Page 80 of Brutal King

“You’re not safe here. If the guards see you…” I trail off, unsure of what they’d do.

“No. Please, don’t tell them I’m here. Please.”

“Are you in trouble?”

Nodding, she came closer. She wrapped her skinny arms around herself and shrank a little. “Can I stay here. For a bit?”

I looked out to the trees. “If they find you, Father will have my hide.”

“Please.”

Father’s face entered my mind. He’d be furious. But she seemed so young, younger than even me.

“All right. Wait there.” I snuck her into the house and to my room. Wrapping herself in my blankets, she ate the bread and cheese I brought her as if she hadn’t been fed in days.

“What’s your name?” I asked her.

“Tamberleigh.” She said between bites. “Tamberleigh Johnson.”

“I’m Gideon.”

“Hi, Gideon.” She finished her food and set it aside, then tugged the blankets tighter around herself. “Gideon, please don’t send me away.”

A part of me I hadn’t felt in a long time awakened in that moment. An imprint of some sort that made me want to protect her in spite of the consequences I’d face. Perhaps it was the plea in her eyes, something like I’d seen long ago in my brother, when I was too powerless to hold onto him. Perhaps it’s that he’d be just a bit younger than her now.

“What kind of trouble are you in?”

“I killed a man,” she replied. “He hurt me.” Her voice was so small, I wished she hadn’t had the chance to take his life so that I could.

“You’ll stay with me,” I said. “I’ll keep you safe.”

“Cross your heart and hope to die?”

I dragged my fingers across my chest. “Cross my heart and hope to die.”

“I’m sorry.”

I cut a piece of my steak and look at Sofia. “Are you?”

“I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Pfft.” I shove the piece in my mouth and chew with renewed frustration.

“I’m not a killer, Gideon.”

“Only because you couldn’t finish the job.” I stab three green beans with my fork. “If I hadn’t managed to push you off, you’d have my blood on your hands right now.”

“I knew I couldn’t. You’re ten time stronger than me. I knew you’d push me off before you perished.”

“I’ve killed people much stronger than me. It’s all about leverage and believe me, you had it.” Fuck. I can still feel the suffocating weight of the pillow on my nose. “You came close to being a murderer, Sofia.”

“Gideon. I’m not like?—”

“You’re not like me. That’s true. Because I’d never kill you. The fact that you’re sitting here eating my damned steak is proof that I’d never hurt you.” I run my hand down my face. Fuck!

Her lips press into a thin line. Then she glances down at her food and sets down her fork, looking as guilty as she is.

After a moment, where she’s breathing hard and swallowing down whatever emotion is rising in her throat, she says, “I don’t know what came over me. I’m sorry.” When I don’t reply, she reaches for my hand. “Gideon. I’m sorry.”

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