Anger and doubt rose inside Kylie so strong that tears stung her eyes. "But leaving like this is ... It feels so wrong. I should go back and talk to him."
"No! If you go back, there's a good chance they'll find us. I know the schedule of the guards, and if we don't hurry they'll catch you leaving."
Kylie inhaled. The smell of the forest filled her lungs and she tried to rationalize. The night seemed to crawl between the trees and the air felt thick. "Why? Why would they do this?"
"Isn't it obvious? You're a protector and you belong to the chameleons."
"I don't belong to anyone!"
"I didn't mean ... I know you don't really belong to anyone. But that's the way they feel." Jenny stepped closer. "They're wrong, they're all wrong about so many things. Why do you think I'm doing this?"
She looked at Jenny and the girl's question vibrated in Kylie's head. "Why are you doing this? And don't say it's just because you think they are wrong, or because you like me or something, because you haven't said more than a few words to me. My gut tells me it's more and my gut is usually right."
She glanced away but not before Kylie saw the guilt in her eyes.
"Is this some kind of a trap?" Kylie started looking around.
"No, it's not a trap," Jenny said.
Kylie heard conviction in Jenny's tone, but she wasn't vampire and couldn't be sure if the girl lied or not. She peered harder at Jenny. "Either you explain yourself right now, or I'm turning around and going back."
"Explain what?" Jenny asked, sounding frustrated.
"Explain why you would help me when you don't even like me."
She huffed. "Look, I didn't like you because Brandon did. I'm supposed to be matched with him, and while it makes me furious that they think they can tell me who I should fall in love with, it still pissed me off when he started falling all over you."
"Matched with him? You mean the elders try to arrange marriages?"
"They try to do everything. They are all crazy. Well, not your grandfather, completely, but..." Jenny rubbed her hand on her jeans as if nervous at telling her true feelings. "They keep us sheltered away from everything. They say it's because they don't want people to see us until we have the ability to hide our patterns. But look at you. You lived in the regular world; you weren't killed or thrown into slavery."
"Slavery?" Kylie asked.
"Yeah, they use fear to keep us compliant. To convince us to stay here and not go out into the world."
Kylie shook her head. "I haven't heard anything about this." But she suddenly realized how isolated she'd been since she'd come. She'd been so overwhelmed, she hadn't realized.
"They've been careful what they say in front of you. But you have to believe me. They want to keep us here. To protect us, they say, but ... sometimes I think what we should fear the most is being suffocated by this way of life. And if they find out you don't agree with them, there's hell to pay."
"Which brings me back to my original question," Kylie said. "If you're so afraid, why are you doing this?"She averted her eyes away again.
"What are you not telling me?" Kylie insisted.
Jenny exhaled. "It's Hayden."
"Hayden Yates?" Kylie asked.
"We talk sometimes. My parents don't know. The elders don't know. And you can't tell anyone."
Kylie did the math in her head, comparing Hayden's possible age and then Jenny's. "He's too old for you."
Jenny's green eyes widened. She shook her head. "He's not my boyfriend. He's my older brother."
Kylie tried to compute this new information. "Then why would your parents not want you to talk to him?"
"Because he left. When a chameleon leaves they're supposed to cut all ties to the family so they won't expose us."
"But my grandfather contacted Hayden," Kylie said.
"Like I said, your grandfather is the lesser of the evils here. Your grandfather actually lets me talk to him sometimes." Jenny frowned. "But we don't have time to stand around and talk. I'm serious, if we don't go now, the guards will catch us." The sound of footfalls coming, coming fast, punctuated Jenny's warning.
"Damn," she said. "Run. Just keep going south and you should come to the edge of the property. You should make it before the guards do if you hurry."
"But-"
"Go! I promised my brother I'd get you out of here!"
The urgency in Jenny's tone had Kylie bolting, but she only got a hundred yards when her chest constricted with a bad feeling. A bad feeling about leaving Jenny. Kylie felt the subtle change in her body at even the slightest thought that someone might be in danger. She wasn't leaving the girl, not until she made sure whoever hurdled toward her wasn't a threat. Swinging around, she started back.
"Damn it!" a gravelly sounding voice exploded in the dark of the forest. A voice that sounded familiar.
"Get off of me."
"Leave her alone," Jenny screamed. "She's going back where she belongs."
Kylie's feet pounded harder against the ground as she hurried to the edge of the trees. She hadn't come to a complete stop when she recognized the voice. She saw Derek with a very angry Jenny clinging to his back, her hands over his eyes and her legs wrapped around his waist.
Derek yanked her hands from his eyes, but Jenny just shifted her hold around his throat.
"Where is Kylie?" he growled, and whirled around, as if half attempting to find her and half trying to throw off his assailant.
Kylie almost smiled at the sight of Jenny clinging to Derek's back. The smile faded when she saw him become still and close his eyes as if concentrating. She knew he was about to do that thing in his mind that would leave Jenny unconscious. "Stop. I'm here," Kylie belted out.
"You know him?" Jenny asked, her legs still clinging to Derek's back.
"Yes. I know him. Get off of him," Kylie suggested, not completely sure Derek understood Jenny wasn't a threat.
Jenny slipped down and then quickly stepped back, as if now the moment of panic was over, she felt asense of fear. Derek turned, no doubt scowling at the girl, if Jenny's expression was any indication. After only a second, his angry posture weakened. The two of them clashed gazes, neither of them looking happy, but assessing each other.
"Then ... then go, both of you." Jenny waved her arms and quickly diverted her gaze away from Derek.
"Go before the guards find you."
"What's going on?" Derek asked, and finally looked away from Jenny to Kylie. She saw his gaze cut to the suitcase in her hand.