The Trouble with Evie

Chapter 20

"I could really use your help right about now."

The shrub said nothing as my bundle of flowers fell over. Sighing heavily, I propped it back up again.

"Niko," I whispered sadly.

Wiping away the tears, I sat upright and tried to find something positive to tell him. There wasn't much, and I knew that it would slowly degrade into the negative. We take the good with the bad, like always.

"Kannon took me for my first driving lesson. It was fun once I got past the scariness of it all. You didn't hear it, but we might have taken the next step. We're official. I suppose that's a thing, right?"

It will undoubtedly annoy Audrey to learn that we're dating. I would like to think that she's only trying to upset me, but I had a sneaking suspicion that she was after Kannon as a way into the vampire world. It certainly made sense considering she was desperate to be included in this nonsense with Drakkus.

"We've made the connection. Brad filed the paperwork today. My fingers are crossed, and I hope yours are too. The Nephilim guy appeared again. He said my dad is a witch, and that's why they're coming for me. I don't understand why they care. I know what Kannon said, and it kind of makes sense, but really, why can't they leave me alone? Am I hurting anyone by being alive? This would be so much easier if you were here to explain it to me."

But he wasn't, which was more crushing than I thought possible.

Hearing a crunch, I knew that Kannon was closing in on me. He'd gone for a walk in the opposite direction and said he'd take a slow walk back here so that I had time with Niko. I think that he was more worried than what Brad was. Brad didn't like that I came in here but let me because he knew where I was and that I wouldn't stay for too long.

I was slowly letting go, not that I wanted to. It had only been a few days with Niko, but there was something wonderful about what we had. It was like there was a sense of understanding that I couldn't find anywhere else in this world. Not with Brad, not with Kannon.

I should be used to death by now. Before my mother died, we lived in the roughest part of the city. Death was as common as the sun. I'd open the curtains of a morning and see a man running down the street, stolen goods in his arms. Seconds later, the cops would be chasing him, and the gunfight would happen. Sometimes it would be a robbery, and the victim would fight back. Drug users unable to pay. Drug runners stealing. It was why I wasn't surprised that my mother died. I was used to it and expected it, but in a way, I didn't really expect it.

I think that I knew it would happen. Like a whisper in the back of my mind that would never leave, it reminded me that it was only a matter of time before she left me. I hoped that it was wrong. Unfortunately, it wasn't.

Rising to my feet, I flicked away the leaves and said goodbye to Niko. Kannon was leaning against a tree trunk at the end of the path. Within sight but far enough away to still be respectful.

"Do your parents know where you are?"

Kannon chuckled softly as his arms wrapped around me. Mine was around his waist, hugging him tightly. I was falling hard.