The Gate

~ ZEV ~

At dinner that night, Skhal was there, waiting for him, watching.

Zev grinned. "I've been cleared. You don't need to guard me."

Skhal's brows popped up. "Cleared for fighting?"

"Well, no, but you know it's not going to—"

"I told you, Zev, I'm there to protect you, just in case. A couple more days, that's all. I can handle it, so can you."

Zev rolled his eyes, but didn't let his frustration show until he turned his head away to look into the trees. While his friends chatted and plotted, discussing who would be called to make the trip to the human world, and who would stay behind to guard, Zev's chest tightened.