but he's wrong. And while I know it's difficult for you to accept this, we can't trust him anymore."

Burnett's remark had her throat tightening with emotion. She understood his point of view, but she couldn't let go of what her heart told her. And her heart told her that her grandfather hadn't been behind the attempts to keep her against her will.

"You can't trust him," Kylie said. "I've yet to make up my mind. And why are you spending so much time worrying about him when the real villain is Mario?"

"I'm aware of who the real villain is," Burnett answered. "But it's because of your ... thanks to someone's actions with your grandfather's people, Mario almost got to you."

"They had nothing to do with Mario's showing up."

"I agree, but they had everything to do with you finding yourself in a vulnerable situation."

"I made the choice to run away." She wrung her hands in her lap.

"Don't you think we should call it a night?" Holiday intervened. "Let's stop now and pick this up in the morning."

Burnett frowned at Holiday, then moved in and knelt down in front of Kylie. He placed his palm on her gripped hands. His touch was cold, but caring and tender. The knot in Kylie's throat doubled. When he looked at her, she saw the struggle in his eyes to keep his cool and not let his temper rule. He wanted to make demands, to call the shots. Yet Kylie also sensed he struggled to do what Holiday had tried to instillin him, to compromise and not dictate.

Staring at his hand over her locked fingers, she knew Burnett cared-knew his intent wasn't to hurt her, but to help her. Yet wasn't that exactly what her grandfather felt?

"Kylie, I know this is hard for you," Burnett said. "I do. But I need your promise that you won't be sneaking off to see your grandfather." He squeezed her wrist. "Please. I won't get a moment of peace unless you give me that."

"I won't." She couldn't deny him this, not when his expression practically begged for her compliance.

Yet deep down she wondered if her heart said it was an untruth, and if it did, had Burnett heard it. God help her, because if her grandfather did ask her to meet him, how could she tell him no any easier than she could Burnett? Her loyalty was truly torn. She only prayed it didn't come to that.

* * *

The eastern part of the sky was a bit lighter than the rest when Burnett and Holiday walked Kylie to her cabin. The stars sparkled in the sky as if they knew they were about to be shut down by the sun and wanted to give out a bit more light.

She should be exhausted, and part of her was, but she doubted she'd fall in bed and go right to sleep.

Her mind chewed on so many things that turning it off seemed impossible. Plus, she had an appointment to attend her very own pity party. The knot that she'd felt in her throat earlier was now caught in her heart area. In the past, Kylie had learned that nothing but a good cry could ease that kind of ache.

Obviously, the soothing effects of Holiday's touch were wearing off. Or maybe this was too much to completely be eased by a fae's magic. Some things just needed to be worked through. Things like leaving her grandfather's house without saying good-bye. Things like the fact that she'd almost killed Lucas.

Things like wondering if it was really Monique, Lucas's fiancee, she'd seen tonight. Things like missing her mom, and she was halfway across the world sleeping with some creep.

Things like having a psychotic murderer wanting to take her down.

His threat rang in her head like a bad line in a song that you couldn't forget. You will come to me, Kylie Galen, come to me willing to die, to suffer at my hands for my pleasure, because the price will be too great! Your weakness will take you down.

And working through things like that might include shedding a few tears. Who could begrudge her that?

Of course, she should probably spend some time trying to figure out what he meant by her weakness.

"How about we take a trip to the falls tomorrow?" Holiday piped up, and then as if reading Kylie's emotional status, she reached over and gave Kylie's arm a squeeze.