Page 7 of Protect Me
Her back straightened.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” I croaked.
“Feeling better?”
She stepped forward. Might have been the drugs twisting my memory, but she seemed a lot less frightened now than when she’d first arrived. Was frightened the right word? Taken aback, maybe?
Who wouldn’t have been with me growling like a grizzly and smelling like this?
“Not sure,” I murmured. “I think so.”
She stopped in the doorway to the kitchen and leaned a shoulder against the door frame. Her arms folded across her chest.
“I, uh . . .”
“Thanks,” I held up a hand to stop her. “Sorry if I was cranky. The meds they have me on are a bit of a trip.”
Her stiff smile softened. She shrugged one shoulder. “No problem.”
I drew in a breath, held it, and attempted to stand. The expected pain came, but I breathed out, working through it. The dizziness followed, and that’s what kept taking me down.
Katelyn materialized at my side.
“Let me help.”
I had half a second to decide before I would fall back onto the couch and endure a shock of pain that would last minutes. That would be unbearable, so I gritted my teeth and accepted her offered shoulder. She braced herself, stabilizing me, with an arm around my waist. The heat of her arm was a welcome touch.
How long had it been since I’dseenanother person?
“Thanks.”
“I can take it,” she said. “You can lean on me.”
With hesitation, I let my hand rest on her other shoulder. She moved closer, allowing me to shift my weight onto her. Her shoulder tucked right under my arm, like a missing puzzle piece that had come together. My toes dug into the carpet as I solidified my stance, then reached for a crutch.
“Thanks.”
Several seconds passed while I got my metaphorical—and literal—feet under me. She stood immovable at my side.
“Got it. I can walk, I just . . . I get dizzy.” Despite myself, I couldn’t help a wry smile down at her. “Guess it’s been awhile since you’ve experienced me without a shower or deodorant.”
She chortled. “A very long while. If I remember right, you started wearing deodorant in elementary school.”
“I did. You remember that?”
Her cheeks brightened in a little blush. She kept her gaze down.
“Lucky guess.”
Liar.
If Vinita had been the Kingslayer, then Katelyn had been the Eternal Second. Always at Vinita’s side. The quiet voice of reason, diplomacy, and logic. The quiet ofeverything. Katelyn crept around my memories like a fog, a whisper, a dream. A will-o’-wisp come to life that fluttered around the calmest parts.
There, but gently so.
She never wanted to draw attention to herself, but couldn’t stay away. The moth to Vinita’s flame. They’d been inseparable in my memories, too. I hardly pictured my sister without thinking of Katelyn.
