Adapt (I)

Scarlet

“How do you like La Corrente?” He takes a sip of the red wine that he has been casually swirling in the overly large glass for the past few minutes that I have been staring at him in silence.

I don’t speak. I’m not usually one to lose my words, but fear grips me so tight I cannot seem to move. My eyes dart over to the bar where Boe still has his back turned to me, still waiting on service.

“He won’t be back for a moment.”

I look back to Logan. He is perched up on the chair across from me, his expression calm. The lights of the city illuminate his features, showcasing his sun-bleached hair and brown eyes, hooded by thick lashes. His bottom lip is slightly fuller than his top, his nose is ever so slightly crooked, but these flaws seem to give him a more masculine edge. He wears a spotless blue button-down shirt, a pair of black leather suspenders, which I am sure are hooked to neatly pressed slacks. I am even willing to bet that his shoes are shiny black leather as well. Juxtaposing his clean-cut look, his collar is popped up, giving his appearance an almost casual feel. He doesn’t look more than twenty-five.

“I was wondering when you would attempt to find me.” He says, continuing as if I am not a stiff board sitting across from him.

He leans his head to the side, watching me. “I assume you are here about the missing girls.”

This unthaws me. “Where are they?” I ask, sharply.

He slowly straightens, a smile spread easily on his face. “Ah, yes. I will tell you. Just after we get acquainted.” Everything he says seems so deliberate. It makes me uneasy.

“Boe will be back any second.” I threaten.

He takes another slow sip of his wine, placing it back down on the table, not bothering to use any of the coasters. He gestures to the glass that is sitting in front of me. I hadn’t noticed it. A short tumbler filled with clear liquid and a lime wedge neatly spliced on the rim. “I took the liberty of ordering you a water. I thought it best, considering the sweat you worked up on the dance floor.”

My face heat, remembering the kiss.

Loagn continues to watch me, unphased by my reaction. I glance over to Boe again, who is still hovering happily by the bar. What is taking him so long?

Logan looks over to Boe as well, nonchalantly. “Oh, he will be fine. He is just giving us some privacy.”

What could that possibly mean? I’m sure that Boe would not just leave me unprotected with Logan.

“Just tell me where the girls are.” I snap.

“Tsk, tsk.” Logan shakes his head. “That is not what you really want to know.” The words seem to roll off his tongue, like honey poured from a jar.

“What do you want?” I ask, realizing that he has an ulterior motive, and my only hope of getting to those girls is to go through this conversation.

He opens his hands slowly, splaying them to convey that he has no ill intentions. If only I could believe a gesture. “Just to help you understand who you are.”

I narrow my eyes at him, regaining some of my attitude.

He sighs. “Scarlet, you must know by now that you are not purely hunter.”

I don’t move, waiting for him to continue…

Waiting for Boe to get his ass back here.

Logan’s smile becomes a little boarder. “Ahh, yes, you have discovered your other half.”

I can feel my eyes twitch.

He acts as if he doesn’t notice, but I am sure that he did. “Tell me, Scarlet, do you remember anything of your mother?”

I wonder if he is getting tired of this one-sided conversation.

“I knew your mother. In fact, we grew up together. She was an amazing woman.” He continues. He stares at his glass of red wine as he swirls it. “Your mother was about as good as our kind get. Kind and gentle, but firm and fair when she needed to be. I didn’t have the privilege to know her as a mother, but I would have bet the shirt on my back that there would not have been a mother on this planet that loved their child as fiercely as she would have loved you.”

Hearing my biological mother being described in this way makes my teeth clench.

Logan, seemingly broken from his momentary daze, pulls his eyes from his wine and focuses back on me. “Scarlet, you are the first of your kind, and having been one of your mother’s oldest friends, I feel it is my duty to help you through your coming of age. Very soon, if not already, you will begin to experience changes. I know how frightening these changes can be, when facing them without guidance.”

“I am not one of you.” I say, firmly, hoping to put a stop to his words.

He tilts his head to one side. “No, you are not, but I do suspect that you will proceed through your coming of age in much the same fashion.” When I don’t speak, he continues. “Scarlet, I hope to show you that I mean you no harm. On the contrary, I would like to protect you. I am not like the others of my kind, hunting your unique signature down in order to kill you.”

“Like your father.” I try to load my voice with venom, but it comes off sounding weaker than I intend.

He nods his head slightly, his expression changing to that of... satisfaction. “Precisely.”

I lick my lips. “So, you want to recruit me.”

His brown eyes burn into me. “In a manner of speaking.”

I take a breath, trying to emanate somewhat of the same calm exterior that Logan is presenting. “Well, you will have to get in line.” I tell him.

He leans one elbow on the table. “You are referring to the Hunters Guild?” He doesn’t let me answer, his smile just turns darker. “I’m not interested in taking your will away from you. As far as I am concerned, you are the most powerful being on this earth. Caging you is only going to sour your spirit, the spirit of which you got from your mother. I wouldn’t allow that.”

I’m silent again, but it is not from fright or anger. I am stunned by his declaration of my power. How could I be the most powerful being on the planet when he is clearly more relaxed than I am?

He takes a deep breath with his eyes closed, allowing the air to lift his shoulders, then slowly drop with his exhale. He opens his eyes and stares at me. “Scarlet.” He tastes the word as if it were the wine in his glass. “I do not think you are ready for more information.” He leans back in his chair, clasping his glass. His demeanour has changed. The darkness in his expression gone. “I need your help with rescuing those girls.”

“My help?” I almost trip over the words in disbelief. Why would he want my help?

“Yes. Hunters are not the only ones that use secrecy as a form of protection. Our society has rules and restrictions to protect our kind. This behaviour must be dealt with swiftly and I am afraid that, if I want to do it quietly and omit the lengthy trial process, I will need capable and experienced help.”

I gape at him, unable to control my expression.

He doesn’t bother to pander to my shock. “Meet me near the railway at 4th and Rosewood, tomorrow, at sunrise. From there I will help your tracker lock onto their trail.”

“Why do you need our help?” I ask quickly, afraid that he might disappear as quickly as he appeared.

His gives a small grin. “If hunters eliminate them... well that is just a touch of bad luck. If I murder them, then I will be placed on trial. I would prefer to keep my hands clean.”

Something inside me cringes at the thought of doing Logan’s dirty work. “This could be a trap.”

He shrugs. “It could be.” He takes a small sip. “But I know that you haven’t had any other leads. Anyway...” he pauses, looking over at Boe who has finally managed to get the bartender’s attention. “I haven’t given you any reason not to trust me. If I wanted you dead, you would be. You have been careless tonight, Scarlet. I could have taken both you and Boe by surprise, but I did not. How is your friend, Caron, by the way?” he gives me a pointed look, before putting down his half-drunk glass of wine, easing off the chair to a standing position. As I had suspected, he has a pair of beautifully fitting slacks and expensive black shoes. He adjusts his cuffs, causing the winged shaped cufflinks to glint in the low light.

“Why can’t I sense you?” I ask quietly.

He shoots me a look that seems mildly impressed. “Just because you do not sense me like you do the others, does not mean that you do not sense me.”

Over Logan’s shoulder I see Boe turning to us. His easy expression turns to horror instantly, as he sees Logan. The glasses drop from his hands. He is in motion before the glasses collide with the floor.

Logan doesn’t turn to the sound. Instead, he reaches out and grazes one finger lightly over my brow. “I will see you soon, Scarlet.”

Then a gust of wind rolls through the roof top bar’s eloquent space. Logan is gone, as if the wind itself had carried him away.

Boe, dagger in hand, makes it to where Logan was standing in under a second, but it is too late. He swings his head back and forth, trying to figure out where Logan went, but I realize that he is gone, along with the cool breeze that was softly sweeping across the roof top.

“Are you okay?” Boe asks once he is sure that Logan is gone. His hands clutch my shoulders, his head ducking slightly to look into my eyes, searching for signs that I had been hurt.

“Yeah.” I say, surprised that I actually am.

“How long had he been there?”

I blink at him, thinking back and realizing our conversation must have taken at least five minutes. “A couple of minutes.” I understate, trying to make Boe feel better.

Boe’s eyes widen. “I’m so sorry, Scarlet. I didn’t even sense him.”

“It’s okay.” I assure him. “I didn’t either, not really. I don’t think he is like a lot of the others.”

Boe’s grip on my shoulders loosens a little. “Did he say anything to you?”

I nod, then dart my eyes around the bar. I see the bar tender going to the broken glasses with a bucket and a towel, shooting glares at Boe. I really don’t think that it is a good idea for me to divulge to Boe what I had just learnt. Needing no more hints than my wary look around, Boe threads my shaking hand through his arm and guides me back to the elevator and away from Current.