Page 208 of Because I Killed Him
“All right,” he says at last. “I forgive you. But only because your Blue probably won’t.”
I stiffen as confusion cuts through my anger. Why is he talking to me? Doesn’t he care about the law? My eyes drop to his Blood Ring, where I catch the shimmer of a blue band circling his thumb.An Aegis.
The man leans back on the bench, studying me like I’m a rumor he’s finally bothered to verify… and found disappointing.
“You look like you’ve got something on your mind,” he says.
My mouth opens, but the words get stuck behind my teeth. He watches me for a moment, one blood-soaked eyebrow raised, then crooks a finger.
“Come on. You’re allowed to say it, sweetheart. But no flower fuckery. Talk like you think.”
The jab burns off what little patience I have left. Still, the rules keep my mouth shut.
“Talk,” he says, sharper now. “Or I’ll report you for assault. You broke my very delicate face.”
I bite the inside of my cheek so hard I taste blood. It’s either lose a few civil credits for breaking the behavior law or lose a hundred for assault. My rage decides for me.
“Fine.” I spit the word like another stone. “How long have you been sitting there?”
The man’s grin cracks wider, bright and bloody. “Long enough to pick sides. I was rooting for you. At first.”
“You liar. You werespying.” The hypocrisy of my own accusation tastes bitter, but I don’t care. My anger has to land somewhere. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
He shrugs and wipes a smear of orange blood from his temple. “Wanted to see how it ended. Thought for sure you’d knock him flat if you breathed just a little harder.”
Rain sluices off his hair as he leans forward, revealing more of himself: brown, wavy hair curling around his temples, amber eyes half-lidded with amusement, a mouth too handsome for the trouble it’s probably caused.He has more going for him than the average Orange, but I’d die before I tell him that.
“You’re awfully confident for such an ugly man.”
He barks a laugh, as if he’s heard the opposite enough times to be immune. “You, too—for such a stupid woman.”
“My scores say differently.”
“Scores?” He laughs harder, his head tipping back into the rain. “You got tossed out of your Cloning Theory exam.”
“Yeah, well, not because I’m stup—” I stop. “Wait. How do you know about that?”
“Waldsten, right?” The man jerks his thumb at the facility entrance. “Someone posted a bulletin in the lobby. Says you’re a nuisance. Difficult. Uncivilized. Really charming stuff.”
I go still as the pieces click into place. No wonder every professor’s class was magically too full to accept me. I turn back to him, forcing the words through gritted teeth.
“Can you please take it down?”
Rain spills from his mouth as he scoffs. “Why the hell would I?”
“Because… you’re rooting for me.”
“That was before the rock.”
Behind us, the next tram glides up to the platform. When the man stands to approach it, shaking rainwater from his sleeves, I step back, startled. He’s taller than I expected, broad through the shoulders, solid enough to block a doorway. He fishes an energy drink from his pocket, pops the tab, and drains half of it.
“Look—I’m sorry, all right?” I snap. “I wasn’t aiming for you. I was aiming at the building.”
He pauses, the can halfway to his mouth. “You got something against genetic engineering?”
I glare past him at the facility, every muscle in my neck wired tight. “Yes.”
His mouth quirks, almost in pity. “Why? You in love with that Blue back there?”
