Chapter 37: Level up?
The morning sun was filtering through the hallway windows when Kaine and Marcus reached the apartment building. Marcus looked completely normal now—his head properly attached, his color returned to its usual pale but healthy shade, no trace of the horrific injuries from the night before. The ghoul walked silently beside him, carrying himself with that characteristic stillness that made him seem more like a shadow than a person.
Kaine was fishing for his keys when Rebecca’s door opened.
"Well, well," she said, leaning against her doorframe with her arms crossed. "Look who decided to come home."
She was wearing an oversized sweater that hung off one shoulder and pajama shorts that showed off her legs. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun, and there was something territorial in her stance that made Kaine pause.
"Morning, Rebecca."
"Don’t ’morning Rebecca’ me," she said, stepping closer. "I know you didn’t come home last night."
Kaine blinked, surprised by the accusation in her tone. "You were listening for me?"
"I wasn’t listening for anything. I just happened to notice that your usual four AM weapon cleaning session didn’t happen." She moved even closer, close enough that he could smell her shampoo. "So where were you?"
"I had to crash at a friend’s place."
"Male or female?"
The question caught him off guard. He found himself about to say ’male’ automatically, then stopped. Why was he even considering lying to her? It wasn’t like he owed her an explanation about where he spent his nights.