The Vaga by S. A. Carter Read Free Book Online Page A

that?’ Sam asks, frowning.
    Phoebe shrugs and passes me a wide-eyed look.
    A laugh escapes me. What Sam doesn’t know about Phoebe’s history of dating men, especially macho men, would astound him.
    ‘What’s that laugh for?’ he asks me.
    ‘Nothing. I’m just going to get some hotdogs now,’ I reply quickly, wanting to avoid this conversation. Phoebe grabs my leg as I walk past and pinches it with force. I playfully swat her hand away.
    Magi starts to follow me out, but I stop her. ‘Mags, I’ll only be a few minutes. You stay here.’
    She stops and sits on her haunches, eyeing me with concern.
    Sam puts his hand on her head. ‘Stay here, Magi. Ellie will be back soon.’
    Immediately I see Magi’s aura calm and she lifts her head under Sam’s hand.
How bizarre, Magi never responds like that to anybody
. She continues to watch me, but sidles closer to Sam, who pats her head gently in response.
    I walk out the exit doors and make my way through to one of the many canteen style eateries that fill the stadium. Lucky for me the game hasn’t really started yet so the line-up isn’t too long.
    As I rifle through my bag for my purse a familiar deep voice whispers into the back of my head. ‘You need to be more careful.’
    Julian
.
    My whole body goes into overdrive, a warm tingly sensation spreading from my toes to the top of my head. My blood ignites in a rush of desire, warning and fear all thrown into one. I struggle to keep my emotions in check but it proves to be more difficult than I ever could have imagined. It’s as if time has stopped and the world around me ceases to exist.
    The dreams, the feelings, the fears that I’ve been having for years all come rushing to the surface in a huge wave that threatens to engulf me, taking me into its watery jaws to be forever lost on the bottom of the sea bed.
    Hearing his voice I now realise the enormity of what these feelings represent, and yet…I don’t want to admit the truth. Admitting what they mean is like betraying everyone I’ve ever loved. It would change everything.
    No
,
I’m not ready for that
.
    I push the feelings deep down, imagining them being forced into a large box, and I slam the lid shut. Staring straight ahead I swallow the lump in my throat before saying, ‘Careful of what?’
    I hear him intake a sharp breath before answering. ‘Careful of the enemy you think you know…but don’t.’
    His voice contains a hypnotic lilt that tells me he is well educated—a hint of an accent both refined and cultured, yet it also holds a smoldering quality to it that sends a warm tremble up my spine. His breath this close causes the tiny hairs on the back of my neck to rise.
    Finding my courage, I begin to turn around but he stops me with his words. ‘No. Don’t turn around. Just listen. You have to be more vigilant, Elena. Do
not
think you know this enemy. They are more dangerous than you could imagine.’
    My anger surfaces. ‘What enemy is that?’ I spit out. ‘The Puritans, the Venators, or you?’ My breathing becomes rapid as my old bitterness emerges. I want to turn around and slap him. He, and others like him, are my enemy. They are the reason my family have all been murdered. What does he care what happens to me?
    I hear him sigh. ‘Yes, you’re right. I cannot change the past. I told you in the letter that I was sorry.’ He pauses briefly before continuing. ‘But this is different, Elena. You cannot be blinded by your past hatred or you will get yourself killed.’
    Out of the corner of my eye I see him raise his hand towards my shoulder, but then he hesitates mid-air. My breath catches again, and I all but will him to do it. As much as I feel years of anger and resentment clutching at my chest, there is a part of me, a deep yearning within me that outweighs those emotions.
    The air between us is still. Neither one of us willing to break first. The energy emanating off him is not hostile, in fact, it feels like he is trying to