Page 86 of The Protector
“He has kindness in his eyes,” Pearl whispered to me when we followed him inside the house.
Her comment made me smile because somehow it validated that it was okay for me to be friends with this man. Of course, I hadn’t told Pearl that our friendship had developed into a physical relationship.
The direction Boulder took when we got inside the house brought me out of my ruminations. We didn’t go up the staircase as I would have expected, but instead walked into a part of the mansion I didn’t know.
“Where are you taking her?” I asked Boulder, but he didn’t answer until we got to a set of double doors that had two guards posted outside.
“This is the room you’ll be staying in, Pearl,” Boulder said and one of the guards activated a locking mechanism, making the doors swing open.
I gaped at the opulence of the room. There were thick oriental carpets that had likely been fabricated before the war, high ceilings, and an odd mix of modern details and antiques. The room was bigger than the apartment I lived in with Kya back home. Both our bedrooms and the bathroom could have fit into this suite at least four times.
“This is very nice,” I commented and looked at Pearl, who was gazing around the room.
“Come in.” Boulder waved us closer and pointed ahead. “Your bags have been brought here already.”
“Thank you,” she managed to say.
“The bathroom is over there and dinner is in forty-five minutes, so we’ll be back to pick you up.” Boulder led me out with a hand to the small of my back.
Turning my head, I called to Pearl, “At least the room is nice.”
Boulder stopped and looked back at Pearl too. “I should probably mention that you’ll be sharing it with your protector.”
“Oh?” Pearl said distractedly, still looking around in the large suite with the huge bed and two seating areas. “And when do I get to meet my protector?” she asked.
“You already did. This is Khan’s room.”
“Khan?” I shrieked beside him.
That got Pearl’s attention and she fixed her eyes on Boulder. “Are you saying Khan will personally protect me and share his accommodations with me?”
“Yup, that’s what he told me.”
Her eyes went to the bed, and it wasn’t hard to guess what was on her mind. With a frown, she moved closer to one of the sofas and muttered, “I’ll sleep here, I think.”
Boulder shrugged. “I’ll leave the details for you and Khan to figure out, but I’ll give you this bit of advice: stay away from Magni.”
“Why?” I asked next to him.
“Because he’s convinced that Pearl knows where Laura is.” Boulder lowered his voice and turned to look at Pearl. “I would strongly suggest that you avoid him as much as possible.”
“Do you think he would harm me?” she asked.
“I would like to say no, but Magni is a desperate man who wants his wife back, badly.”
Pearl nodded to Boulder. “Thank you, I’ll keep my distance.”
“See you in a little while,” Boulder told Pearl and gave me a last nudge to get me out the door.
“Why Khan? Couldn’t Finn do it?” I asked worriedly when we walked away.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“For several reasons.”
“Explain them to me,” I insisted.
