DEVIANT [H.S.]

21 - Haze

Harry

I don't know whether to shoot Aubrey or the stranger in her bed.

He looks familiar, but I can't pinpoint from where.

Serena's eyes are engraved with confusion and anger, and soon mine take on the same design.

I'm not necessarily mad at the bastard in Aubrey's bed; I'm mad at her. Not just mad, but disappointed. For all I know, she didn't really care that her sister had gone missing and came back with a gun shot through her skull.

"Caleb?" Serena speaks out into the silence towards the guy. Who is this fucker?

"You know him?" I question, turning my attention away from my thoughts to Serena.

"Serena, I can explain..." That guy apparently named Caleb cuts in, looking at both Serena and Aubrey.

Serena lets out a cackling laugh, one I have never heard from her before. "Oh, this explains enough. Does she even know that you're a Protector? Let alone, my Protector?"

A transparent haze sets over the room, setting everyone's minds on high alert. Aubrey looks over to Caleb in disbelief.

"You're her Protector?!" She exclaims, a scowl etched into her features.

"Her Protector?" I find myself chiming in, scowling. How long has he been here?

Serena looks over to me, but I don't bother to look back at her. I figured she has secrets of her own, but I never thought she would keep something like this away. Especially from me.

"Harry, I can explain everything..." That guy Caleb speaks out to me, taking me aback.

"How do you know my name? How do you know Aubrey? Fuck, how long have you been here?" I yell back in response.

At this point, I don't care about the volume of my voice. I'll wake the whole damn hall if it will give Aubrey and this... Protector... a reality check.

"A few weeks," Serena replies quietly, looking down to the floor.

"Nothing happened! He just needed a place to sleep! He said he was a new Deviant!" Aubrey says, trying to engage in the conversation.

"That is the biggest load of bullshit I've ever heard. Especially from you," I growl at her, shutting her up.

How selfish could Aubrey possibly be? Her sister has been murdered, and she hasn't even seen the body because she's cuddling with Serena's Protector.

Serena's Protector. I still can't wrap my head around the fact that he has been here.

Wait. Protector. Oh, fucking hell. No, no, no.

Serena said Tara has Protector blood in her now. The only way she could have got it directly and in such a short amount of time would be... from Caleb.

My head feels like a thousand burning coals and with the way Serena is looking up at me, I have a feeling it looks like it too.

"Harry, just... calm down," Serena tells me quietly, her voice sending daggers of chills into my spine.

At this point, I really don't know what to do. However, I know that this will die away soon, and it shouldn't be about me and how I feel. It should be about Mona. That is why we're here.

"Can I talk to you alone?" I speak out, my eyes setting down on Aubrey.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Caleb speaks.

"Don't even try to challenge me right now, Protector. I can shoot you right now, without blinking," I snarl back, my hand reaching around to grab the gun in my back pocket.