The Exiles (Book 1 of the Exiles Series)

Nine

"What the heck are you doing here?" I snapped at Magnus, my body going rigid as all traces of slumber left it. By now, I was fully awake. "It's the middle of the night!"

Magnus leaned up against the stone wall of my home casually, his face impassive. "I got caught out here in the middle of the night," he explained. "My home is on the other side of the island. It would be suicide to go all the way over there after dark. I need a place to stay. Is there any chance I could camp out here until morning?" Reluctantly, I scooted past him. Nic would kill me if she knew I was hosting the enemy.

Magnus sashayed into the tiny room and sat down upon my bed. Once he entered, I shut the door protectively behind us. I wondered if the spiders could smell fear. I wondered if they could smell at all. If they could, I would've made the perfect midnight snack.

"Why do you have my hatchet?" I asked Magnus, standing in front of the door. He was still carrying it in the crook of his arm.

"I found it," he shrugged, his face relaxed, almost humored. I shook my head, my expression calm even though I was numb with anger. "No," I corrected, "you stole it."

Magnus rolled his eyes. "No, I borrowed it," he countered, smiling mischievously, causing me to awkwardly wring my hands in my lap. I sat cross legged on the ground across from him, confident that he wasn't leaving and not understanding why I felt ok with that.

"Whatever," I agreed indifferently, too tired to argue about it anymore. "Whatever method you chose to get the hatchet, I want it back, please." Without a word, he handed it back to me. The sheepish grin never wavered on his face.

"Just to be clear," I told him, asserting my dominance in the situation, "you need to be on your way by dawn. Nicole will kill me if she sees you here." I suspected Nic would leave at first light. She was always concerned about the amount of daylight. Morning seemed to be when she was in higher spirits, something I definitely didn't want to jeopardize.

"Fine," he agreed reluctantly. "Until then, I'm staying right here." Relief flooded through my chest. I really didn't care as long as he left by dawn.

"Is this your first night alone?" Magnus asked, his tone light, conversational. He seemed interested.

"Yeah," I told him, keeping my guard up, even though I knew I wasn't scared of him. I just...didn't want him to know I was scared to death of living out here. He might make fun of me.

"How do you like it?" he asked me before I could elaborate any further I shrugged, trying to keep the fear out of my voice, the fear of the night, the fear of Nicole, the fear of him being here but not his presence itself. A lump was starting to form in my gut, caused by the confusing, unpredictable storm of my thoughts.

"It's okay," I muttered, my voice sounding suddenly younger. Not grumpy, not happy, not casual. He laid a hand on my shoulder in response, which surprised me. His touch made me feel warm and safe, and I leaned toward him without really thinking about it.

"You're scared, aren't you?" he predicted, probably feeling the sudden stiffness in my body. I nodded, not sure whether that was the best idea, but I wanted to be honest.

"That's okay," he said assuringly, surprising me. "I was scared out here on my first night. I remembered the safety of the City, the way everything ran smoothly. This place runs wild. There are no spiders or Crawlies where we come from." I suddenly sat up straighter, intrigued, sensing a story. His hand left my shoulder. I was almost sad, but I wasn't sure why.

"Magnus," I asked him, "do you know where the creatures come from?" Magnus shook his head. "I don't," he admitted. "I'm guessing they just live here, you know? But maybe someone put them here, or something." I nodded yes, because I did know--not at all where the creatures came from, but how it felt to be helpless, not understanding something and having no means to understand it. "Your best bet would be to ask Nicole." I noticed all the fear was gone from my insides, especially at the name Nicole. Even the sound of her name made me feel safe, especially when the sounds came from Magnus's mouth.