Angelic, My Dear

Chapter 3

I wandered the old carpet halls of the higher floors. The others had informed me that they didn't often go up past the fifth floor for the simple reason of there was no need. Crooked and dust ridden paintings covered the walls which were otherwise bare, save for the occasional lamp.
There was thirteen floors I had been told, with the first floor underground as a basement and the thirteenth an attic.
I stood on the ninth floor and had to admit, past the fifth floor they were all looking pretty similar.
Yet I kept travelling up.
Until I stood on the tenth floor.
Soft piano floated hauntingly around me, filling the air with it's majestic serenity.
"Hello?" I called out. Nothing. Who would be all the way up here?
My heart picked up and hammered against my ribs.
Though in an almost trance, I followed the sound.
It led me to a closed wooden door.
I inhaled sharply and pushed open the door.
Then I exhaled. Kai.
He had his back to me and was fully entranced in his music.
I stayed there a moment, not wanting to disrupt him.
"You shouldn't sneak up on a Hunter, it never ends well, Kit," Kai mused.
I jumped at the sound of his voice. He stopped the piano and spun around to face me.
I found it almost hard to breath when he held my eyes like that. He wore a black button up shirt and he had left the top three undone, giving me a glance at his solid muscles beneath.
His black curls were pulled back in a little pony tail and a few had fought their way loose onto his forehead.
"Come sit," Kai patted the seat.
I hesitated. I was all alone up here. There was no way anyone could hear me and there was no way I could get to anyone anytime soon.
"Or don't," Kai shrugged and turned back to his piano. The soft music started again, less haunting this time. More gentle.
Slowly, I picked my way across the room, trying to steady my racing heart.
"You're like a kitten," Kai chuckled, still playing. He didn't look up or move just spoke.
I forced myself to sit beside him.
"How?" I managed.
He stopped playing and turned to look at me. I felt myself freeze, oh no I felt a hot prickling at the back of my neck and my breathing hitched. Then he turned back to the piano and started playing. I breathed again.
"That's how," he smirked.
"I had a kitten once. He was terrified of people. I would sit there reading, and if I didn't move he'd crawl out. If I looked at him he'd run back to his hiding spot. Until the day where he'd sit on my leg and let me pat him. But I was never allowed to look at him," Kai grinned, reminiscing.
Well maybe if he didn't have such deep eyes... I grinned inwardly at the thought.
I saw another side of Kai as he told me the story of his kitten.
"Did it have a name?" I asked.
"Cat," Kai informed me, all seriousness.
I rolled my eyes. Of course.
I had to agree with his kitten though, Kai was certainly much less nerve racking when he didn't fix his dark eyes on you.
"Are you going to forever keep me in the dark or are you going to share what you are?" Kai was barely playing the piano anymore. Merely keeping a slight noise and not looking at me.
I forced myself to breath normally. I could do this, Kai was good. I could trust him. I repeated but the fact that I was alone with him terrified me.
"Half angel, half demon," I spoke through breaths.
Kai stopped playing and faced me.
"I always believed that impossible," he murmured.
I thought of his kitten. I refused to be that. Though I couldn't ignore my rapid heart.
"Apparently it's not," I pointed out.
"Come, my Kitten, there's something I want to show you," Kai stood. I sighed, really?
I followed, just behind him and to the left.
We wandered down a few flights of stairs, if I had counted correctly we should be on the eighth floor.
Kai stood before a pair of intricately carved wooden double doors. They were large and grand, but what caught me more was that every other door up this high was covered with a layer of dust but these doors before us were clean.
Kai looked back at me then with a shove, swept the doors open.
I peered in, darkness.
Kai hurried in and pulled back a thick curtain.
I gasped. It was a library.
Aisles upon aisles of thick books.
I hurried over to the closest aisle and inspected the books. Looking for one I knew.
For a moment I searched through the books in wonder.
"I had a feeling you would like it," Kai mused.
"I've never seen so many books in one place," I admitted.
"Have you read many?" Kai inquired, curiously.
"A few. Penelope would sometimes bring me a book if I'd been good," I shrugged, it didn't happen very often though.
"Have you read Pride and Prejudice?" Kai asked.
I shook my head.
"Well that simply won't do," Kai announced and strode through a few aisles before pulling out a thick book.
I scanned over the book. It seemed interesting.
"Thank you," I thanked him.
"Come now. Tea should be about ready," Kai lead me out of the library, suddenly reserved.
We walked down the flights of stairs silently.
Had I done something? Kai had been so talkative up until now. I cursed myself for being so terrible at conversation starters.
Finally we reached the third floor, which had the dining room.