Page 23 of Captured Immune

The car goes quiet until Arella chuckles to herself.

Obviously, I’ve missed the joke. “What’s so funny?”

“Whenever we argue, it’s always over paying for things. We fought for days when you first bought me this car. We even bickered in the middle of a grocery store at four in the morning over who was buying all those pregnancy tests. Now here we are,stillfighting because I want to feel independent and you refuse to allow it.”

That stings. How many times do I have to explain to her that I don’t buy her things to take away her independence? “Arella, I have enough liquid cash to buy you private jets, superyachts, and a mansion the size of a castle. Buying you a car doesn’t make even the slightest dent in my bank account. Don’t you want to save your hard-earned money for more important things?”Like, you know... a baby?

“Well, I—” She stops because a vibration comes from my pocket.

I dig my phone out. It’s Victor.Shit.When I spoke to him three days ago, I promised I’d have more answers to explain Arella’s immunity within the week. I haven’t told him that she left me, because he’s not going to accept that as a valid excuse not to have answers.What the hell am I gonna do?

“Is that your uncle?”

I shove the device back into my jeans. “Yep.”

“You’re not going to answer it?”

“Nope.”

“Is it because he’s calling during regular-people time?”

That makes the corners of my lips tick up. I like how quippy she can be. I also like that even after we’ve been arguing, she can still make me smile. “Contrary to what you believe, my uncle and Icanhave conversations during regular-people hours.”

“News to me.”

Not long ago, Arella questioned me about my late-night phone calls with my uncle. That was also the night she asked me about my tinted windows, how I don’t sleep as often as she does, and how my body can heal so fast.

Many Zordi homes have tinted windows so we can use our powers freely without our neighbors spotting it. Zordis only need to sleep every other evening, and our bodies can heal wounds three times faster than the average Ordinary. Couple that with the healing products my parents invented, and we can fix broken limbs within hours.

Arella noticed all of these abnormal-to-Ordinaries things about me. I didn’t want to lie, so I never gave her an explanation. I can see why the Superiors forbid us from having close relationships with Ordinaries, because after a while, it gets hard to hide even the littlest things. Like our enhanced eyesight and our natural ability to regulate our body temperature.

The second Arella turns her car into my driveway, my heart races. Our time together is almost over. I don’t want it to end yet. “Do you wanna come in and grab your st?—”

“No.”

I didn’t get to finish my sentence, but okay. “Stay here then. I’ll get it all for you.”

She shakes her head and puts the car into park. “I don’t want it. Any of it.”

“What about your clothes? Your blanket? Your purple teddy bear?”

“You bought all those things for me.”

“Notallof it.” I unbuckle my seat belt. It makes azipsound as it retracts upward.

“Maybe some clothes are mine, but you bought me that blanket and the bear.”

“I bought themfor you, so they belong to you.”

“No,” she says sternly. “They belong to you.”

I don’t think this woman understands how gifts work. News flash: Once it’s been gifted, it no longer belongs to the gifter. “I want you to have them.”

“Fine, then I want you to have this.” She grabs her purse, drags her car key out, and tosses it onto my lap.

I scowl at it before chucking the damn thing behind me. It lands with a light thud against the backseat. “This car is yours, and that’s final.”

“Fine, then take this.” She reaches behind her neck, and before I can stop her, the angel wings are detached from her body. She holds the diamond out to me on a straight arm.

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