Acropolis by R.K. Ryals Page B

agree."
    I am suddenly thankful for Roach's
anti-social personality. It gives Gibson and me a moment of
amiability, and I run with it.
    "Let me be a Guardian again, sir. Just for
this mission. If I fail, I'll take the demotion without
complaint."
    Gibson snorts.
    "I'm supposed to believe the complaint
part?"
    "I won't fail you," I insist.
    He is quiet for far too long.
    "We have high hopes for you, Conor. Your
father and your mother . . . amazing Guardians. But this mission .
. . she's not a normal hybrid."
    I already know this. And yet, the girl
herself is sorely underprepared for the burdens being placed on
her. She is scared, untrained, and until recently, had no idea she
was anything other than a normal girl dying from a strange
malady.
    "She trusts me," I say.
    "She trusts no one," Gibson corrects. "But
you do seem to have a way with her."
    I feel my hopes rise.
    "This mission, Reinhardt. I'll give
you this mission. You screw
up, I'll be the first to know."
    Of course he will. His daughter, Rachel, will
be traveling with me. She is going to be a burr in my side, but
I'll take it.
    "Thank you, sir."
    Even I know when to shut up and walk
away.
    "And Conor?" Gibson says. My grip tightens on
the phone.
    "Sir?"
    "If my daughter gets hurt, I'll tan your
hide. And that's before I pull every limb from your body and feed
them to the enemy."
    The call is disconnected. Gibson sure as hell
knows how to make an impression.
    "He's a real winner, isn't he?" a female
voice asks from behind me. I turn to find Rachel leaning against my
bedroom door. Emma is still on my bed, her eyes on the two of
us.
    "Is that a loaded question, Rach? Anything I
say is incriminating."
    She grins.
    "I take it you're going to be spending a lot
of time pleading the fifth?"
    "That's what the amendment is there for,
right?"
    She shrugs and backs away from the door so I
can move past her. Rachel is all kinds of wrong wrapped up in one
girl. It's not that she isn't likable. She just has two major flaws
(in my opinion only) working against her. One, she is an
overachiever. She wants to prove to Gibson she is more than
eligible for his job one day. Two, our families want us to marry,
and I am not interested.
    "How are we doing?" I ask Emma as I move
toward her slowly.
    Emma's amber eyes track me warily. She is
still sitting on my bed, her hair pulled over to one side of her
face, and I can see the tension in her body. Her muscles are tight,
ready to spring. I have never seen anything like it before. She is
like a wild animal found injured in the woods. No matter how much
my instinct tells me to avoid her, I am drawn by the idea of taming
her. And she is absolutely clueless about her effect on people.
    "I'm okay," she whispers.
    Her voice has a husky quality to it. It isn't
deep, but it is low enough to send shivers down the spine. She is a
quiet girl, no doubt, but all the anxiety has put her in constant
"fight" mode, and it is causing her dormant powers to open up. She
is downright intriguing.
    It is dark beyond my room, the day having
slid into night, and I pull some sleep clothes out of a nearby
dresser. I throw a pair of flannel bottoms and a large tee at Emma
before turning to Rachel. Rachel holds up her hands.
    "I've got my own, thank you."
    I shrug and head toward the bathroom.
    "I'm getting a shower. Why don't you two
change?"
    Rachel pulls some clothes out of a large hand
bag sitting by the door. Part of being a good Guardian is traveling
light. Emma's face has gone red. It is obvious she is incredibly
modest.
    "Try turning around while Emma changes. She's
the shy type," I whisper to Rachel as I walk past her into the
bathroom.
    "As if I didn't notice," Rachel grumbles.
    The shower feels good, and I spend longer
than necessary in the bathroom. It isn't until I hear Rachel
swearing that I throw on some clothes and walk into my room. Emma
is pushed up against my headboard, her eyes distant and red. She is
wearing my blue flannel pajama bottoms and a large