10

Holding onto Logan’s hand, Winter walked next to him, not questioning where he was taking her. He’d saved her from certain death at the hands of the demons, and he was protecting her now. Wasn’t that enough reason to trust him? It was for her. Life had suddenly become very precious, knowing that she wasn’t crazy, that she could live a productive life without having to worry that she would end up in a mental institution. Of course, that didn’t mean she was without problems. Only that her problems were of a different nature.

Yes, she was now on the run from demons. But at least she had a supernatural protector, an immortal who could make himself and her invisible. That should help, though being invisible wasn’t quite as cool as she’d imagined.

For starters, nobody could see them, which meant people walking on the sidewalk didn’t get out of her and Logan’s way. She and Logan constantly had to dodge people who would otherwise collide with them. It made for a very awkward walk through the busy downtown area. But she soldiered on without complaint, Logan’s strong hand providing guidance and security. She took strength from him, from the confidence with which he navigated the streets, the same confidence with which he’d laid the false trail for the demons to follow.

They walked for several blocks, until Logan stopped in front of the entrance to a subway station. He pointed to it. She nodded and together they descended the stairs, dodging more people. Logan used himself to shield her so she could walk behind him and avoid crashing into people. She was grateful for it, because the obstacle course was tearing at her nerves, wearing her out. And who knew how long they would be on the run? She needed to preserve her energy until they could find a safe place to rest.

When they finally arrived at the turnstiles, Logan stopped and turned to her. He made a motion with his hand, indicating for her to wait. Then he released her hand and walked through the turnstile without turning it.

She blinked in confusion. How was that possible? Was it because he was invisible? She walked to the same turnstile and bumped against it. But she couldn’t get through. Without a ticket, it didn’t yield to her. Logan suddenly reached for her hand from the other side.

She met his eyes, and he made a motion indicating that he would lift her over it. He set the bag he was carrying for her next to the floor beside him to have both hands free. A moment later, with his help, she cleared the turnstile and was now in the area reserved for paid subway riders. Logan took her hand again, her bag in his other hand, then dragged her toward the area where a train was just rolling into the station.

There was no time to ask him how he’d simply walked through the turnstile, through solid matter as if he were made of air and not flesh and bone. But she wouldn’t forget the question. She would ask him later when she could speak again without drawing attention to them. Clearly, he hadn’t told her everything about himself. Who knew what other skills he had? As an immortal, a preternatural creature, maybe he could do all kinds of wild things, aside from making himself invisible and walking through solid objects.

Then it suddenly struck her. What if he wasn’t all that different from the demons? After all, in order to fight evil creatures like the monsters who’d attacked them, wouldn’t he need skills that were out of this world?

The subway train stopped, and people streamed onto the platform and toward them. Logan quickly pulled her toward the wall, pressing her back flat against it, while he covered her with his broad body. She couldn’t even see the passengers rushing past them, because he was so much taller than she, but she could feel whenever somebody bumped into him, because the action pushed Logan against her. She should feel claustrophobic, being sandwiched between the wall and him, but she didn’t. She felt cocooned instead. As if nothing could happen to her when she was with him.

Don’t be stupid!

He might be immortal, but that didn’t mean she was. She was still human—though a psychic—and therefore vulnerable.

She looked up at Logan and found him staring at her. Was he aware of the intimacy of their situation? Could he feel her heart beating against her ribcage? Could he see that his nearness didn’t leave her unaffected? Because, yes, she could admit it to herself, though not to anybody else, that she found Logan attractive. That his body so close to hers ignited desires in her that had nothing to do with gratitude for him having saved her life.

Logan’s head came closer, slowly, but undeniably. She swallowed hard, her pulse racing now. He dipped his head lower. Was he going to kiss her? She parted her lips, feeling a breath rush over them.

“We need to get onto that train,” he whispered at her ear. “Let’s go.”

Heat rushed to her cheeks.

Logan turned abruptly, clasped her hand and rushed toward the doors. A beeping sound reached her ears. The doors were starting to close. Logan jumped into the train, pulling her with him. Behind her, the doors closed and the train started moving.

The train was relatively full. There was no spare seat, so they remained standing near the doors. At each station, they dodged the entering and exiting passengers, as the train emptied more and more the farther they got from downtown. Finally, they found seats away from the other passengers and took them.

Winter didn’t dare look at Logan. What had made her think that he’d wanted to kiss her? How silly of her. He didn’t even know her. Had only met her a few hours earlier. And there she was imagining things. As if this was an adventure like Romancing the Stone where the heroine ended up with the man who was helping her. This wasn’t a movie. Or a book. This was life! Real life with real demons. There was no time for romance. There was barely enough time to escape.

Several stops before the end of the Broad Street Line, they got off the train. But Logan didn’t seem to be satisfied with how far they’d traveled invisibly. He ushered her toward a regional rail line. Without questioning him, she walked alongside him, onto the first train out of the station. She didn’t even look where it was going. It didn’t matter.

The regional train was less busy than the subway, and they were able to find seats quickly. Logan was still holding her hand, her bag now sitting on the floor between his legs. She sighed silently and caught Logan’s look. He made a motion with one hand while tilting his head and closing his eyes.

She nodded. Yes, she was exhausted, could feel the tiredness in her bones.

He angled his body, lifted his arm and pulled her toward him, so she could rest her head against his chest. Without protest, she accepted his offer and closed her eyes. The vibrations of the train and the warmth of Logan’s body allowed her to rest. She didn’t sleep, didn’t know whether she could ever sleep again, but she dozed, resting her eyes and her body as much as she could.

She felt Logan’s steady heartbeat, but she knew he wasn’t sleeping. He was watching out for her.

Like a sentry in the night. Like the immortal warrior he was.

Like her hero.