Free Innocently Evil (A Kitty Bloom Novel) by Felicity Beadsmoore Page A

hoping that the rain would stop or at least get lighter. But, those couple of minutes was all I lasted. Once Max had left me, I kept getting the creeps. I was so sure I could feel someone or something watching me. I just couldn’t sense where the feeling was coming from, inside the washhouse or out in the rain. If I had to guess I would have said both. So, I decided to make a run for the safety of my new house, hoping, of course, that it was still safe.
                  The problem, however, was that I couldn’t quite remember how to get back there. And that’s why I was feeling pretty stupid about heading off into the rain.
    I was now officially soaked through. My clothes were stuck tight and sticking to my skin and my long, burgundy, black hair was flattened in a heavy, wet curtain down my back. I was sure that the rain was getting heavier. It was getting harder and harder to see even just a few meters in front of me; the white haze of rain was that bad. I knew now that I probably should have paid more attention to where I was running when I’d left Mum and that I definitely should have paid more attention to where I was heading when I left the washhouse. I had to admit it. I was totally and utterly lost.
    Through the thick, glowing glare of rain, I saw something in the near distance. A tall, dark shape was pretty much all I could make out. But, I could have sworn it looked like a person.
    Not caring about how friendly or not friendly this person might be—even though I probably shouldn’t have—I called out. “Hello,” I yelled. There was no response. The rain was pelting down and creating such a thunderous roar that I hoped they just hadn’t heard me. “Hello,” I yelled again, as loud as I possibly could. “I’m lost and I could really use some directions.” Once again the figure in front of me didn’t answer, but it still seemed to be coming closer.
    “So , you need my help, do you,” yelled a deep, male voice from the direction of the dark form.
    I wasn’t exactly sure how to answer that. If the figure in front of me wasn’t all that friendly, then I probably wasn’t doing the right thing by becoming indebted to him. I stood where I was and pondered my options for a moment. It seemed as though I was pretty screwed either way. I either chose to stay cold, wet, alone and lost or hope that I’d manage to get some directions from a nice passerby. Hopefully before he tried to kill me.
    “Yes,” I called out again. “I need your help. Please.” As I asked for help, it occurred to me that a person wandering around out in killer rain was probably not the best person to trust in this situation. I’d just about decided to make a run for it when the figure stepped closer and became clearer.
    “Did you miss me,” he asked. It was Sam.
    “What are you doing out here,” I asked, surprised, but still overjoyed to see him.
    “Would you hate me if I told you I’ve been following you since the washhouse,” he said, nervously.
    I took a step closer to him trying to see his face better in the continuous downpour. “Have you,” I asked, slightly irritated and a little unsure whether or not to believe him.
    Sam gave me an embarrassed smile. “I had to keep an eye on you,” he said.
    I thought about that and wondered w hether keeping an eye on me might have also included spying on me while I was with Max. I seriously hoped not. “So, let me get this straight,” I began slowly, as I let my simmering annoyance show on my face. “While I’ve been wandering around completely lost, you’ve been following me and keeping an eye on me?”
    Sam dropped his eyes from mine and seemed to consider his answer. He opened his mouth before he spoke, still searching for the right words and then looked at me with a worried frown. “Yes,” he answered quietly.
    With a frown, I put my hands on my hips and took another step towards him. However, my aggressive stance probably would have looked slightly more