A Fractured Light (Beautiful Dark)

Jo.
    I realized that the look in her eyes—it was worry. Fear. It was different from the looks she’d given me earlier in the winter, each time she was about to go away and afraid of leaving me alone. No, this wasn’t about what might happen to me. It was, I realized, about what I had done—or might do.
    It was the same way Asher had treated me at the cabin. Like I was something fragile and yet unpredictable, something extremely precious.
    I glanced at the window, wondering if he and Ardith—and Gideon now, too—were out there. Watching. Keeping me safe.
    When I turned back from the window, Aunt Jo was still staring at me.
    “You look older,” she said. “You know that?”
    I thought about all that had happened to me since I’d turned seventeen.
    “Yeah,” I said. “I guess I am.” There were dark circles under her eyes and the lines in her forehead looked deeper than I’d remembered. She looked older, too.
    “G’night,” she said.
    “Night, Aunt Jo,” I whispered back.
    I couldn’t really remember what it felt like to be with my mom, but if I’d had to guess, I figured it probably felt exactly like this.
     
    I stayed in the kitchen for a few minutes longer after Aunt Jo went upstairs, absently nibbling on a cookie. The spicy sweet taste reminded me of everything from before. Suddenly my stomach flipped, and I didn’t feel so great. A shiver ran down my spine as I remembered that time in the kitchen, at night, alone, when Raven had first confronted me. Was she out there right now? What if they all were? Waiting in the bushes and behind trees. Poised to attack the first chance they got.
    I stood up quickly, turned the light off in the kitchen, and sprinted up the stairs to my room.
    It was freezing in there, and it took only a second to figure out why: my window was wide open. I rushed to it—but instead of closing it automatically like I might have a month ago, I stuck my head out the window and looked up toward the roof.
    “Asher?” I whispered. “Are you up there?” I heard a rustle of feathers in response, and then he appeared in my window.
    “Hey.” He winked, his eyes glittering with mischief. “Want a hand up?” Grinning, I threw on a hoodie and sweatpants. I put my hand in his, and he pulled me up with him to the roof.
    “Nice look,” he said.
    “Shut up,” I replied. He put his arm around me, and I sank into the warmth of his body. All the tension I’d felt talking to Ian and Aunt Jo melted away, and I knew, right then, that this was home. Being with Asher. That was all that mattered.
    As long as we were together, everything would be fine.
    “They’re out there,” Asher said under his breath, looking out at the field below. “Do you see them?” I looked down at the field.
    “Who?” I said. “I don’t see anything.”
    “Shh,” he whispered. “Be still. Look again.”
    This time, I did think I could make out some movement in the dark. Was I imagining things, or could I catch a glimpse of feathers among the trees, a flash of moonlit white against the night?
    “Guardians,” I said in a low voice.
    “Waiting.”
    “For me.” I paused as I really let the weight of it sink in. “Asher, what if I see Devin at school tomorrow? What if I see Raven?” He tightened his arm around me protectively.
    “Trust me, Skye, they’d never stage any kind of attack out in the open. At school like that, with everyone watching. Believe it or not, right now, school is the safest place to be.”
    “I can’t believe it,” I said, shivering. “Hey, do you have anywhere to be tonight?”
    “You mean other than right here?”
    “I just thought, with Ardith and Gideon here—”
    “Skye.” He stopped me. “I’m pretty sure protecting you is my top priority right now.”
    “Good,” I said. “Look. I know this is stupid and embarrassing, but would you . . .”
    “Yes?” He grinned.
    “Um, sleep with me tonight? Just sleep, I mean. I hate saying this, but . . . I just don’t want to be alone.”
    Asher raised an eyebrow. “Just sleep?” A smile tugged at one corner of his mouth in the most infuriating way.
    I tried not to blush. It would only egg him on more. “Okay, you know what? Never mind. I’ll take my chances with the Guardians.”
    “Oh, stop,” he said, helping me up. “I would love to just sleep with you, Skye.” He walked to the edge of the roof, then turned around, shaking his head. “Are you going to be this scared every night? Because I’ll