Adapt (I)

SCARLET

Trent pulls up in front of my house, letting Boe and I out. He tells us that he will be back in a moment with Caron. I nod at him then race inside.

Boe follows close behind me. He softly shuts the front door behind us as I go to the sink, pick up a glass and fill it with tepid water.

“Okay, so are you going to tell me what happened with Logan?” Boe askes, calmly.

I glance over to where Boe is leaning against the side of the refrigerator, his arms crossed against his chest. The sight of him clouds my mind. Flashes of what happened on the dance floor echo in my mind.

I put down the glass and brace myself against the countertop. “He knows where the girls are. He wants our help in killing the therians that took them.”

“Our help?”

I nod my head. “Yes.” I turn to face Boe, my movements a little slower than usual. I try my best to squash my bubbling feelings for Boe that rise to the surface when I look at him directly. “He wants us to do his dirty work. He wants get rid of the therians that are doing this, and apparently it’s simpler to enlist some hunters than to do it himself.”

Boe raises one eyebrow. “So, he needs us to ‘clean house’?”

I give another short nod. “He wants us to meet him tomorrow - or today, I guess. At sunrise.”

“It could be a trap.” Boe says simply.

I roll my eyes. “I thought about that, but he pointed out to me that he could have killed either of us several times before, and he hasn’t.” I swallow, thinking about his other reason. “And, just like the hunters, Logan wants to recruit me.”

Boe’s eyes divert, his tongue rolling in his mouth. I can see his chest take a deep breath. “Who doesn’t?” Boe says half under his breath.

“You, hopefully.” I say before I realize that I had just spoken my thoughts.

Boe snaps out of his annoyance. “I-no-I don’t...” Boe straightens and runs his hand though his hair. “Scarlet, tonight I shouldn’t-”

I hold up a hand, stopping Boe. “Save me the speech. I get it. The kiss was a mistake.”

Boe frowns. “What?” he takes a step toward me. “No, I was going to apologize for leaving you unprotected.”

“Oh.” My shoulders drop, disarmed.

Boe takes another step toward me. “Scarlet, why are you trying to push me away again?”

“I don’t know how to do this.” I wave my hand between us, trying to communicate what I could not put into words.

Boe takes one last step toward me, closing the distance between us. “Me neither. All I know is that I like you a lot. And I really hope that you aren’t going to push me away like last time I kissed you.”

My lip is nearly gnawed through at this point. Boe’s eyes boring into me, the low light glinting in his dark greens. At some point I stopped breathing, and I have no idea how to begin again.

“So, are you?” Boe’s voice is low, his head ducking slightly, slowly coming closer to my face.

“Am I what?” I squeak.

His mouth pulls up at the corner. “Going to push me away?”

“No...” I whisper.

“Good.” Boe doesn’t let another second slip by before his mouth is on mine. This kiss is gentler than before, but hungrier. He wastes no time pulling my body against his. Instinctively I rise on my toes to accommodate for our difference in height; Boe bending down to make up the difference. My hands go to his hair unthinkingly. His lips move with intention, and I can feel the smile he can’t hide when my lips move with his. I breathe him in with every gasp I take in the fleeting moments I am able to come up for air.

The whole way home I had forced myself not to think about the incredible kiss we shared on the dance floor. I did not want to build it up in my head by over analysing every small detail: wondering if I was kissing him right; if he was only kissing me because he had had one too many drinks; wondering if he just felt sorry for how pathetic I am. Right in this moment, though, as Boe’s hand at the small of my back arches my spine so I can melt to his body, all of my doubt evaporates. There could be no second guessing that he wants me as much as, or maybe even more than, I want him.

The faint clicks of front doorknob being turned, makes me jolt. I instantly jump back a few steps, wiping my mouth. Boe’s face is plastered with a cheeky smile. Caron steps through, her phone in her hand, and stops. She looks from me to Boe and mimics the smile on Boe’s face.

I look down and smooth out my dress. “You know what, I am going to change out of this ridiculous dress and go to bed.” I give Boe a serious stare. “We have to get up early tomorrow. You should go and get some sleep.”

He lifts a shoulder. “I’m going to crash on the couch tonight. I think that it might be a good idea to have you and Caron a little more protected, now that we know that Logan isn’t as easy to sense as most.”

Caron raises one eyebrow but doesn’t question what Boe has just said. I’m sure she is saving that question for me when we are alone.

The thought of Boe sleeping here tonight makes me nervous for whatever reason. I wave a hand in the air, trying to convey nonchalance. “Whatever.” I turn and leave to get something to wear after my shower. Caron follows silently, but impatiently.

She closes the bedroom door behind us as I hide myself in my closet.

“Oh my god, you guys kissed, didn’t you?” She tries - and fails - to whisper. I can picture the cocky grin plastered across Boe’s face right now as he listens to Caron’s words.

“Could you say it any louder? I don’t think Trent heard, three streets away.”

“You have to tell me everything.” She leans against the jamb of the wardrobe, boxing me in.

“Caron, I haven’t even had time to process everything myself.” I grab the freshly cleaned sweatpants from the pile of clothes I had washed yesterday.

Caron just stares me down with a smirk engraved on her face.

“If it makes you happy, yes, we kissed.”

Her devilish grin deepens. “How did it happen?”

I take a deep breath. “Well... we were dancing and we both just got caught up in a moment.”

“Oh.” She croons. “That sounds spicy.”

I narrow my eyes at her. “Why does it feel like you had something to do with it?”

She half shrugs. “I mean, I didn’t choose that dress because I thought it would make great combat apparel.”

I look down at the dress that shouldn’t have been legal. “That’s why you dressed me up like Jessica Rabbit’s slutty little sister?”

She winks at me. “No, that’s why I dressed you in an outfit that actually pays homage to how ridiculously hot you are. Honestly, you have the most banging body and you dress it in the least flattering clothing.”

I grimace. “I am not hot.” I say the word like it takes sour. “I’m barely average. Anyway, I dress the way I do because it is practical.” I wince at how much I sound like Boe.

Caron rolls her eyes and pushes me over to the full-length mirror hanging on the back of my bedroom door. “Look at you.” She shakes my shoulders. “You are drop dead gorgeous. You have the clearest caramel skin, the most beautifully toned abs, you have thick shiny hair and you are curvy in the best way possible.” Her hands draw a hovering outline of my body, demonstrating my curves.

I roll my eyes but level with the figure in the mirror. She has the same maroon satin dress that I have on. It clings to her flat stomach and stretches just right over her hips. Her warm skin glows just slightly. Her full lips pout just so. Her brown eyes are warm, even though they are clearly tired. Her long dark hair frames her face and reflects light. She is... beautiful.

It isn’t the first time I have caught my reflection tonight, but it is the first time I have been able to really appreciate it. Even though my mind still refuses to recognize that this is my reflection, I have to admit that I understand why Boe decided to kiss me tonight.

Then a sick little thought enters my mind.

He only wants you because he liked how you looked tonight.

Caron brushes my hair back behind my shoulders. “You are hot, but I have seen the way he looks at you and what he feels has a lot more to do with who you are.” She says, as if reading my mind.

I force myself to look away from the mirror. “It doesn’t matter, Caron. We have to rescue these girls.” I say, bringing us all back to the most important thing that is going on right now.

Caron blows out a long breath. “Okay, I am guessing you guys have a plan.”

So, I give Caron a run-down of my encounter with Logan. She doesn’t interrupt, knowing how vital it is. When I am done, she ponders for a second then asks what she should do. I tell her that we will drop her at Trent’s place in the morning. Leaving her with Jessica and the kids felt like the safest option, since Trent is going to be coming on our hunt tomorrow morning. With Jess being almost as good at self-defence as I am, minus the extra strength, I feel confident leaving Caron with her.

Then I go and take a shower, checking the time on my way. It is nearly 2am. A quick search on my phone reveals that sunrise is just before six, which means that Boe, Trent and I have to make it back into the city, find the location and be surveillance for at least an hour before. That leaves me with all of about one hour to sleep.

I groan, realizing how stupid it would be to sleep now. Still, I take a shower and get changed into my comfortable sweatpants and tank top combo. With my hair slightly wet and bare feet planted firmly on the ground (and out of those confounded heels) I felt more relaxed. I see Boe folded uncomfortably onto the couch, one arm draping over his face to block out the light in the kitchen. His chest is rising and falling steadily, his mouth hanging open. A silent laugh bubbles in the chest as I shake my head and walk to the kitchen, getting a glass of water and shutting off the lights. They will be back on within forty minutes.

I go into my bedroom where Caron has already changed into her pyjamas. She is curled up in bed, scrolling on her phone.

I belly flop onto the bed, letting the exhaustion take me over.

Just as the blackness is about to descend, Caron shifts in place. “Scarlet, I have been doing some research.”

I groan in response, a little peeved that she has decided to rob me of some of the precious moments of sleep I could be enjoying right now.

“I know that you probably know more than I do about Therians, but something that Boe said has been nagging at me.”

I groan again, eager for Caron to get to the point.

“Well, it has bugged me why they didn’t just kill me. You guys said that Therians feed of emotion, but it has to be strong. When I was talking with Boe alone, he said that nine times out of ten the Therians get so caught up in the feed that they just end up killing the victim. It seems to me that it’s kind of odd that they are capturing these girls, rather than just killing them. It made me think that maybe they had different motivations.”

I roll so that I am facing Caron, my eyes fluttering open a little so that I can see her face. She isn’t looking at me, just continuing to scroll on her phone. I don’t say anything this time, waiting for her to continue her theory.

“So, I have been doing some research and I have been able to really narrow it down. The most common theory seems to be procreation.”

My eyes shoot open. “Procreation?”

She nods. “It seems that, from what I have been reading, empathic creatures can only genetically procreate with humans. It makes sense.”

Little pieces start to fall into place in my brain. Clues and details that I didn’t think were connected seem to link together.

“They are going to use those girls as breeding stock.” I say, jumping out of bed and immediately pulling on my combat boots.

“I think so.” Caron says, still not looking up from her phone. With her free hand she pinches her lip, deep in thought.

I pull a thick black hoodie over my head. It is not cold by any means, but it will help me camouflage tonight, before daybreak. I rush out into the living room, throwing on every light as I make my way to the kitchen. I grab my car keys then go to where Boe is laying on the couch. I shake his shoulder. “Up, we have to go. Now.” I bark.

Boe’s eyes fling open, revealing his bloodshot dark green eyes. He rolls off the couch and into a slumped standing position, gives me a sorrowful look before silently walking to the door. Caron follows suit, her face still buried in her phone. I want to ask her what the hell is so important on Instagram that she can’t look away, but I really don’t have time.

I take Caron to Trent’s house, who still has lights on. Trent doesn’t waste time coming out. It seems he also thought sleep pointless. He guides Caron inside then jumps in the back of the jeep. He has on a simple tank top and gym shorts, with a pair of sneakers. This was very comparable to what he trains in. He also has his knuckles wrapped, a good idea in my opinion. Trent is a little more breakable than Boe and I, and those wraps will prevent his knuckles from being totally destroyed in a fight against a therian.

For a moment I am nervous about taking Trent. Humans are so frail, their skin and bones that much more porous. It worries me that Trent is willing to go up against these creatures. Then a louder voice in my mind reminds me that I am being an idiot. Trent is not only skilled enough; he is also strong enough to take me down easily. If he is able to beat me, he is more than capable of beating a therian.

So, with Caron as safe as she could be, and Trent sitting up in the front passenger seat of the Range Rover, we headed off to the meeting point.