The Guardians (MORE Trilogy) Read Online Free Page B

formidable opponent, her powers growing every day. In truth, he couldn’t blame the Council for being nervous.  
    If he didn’t know she was on his side, he might be, too.

    Ava smiled when she saw Caleb waiting for her outside the campus coffee shop, balancing two cups as he adjusted his backpack. He gave her the vanilla latte with a quick kiss to her cheek, and she took his hand as they set off across campus toward her English literature class. It always filled Ava with a little bit of glee that she got to start her day with Chaucer and Bronte instead of Pascal and Bernoulli. Sure, physics had brought her Caleb, but she couldn’t say she missed the class.  
    Without warning, Caleb yanked her into the shadows between two buildings and pulled her against him, wrapping his arms tightly around her.  
    She barely had enough time to clench her eyes shut when, with a dizzying whirl, the ground dropped out from beneath her. When she opened her eyes, she stumbled, blinking uncertainly until she realized he’d shifted them to the top of the bell tower. The campus was spread out before them in a grid-like pattern of green and brown, the town of Witteville sparkling in the morning sunshine just beyond.  
    When Caleb released her, she smacked his arm, and his coffee sloshed out of the hole in the plastic lid. “You need to warn me before you do that!”  
    Caleb grinned. “Then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”  
    She shook her head but couldn’t keep from smiling herself. Taking a sip of her coffee, she crossed to the low brick wall circling the huge bell at the top of the tower and dropped her backpack at her feet. “You do realize if we ever get caught up here, we’re going to be in a lot of trouble.”
    He shrugged, lowering his own bag to the ground. “I like to live dangerously.”
    “Mm-hmm.” She faced him and leaned on the wall, setting her cup down next to her. “I do have class, you know?” Not that she was that worried about it. Spending time with Caleb was always more fun than bonding with Chaucer.
    “I know. I needed to talk to you alone for a minute.”
    Ava didn’t like the sound of that. “What’s wrong?”
    “Nothing’s wrong. I just have to leave town for a few days.”
    Ava fought down a rush of concern. “For the Council?”
    “Guardians.”
    Ava nodded, turning back around to look out over the campus. She knew Caleb had been secretly working with the Guardians on occasion, unbeknownst to the Council. The Guardians operated in the shadows, and if the Council knew he was helping them, he’d not only lose his position as a Protector, he could be tried as a traitor to the Race. She couldn’t blame him for wanting to get involved, though. She knew firsthand how frightening it was to be hunted by the Council and the appalling way Half-Breeds were treated. Still, it was dangerous. And she couldn’t help being worried.
    “I could go with you.” She kept her back to him, not wanting him to see exactly how much it meant to ask, how much she really hated to be apart from him.
    “You know that won’t work,” he said quietly. “I can’t shift you and him.”
    She nodded. “Well, be careful, okay?”
    He drew closer and set his coffee cup next to hers before reaching out to rub her shoulders lightly. He pulled Ava back against his chest, his arms crossed over hers and their fingers tangling. “I’ll be fine. And you know Tiernan and Katherine are around if you need them.”
    She smiled wryly. “You really think Tiernan would help me ?”
    Caleb laughed. “Well, maybe Katherine. I think she likes you.”
    “I doubt that.”
    “Here,” he said, untangling one of his arms to fumble in his coat pocket. “I have something for you.” He reached around and held his open hand in front of her, a small, polished wooden box lying in his palm.
    She glanced up at him over her shoulder. “What is it?”
    He shrugged, a hint of pink creeping up his cheeks. “Open it and find out.”
    Ava took the