The Knight's Hunter

Chapter 2: Landing in hot water

The kitchen was buzzing with warm smells and voices. There were only two people in there, but they cooked and multitasked to a point that I couldn't fathom, creating a bustle and noise that mimicked that of a busy restaurant.

I leaned against the white, tiled wall of the kitchen, unnoticed, gritting my teeth until I was sure I wouldn't start crying anymore. Why did Zero have to come here? Of all people, of all places. I couldn't go back outside now. He was probably still there and he knew I was still here. Being a vampire virtually makes you a tracking device on a Hunter's radar.

"You should probably stop harassing her, you know," I heard the voice outside. "She's not this Saki person you're talking about." It was that boy from earlier, the one I accidentally poked in the eye. Was he confronting Zero now?

"Stay out of this," I heard Zero snap, a familiar wariness rising in his voice. "It's none of your business."

"It's not any of yours either," I heard the green-eyed boy reply snarkily.

"You don't know anything," Zero snarled, his low, angry tone within my hearing range.

"I know enough to know that she doesn't want to go with you," the guy said. "She's clearly not interested in you."

You have got to be kidding me.

"I have no interest in her," Zero snapped, his tone incredulous. "This is something you know nothing about!" I could almost imagine Zero pulling out his gun, ready to fire in anger.

Get out of here and get moving, a voice snapped in my head. Seeing as he's only going to track you on his built-in radar, you might as well lead him away.

Good idea, I silently thanked the voice in my head.

Avoiding the notice of the cooks, I headed for the back door of the kitchen.

"Kisa, where are you going?" Connie's sharp voice told me immediately that I was caught. "You should be at the counter."

Darn it, my mind was screaming. Darn it with all the knitting needles on Earth!

Wait, what?

"I'm so sorry, Connie," I turned to face the sharp, grey-eyed woman, a hand lingering over my stomach. "I had a really bad stomachache and I couldn't find you, so I thought I would just go out for some fresh air."

Connie's eyes softened slightly as she took in my weak, stomach-pained figure. She would always seem scary and hawk-eyed on the outside, but on the inside, she would be squealing if a kitten so much as walked past.

"Are you sure you're okay," Connie reached forward to check my forehead. "You don't have a fever at least. If you really don't feel good, you can always leave early. I'll have Mila fill in for you."

"Thank you," I thanked her gratefully, feeling more relief than I'd ever felt over the past two years. "I'll try to come back as soon as I can."

"No worries," Connie patted me on the back comfortingly, turning from the strict cafe manager into a warm, loving mother. "You have a nice rest."

"Thank you," I thanked her again as she turned to leave, no doubt to find Mila and have her fill in her. I'll apologise to Mila later. The most important thing right now was to get as much distance as I could from Zero.

~~~

As I walked back from the cafe, I tried to wrap my mind around why Zero would just happen to be looking for me around this area. Had Kaien told him where I was?

If Kaien had told him - I felt my anger rising. I would kill him.

The streets had died down from their morning bustle, now littered with the shoppers, mothers and other people out wandering in the afternoon. It was peaceful as I walked through them.