Chapter 3

I awoke to the sound of running water. It took me a minute to remember where I was and why my shoulder throbbed with each beat of my heart. I pushed up from the couch gingerly and followed the sound to the bathroom. The door was open a crack and the scent of water drifted out. I put a hand on the doorknob to pull it shut and give the girl some privacy, but the mirror showed her huddled on the floor of the shower, her arms around her knees, her head bowed, and her clothes still on. My heart slowed at the scent of blood and the memory of her injuries.

“Are you okay?” I asked just loud enough to be heard over the shower.

When she didn't answer, I stepped inside. I crossed the bathroom and pulled open the clear plastic shower door. She didn't look up at me, her head on her knees despite the pain it must cause to her thigh. I reached down slowly and touched the top of her head. The water that soaked it was freezing.

“What are you trying to do, die of hypothermia?” I asked. I adjusted the water so that it was warm, but she didn’t move. I took a steeling breath and, for lack of other options, eased myself slowly down beside her. I felt like a giant next to her tiny, graceful form. I didn’t know what to do with my arms, so settled for crossing them in front of my chest. My shoulder ached, but I ignored it.

Several minutes passed in an empty silence. I didn't know what to do. She was a Hunter and her friends had killed mine. My parents would demand that I execute her, yet she looked so small and pitiful sitting on the floor of the shower. The sorrow in her eyes reflected the ache in my heart. The silence lengthened, broken only by the patter of water against the tile. She then turned her head to look at me, her eyes red along with her cheeks and nose. “All my friends are dead.” Water dripped down her face, adding to the miserable sadness I read there.

I swallowed against the knot that formed in my throat. “Mine, too.” I lifted my good arm and she ducked under it. She shivered against my side and I held her close until the warm water chased away her chills. Her muscles relaxed and I felt her lean into me. I tipped my cheek against the top of her head and felt the soft brush of her hair against my chin. We stared off together in silence, no longer alone in our pain. The minutes stretched until time didn’t matter; all that mattered was that my enemy needed me, and I needed her, too.