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Lydia
motioned to the area on the other side of the creek. “But you might
want to tie them up.”
    He shook his head, his long hair barely
brushing the tops of his shoulders. “You are not making my life any
easier by fighting them. I am your guardian, remember?” Then
he grabbed the huge knife strapped to his side, bolted across the
bridge, and behind a thick stand of trees.
    Kira had never seen anyone move so quickly.
Before she turned her head to follow his movement, he’d gone.
“Lydia. What’s going on, and . . . who was that?”
    “Octavion’s my brother.”
    “Brother? But you told me you’re an only
child. And who’s Shandira?”
    Lydia hesitated for a moment before
answering. “My sister.”
    “Great.” Psycho siblings. Kira’s
stomach twisted into a knot. And Kira thought her family
life sucked.
    Lydia’s hands no longer pressed against the
wound in her side, but lay at rest in her lap. The bloodstain had
spread to her jeans and there was no sign of it stopping. If Kira
couldn’t take her to the hospital, she’d have to do the next best
thing.
    Kira walked to where Octavion threw the
knife, and wiggled the blade from the bark. Her fingers slipped
around the bloody handle until they found a firm grip. She fought
back the bile that rose in her throat and went to Lydia’s side.
    “We need to stop the bleeding,” Kira said.
“Get mad if you want, but I’m doing this.”
    Lydia nodded.
    Kira cut the clean sleeve from Lydia’s
sweater, turned it inside out to reveal the smoother fibers, and
lifted the shirt just enough to expose the gash in her side. It
wasn’t just a small puncture like she’d hoped, but a jagged
four-inch gouge that ran just under Lydia’s rib cage. Kira
swallowed hard. She wadded the piece of sweater and pressed it
firmly against the wound. Lydia cried out, pushing Kira’s arm
away.
    “I’m sorry, but we have to stop the
bleeding,” Kira said.
    Lydia’s fingers dug into Kira’s skin as she
tried to apply more pressure to the makeshift bandage. “Kira,
stop,” Lydia begged, just as Octavion came back into view.
    “Do not touch her,” he yelled as he swung his
arm in Kira’s direction, brushing her aside.
    The force behind his blow wasn’t heavy, but
it caught Kira off guard and she stumbled back, tripped over a tree
root and landed against the rock she’d been sitting on. As if stuck
in the metal jaws of a vise, her arm caught between it and the
forward momentum of her body. She slumped to the ground. The last
time she’d been hurt like that was when Paul came home drunk after
losing big in a poker game. She couldn’t imagine Lydia being mixed
up with a guy like that—brother or not.
    She clenched her fist and bent her arm at the
elbow. She didn’t think it was broken, though the pain was almost
unbearable. Her instincts told her to run, but how could she leave
Lydia? Instead, she scooted closer to the tree to stay out of the
way, and cradled her arm against her tender ribs.
    “Jerk,” she mumbled under her breath.
    Octavion showed no sign that he’d heard her.
He was too busy examining Lydia’s wound again. This time Kira had a
better view of his face. His strong chiseled jaw tightened as the
crease between his eyes furrowed. “This is deep.” He ran his
fingers through his wavy brown hair. “How am I to protect you if
you do such foolish things?”
    Lydia’s bottom lip quivered. “I’m sorry. You
know how she gets. I . . . I’ll be fine, you’ll see.” She gave him
a half smile.
    Their eyes locked for a long moment before he
slipped one arm behind her back and the other under her knees,
lifting her from the ground. Lydia relaxed against his chest, then
turned her head to look at Kira.
    “He won’t hurt you. Trust him—it’ll be
okay.”
    Kira nodded, but inside she questioned
everything, especially whether or not Octavion would hurt her. Her
throbbing arm already testified to his inability to control his
temper.
    Octavion adjusted his hold