Page 22 (1/2)

"Hoere you planning it to go?" I ask, wondering if he ever meant to kiss me and feelbrake on "A little less bar fighting and a lotout in the back of the bar"

I look at hier in his eyes "How did you learn to fight like that?" I ask, unclicking er to his injured lip "You were kind of ahtmy hand away from his mouth

He relaxes a little, his shoulders unstiffening "Yeah, I saw you knee that guy… You didn’t so much as hesitate"

"Hesitation shoeakness," I say robotically "At least, that’s what uy" I pause, scratching nervously at my neck "I didn’t kill hiaze fierce

I lower my hand to my lap "So you don’t believe the rumors?"

He shakes his head and a wisp of his hair falls into his eyes He leans over and sketches along love co I want to show you" He grabs a flashlight and then hops out of the car

I climb out and meet hi hands, and he lights the ith the flashlight An owl hoots froht It’s strange but peaceful knoe’re the only two out here and that we’re sharing a private moment no one else can ever touch

Asher unexpectedly makes a sharp turn off the path and ducks into the trees The leaves and twigs crunch under our shoes as we hike deeper into the woods

"Where are we going?" I whisper, forcing ht as branches claw at my skin

He shoves a branch aside and letsout here I want to show you"

"What? A roll of tape and a shovel," I say sarcastically

He spots the flashlight onmy eyes with my hand, I shake my head "I think it would take a hell of a lot uy to scare me"

"You think I’m hot, huh?" It’s nearly pitch black, but I hear the s off my slipup "So what’s really--"

He silences ether and steaers find h ofonto his ar if it’s possible to stay like this forever, in the darkness of the woods, away fro ravenously "You’re beautiful, you know that?" He rubs his lips together "Especially when you’re eet e my shoulders back "Only unco hands and taking in the serenity of each other’s coe froht across the area, highlighting a stone statue of an Angel with feather-carved wings aimed at the sky and its head and back is curled inward toward the earth Surrounding it are petite wooden crosses covered with vines of rose bushes

"How did you know this was here?" I h I’ on forbidden territory "And does anyone else know it’s back here?"

"My father took ht in his hand "And I don’t think anyone else knows it exists"

"How’d your father know about it?" I stare up at the Angel statue

"His father showed it to hi on the foot of the statue

Bending down, I read it aloud, "To guard the Earth froilance For those we seek to guard could destroy us and themselves"

"Do you knohat it"It feels like I’ve heard it before"

He walks up behind me, crouches down, and puts his els are the guardians of hueneral fear of anything involving death They have the potential to destroy theo, people used to slay anyone they suspected were Angels of Death"

"Did they have black-winged feathers," I half joke, but a of all the feathers I’ve co of Laden’s cri it against his chest "Or of so else?"

"You know about the feathers on Laden’s crime scene?"

"Everyone knows about the crime scene"