G.U.A.R.D. Book #1: Clandestine

-13-

Plip! Tap! Plip! Tap!

I groggily woke to the sound of someone tapping a sturdy construct. Trying to wrap my mind around what the noise was exactly, I realized it was actually rain hitting the roof.

Plip! Tap! Plip! Tap!

I winced as each drop hit the roof. It made my head hurt, especially since it was already throbbing. Changing positions, I felt pain shoot up my spine and explode in my head. I gasped, and suddenly everything came flooding back: the guns, the darts, the fight, and... Winter.

My eyes snapped open. The motion brought a pounding headache into my brain. I winced, making the agony all the worse. Squeezing my eyes shut to try to block out the pain, I fought down the panic clawing up my throat. What had happened out there? Why were there men with guns outside on my yard? And why did they attack Winter and me?

I couldn't think of any explanation aside this being my parents' doing.

Something creaked, and I opened my eyes wide again. The pain came back, but not as bad as before. Looking around, I saw everything looked in order in the Light household. Seriously, nothing was out of place. My hair stood on end, though. It felt like I was being watched, like someone was going to jump out with a knife at any moment. But everything stayed still. Quiet. You could've heard a mouse scuttle across the wooden floor. I took a deep breath to try to calm myself. That's when I saw him.

I couldn't see a face. All my eyes could pick up was his head leaning against the armrest of the living room chair. He must've been sitting on the ground, with his back pressed up to the seat. But I did make out that he had black hair. A blurry picture entered my mind. It was the young man who took me into the house. He had dark hair. Was it black? Ugh, I couldn't remember. But that guy had to be him.

He didn't move any. He appeared to be... asleep. Okay. Not what I expected. But by the way his breathing was even, normal, even with an occasional snore, I could tell that he wasn't conscious. So I just went back to taking inventory of all my pains and aches.

White wrapping covered the top of my head. I looked down to see my right hand and wrist cloaked by a light brown bandage. Trying to move either, I was greeted by more pain. Nothing else hurt, though. I was surprised that I was actually in such good shape after that fight. I wore a shirt again, which was a huge relief.

Peeling my eyes from the bandages, I found them land on the young man again. He didn't seem unfriendly, but I still felt caution well up inside me. Who was this guy? What did he want with me? Sure, he may have helped the lady protect me, but how did I know that they did that in the right reasons? Did they know my parents?

SLAM!

I gasped in surprise, eyes huge in fear. I never knew a door could slam so loudly. The young man started, getting to one knee speedily and unsheathing a knife. It was the woman.

The younger stranger sighed in relief and slumped back to the chair, putting his knife back.

She glared at him, crossing her arms. "How many times have I told you to keep your guard up? I could've been a League agent!"

He didn't answer, taking the abuse with no words.

"I realize you had a rough night, Jay, but if you don't start showing some diligence, I will get a new trainee. Understood?"

He nodded, but still didn't say anything.

The lady looked to me, and I wondered if I should've acted asleep—maybe even dead—since her eyes hardened, become hostile and cold again. She walked over, mouth a thin line. Leaning down on one knee, she put a rough hand on my forehead, where the bandage was. Then she kneaded my skin with her fingers gently. However soft her touch was, though, it still shot strings of pain down my back.