Lost Energy Read Online Free PDF

to–"
    "I've ended more Guides'
cycles than I care to remember." He shrugged, his fingers still white on
the wheel. "Always a one-man operation. Get in, get out, careful not to
disturb the dimension when you're butchering somebody. Killing a traitor, well,
that was honorable, right? They'd recycle somewhere else, pay for their sins."
    Yeah, like me…
    "Farren–"
    "But Protectors are a
different story, not so easy to kill them." His eyes, a little wild,
glanced my way before focusing again on the road. "They still had to pay,
though."
    He didn't have to finish. The
conclusion to the story was obvious. A savage urge to protect my best friend
settled in my gut. "I get it now, really."
    He pulled into the trailer park,
shaking his head. "I see all their faces every time I close my eyes. Every
single person I…" He killed the engine when we pulled behind Dad's place. "I
believe in karma, Lena, and it's waiting to bite me in the ass. Can't take the
chance with her. Won't."
    I sighed. "Maybe you should
let her go, let her talk to other people without scaring the shit outta them. Stop
giving her hope."
    He rubbed his smooth face and let
out a half-groan, half-growl. "She doesn't make it easy."
    I opened the door, ready to let him
off the hook. "No, no she doesn't."
    Farren got out, pushing the lock
button on the keychain, and headed toward the front of the house. Before I
opened the door, he grabbed my arm. "I'll control myself next time,
promise."
    I palmed his cheek. "Someday,
all this, it's gonna be over. They'll get tired of bothering with us. But until
then, you've got Wilma here to help you." I gave him a light slap on his
red cheek before things became too emotional. "Maybe you should trust
Belva, too. She's stronger than she looks."
    He tilted his head. "Always
the optimist, aren't you?"
    "Somebody's gotta be." I
lowered my voice before opening the door, more than ready to change the
subject. "Look, he spooks easy. Try not to act so, ah, scary, okay?"
    Farren smiled, or rather gave a
sneer that curled the right side of his mouth. "No problem. I'll stand in
the corner…make sure he knows I'm there."
    "Yeah, that won't terrify him."
I went inside.
    As usual, Dad sat in his chair. His
happy relief turned to horror when we walked in and his eyes shifted from me to
Farren, who closed the door and stood there as promised. With his arms crossed
and looking like a menacing biker without the hot tattoos, angry Ginger made a
point to give my shaking father a stare-down.
    Before I had a yellow puddle to
clean up, I scowled at Farren and went to kneel in front of the wicker chair. "Hey,
look at me." My voice didn't get his attention, and so I grabbed his jaw,
forcing him to look. "He's here to help, okay? No need to be scared."
    Dad's body quaked so hard, I feared
the chair might collapse. "He's almost as big as the other one. They ain't
human, girl."
    A snort came from the Big Red
peanut gallery. "Almost, huh?"
    I whipped my head around and
mouthed for Farren to shut up, and then made an effort to soften my face before
turning back to the shell in the chair. "He's human, and so is the other
one. But he won't hurt you; I won't let him."
    "How you gonna stop him?"
    Ugh! Dammit! I turned to Farren. "Don't
hurt him."
    Farren scratched his head with a
grin. "Ah, yeah, whatever."
    Patience wasn't one of my virtues
either. A groan escaped my lips when Dad whined and pleaded for me to make him
leave, but I cut him off. "He stays, and you're gonna stop acting like a
baby, got it? We'll need him if those people show up again."
    I stormed into the kitchen, rinsed
out the coffee pot, and started fresh. Farren stayed at the door while Dad
hunkered under his blanket, never taking his eyes away from the almost as
big guy in the corner.
    Yeah, not the most ideal way to
spend the evening.
     
    ∞
∞ ∞
     
    An hour, and another, ticked by.
Farren and I eased into our usual banter, him saying something stupid or
annoying and me calling him on it.