"How many times have I told you to leave the girl alone?" The young man glared at Taren as he drove the car out of the school's driveway into the street.

"I want to make sure she gets home safely, that's all." Taren replied, his jaw set in a stubborn line. He pointedly looked away from his companion's exasperated gaze, squinting to find the girl's blurry form as she crossed to the other side of the street.

The man opened his mouth in retort, then closed it, shaking his head. Taren knew him long enough that he wasn't going to let this slide. He steeled himself, preparing for the discussion that would come later.

He considered Evan Collins a friend, of sorts. At just twenty-five years of age, Evan managed Taren's enormous assets with the skill of a genius entrepreneur. He was always dressed impeccably; today he wore a tailored dark suit, expensive tie and silver cuff links. But Taren knew he was far, far more than what he seemed.

The boy grudgingly admitted that he valued and listened to Evan's advice most of the time. But this time, nothing he said would change his mind.

"She's at the bus stop." Evan muttered, parking the car at a curb. His grey eyes glanced at Taren, softening a little. "Look, whatever future you saw, or think you saw isn't going to happen. I'll make sure of it."

Taren knew he said that to reassure him. Evan had the Leinier family's extensive security network and resources at his disposal, which, in most situations would be more than sufficient.

'But they have no idea who or what these people are, if I can even call them that.'

"No," Taren rubbed a hand across his forehead unconsciously. "I can't trust anyone else to keep her safe. Both of us should be enough. I'm not about to send our men out there not knowing what they're facing."

Evan measured him with a critical eye. "Even so, this is draining you more than you care to admit. You haven't been here a week and the headaches have started. Pretty soon, you won't be able to avoid it."

Taren grimaced. "I'll worry about that when it happens." He craned his neck, looking around. "Why is that damn bus taking forever?" He muttered grumpily.

Evan observed the girl fidget and pace on the sidewalk, checking her watch a few times. "Seems both of you need to take up a study in patience."

He flicked a glance at the boy. "Well, you could have just offered her a ride."

Taren's face burned, glaring at Evan. "I'm happily following your advice to leave her be!"

His friend tried to keep a straight face, but the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"Evan, I swear—"

"Lighten up, will you?" His companion pointed. "The long-awaited bus is here."

Finally! Taren sagged into his seat. Though he could handle any form of hostile intent from this distance, she was better off out of that busy sidewalk!

Evan eased the car from the curb into the road, following the bus. He looked askance at the boy and said sternly. "You owe me big time, kid. And I still need your explanation for that escapade in the woods yesterday, in broad daylight with workers swarming all over the place. What if you were seen? Your butler's at his wit's end wondering where you went off to."

Taren slouched further into his seat, avoiding Evan's steely gaze. "You can't expect me to stay days on end in that stuffy old house, after a long, butt numbing flight! Besides, no one saw me."

He made a mental note to apologize to his butler. Eduard was getting along in years and didn't deserve the scare he had given him. "I won't do it again."

"You'd better not," Evan warned. "By the way, what happened to your glasses?"

Taren coughed. "Don't need it." Seriously, nothing escapes this guy! 'I'm not about to tell him I got into a fistfight on my first day at school. He's pissed enough as it is.'

After several minutes the bus drew to a stop. "Looks like this is it." Evan parked the car at a discreet distance as the girl stepped off the bus.

"I'll get off here and follow her on foot." Taren decided.

"Alright, I'll see you back at the house. And mind you, no detours!"

"Understood, Pops." Taren slammed the door, cutting off the rest of Evan's creative expletives.

* * * * * * * *

The boy doggedly tailed Kari from a safe distance. She walked briskly, mingling with the crowd at rush hour, almost breaking into a run. 'What's she in a hurry for?' He wondered, cursing his blurry vision as he tried to keep up. 'Is she meeting someone else, a boy perhaps?' He fervently hoped that wasn't the case and it was just something as mundane as an urgent need to use the toilette.

As the girl's small frame weaved in and out of his sight, Taren launched his senses in a wide perimeter with her at its center, riding on wind and air, forming a mental image of the surrounding area.

He felt them almost immediately as his mind merged with the air currents.

Hunters.

'Scheisse!' Taren swore under his breath.

The future he saw was now more apparent, reaching out with icy fingers towards the girl he vowed would live in peaceful obscurity.