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He studies ht away My heart thunders in my chest as I wait for an explanation I lower my hand and demand hoarsely, "Tell id line of his shoulders sees a hand through his hair, sending the dark strands tu wildly "And you think you can make it out there You don’t even knohat country you’re in"

This hits its aze slides froain "I bet"

"I was alainst the cave wall, suddenly unable to stand without so in a breath "But then I got shot Apparently I washed back ashore on the Aood old US of A If I’d been leading you, you would have ainst Sean Sean, who h me

I stab the knife in his direction "You’ll never lead me anywhere"

He motions behind o" His voice drops lower And he’s speaking slower Or it just see toon his lips "I predict you’ll be picked up in half an hour Unless you pass out Then the coyotes will find you and have a feast Is that what you want, girl?"

I flexto let the solid feel of it reassure irl’ I have a na My neck angles back to hold his gaze He’s not as brawny as Sean but he’s taller Lean and rangy like a wolf I blink once, hard, shaking off the coh I suppose it’s natural to compare every carrier I meet to SeanSean who has filled my world for the last several one Lost to ers splayed wide He waves the to soothe and taently

I frown The circular ins to aze off the flurry of his hands "Doesn’t matter"

"Sure it does Tell me your na to snap back to hts

Is it just me or has he moved closer? I jab the knife in his direction "Stay back" I cringe at the sluggish sound of ainst ainst the heat of ive out I cry as I fall, turaceless heap The fall jars , he plucks the knife fro candy froet the words out, each one punctuated with a pained exhale

"How are you not dead?" he asks in a leah, the sound brittle and a little crazy even to my ears My head spins "Oh, but I’ I don’t thinkdrunk with no filter "Onemy dorm room at Juilliard, and then this" I wave atmy eyes, I search for the dark never that sheltered host couldn’t find me there I can feel it close, so very near, like warm breath at my neck

"Who wanted you?"

His voice is insistent, like a buzzing gnat around my cotton-filled head I crack open aze is gone I watch as he slips my knife away It disappears beneath his poncho He took it fro Definitely not someone to inspire fear Even if I do have this stupid imprint on my neck

I slowly rollood killer And I kind of suck at it" My head dips to the side My bangs fall in my eyes "Don’t I look like a deadly assassin to you?"

"Who was training you?" His hand is there, brushing the hair back The contact is al into that touch, into the callused fingertips that graze my forehead They feel so cool on my overheated flesh At least I tell myself that’s the reason behind the compulsion He’s not tender in any way He can’t be He’s just trying to see my face as I ramble incoherently Even in aze, those fla me for information

"Sa at him like I can see his i "The Agency" I say this last bit slowly, dragging out the words "They put me in a special camppromised I could have h at this, highly amused with myself