Read Resistance (The Variant Series #2) for Free Online

focused solely on cleaning up the mess created by the spilled glaze.
    The paint had missed Declan’s jacket, but had stained the top of her thighs. Her jeans were ruined.
    She mopped the glaze up off the floor, her workstation and, finally, her ruined mask.
    Declan placed Alex’s tray back on her desk.
    She tried not to stare at the wreckage.
    It’s just a few stupid sculptures , she reminded herself. No big loss. Don’t you dare start sobbing in front of Declan. You’ve dealt with this a thousand times before. This is nothing new. It’s fine…
    You’re fine.
    Except that she wasn’t.
    Because hadn’t Jessica merely spoken the truth? Vee’s death was on her head. If it hadn’t been for Alex, she’d still be alive.
    So would Alex’s own parents. Grayson’s wife. His team members. Declan and Nathaniel’s families…
    Veronica had become just another in a long list of casualties caused by Masterson’s obsession with Alex.
    “I’ve got to… um.” Alex picked up her tray, moving to shelve it beside the others. “I should get going. Cassie and Kenzie are probably wondering where I’m at.”
    “I’ll walk you to your car,” said Declan.
    The look of pity on Declan’s face caused her stomach to twist. It was too much.
    “No!” Alex winced at the anger in her own voice. “I mean, thanks… I’m good. I’ll see you later, Decks.”
    Shouldering her messenger bag, Alex left the art room without so much as a backward glance.
     
    * * *
     
    Kenzie walked silently beside Alex as they wound their way into the woods, her flip-flops sinking into the dark gray sand of the path. The redhead cringed at the sensation of dirt grinding between her toes.
    Even in the shade of the forest, the sweltering heat of the afternoon seemed unbearable. How on Earth did Floridians survive living in this bug-filled sauna year-round? Crazy people. Didn’t they know there were alternatives to living in a swamp?
    “How did you guys find this place?” asked Alex.
    Kenzie batted an overgrown palm frond out of her face and huffed. “Aerial photos. I think. I don’t know, honestly. Grayson told us it was here just after we moved.”
    “Why don’t we just use your property to train?”
    They certainly had enough room. Their ten-acre seaside compound in the gated, Bay View Heights development was a veritable tropical oasis. Not that she’d expected anything less, given Grayson’s expensive taste.
    Good thing he could afford it.
    Kenzie was reminded, yet again, of just how lucky she and her brother were to have someone like John Grayson taking care of them. They’d wanted for nothing over the years. Except, perhaps, a little more freedom.
    She grinned over her shoulder. “I’d like to see you trying to explain to our curious neighbors how you managed to accidentally blow up our swimming pool or something.”
    “You really think I’m going to be that out of control?” Alex’s voice cracked.
    Kenzie quirked a brow. “Alex, I love you like a sister, but you’re one of the most out-of-control Variants I’ve ever freaking met. You’re unstable nitro tied to a jackhammer. One wrong bump, and I’m pretty sure you could take out an entire building. Or a swimming pool, as the case may be.”
    “And you still think training me is a good idea?”
    “The bad idea would be to ignore your training entirely and have it come back to bite you in the ass later on.” She stopped walking. “Listen, Alex. I know this is all new to you, but you need to understand just how differentyou are from normal Variants.”
    “I know, Kenzie.” Alex crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly defensive. “I’m a freak amongst freaks. Thanks for the reminder.”
    Kenzie shook her head.
    Alex’s moods were all over the place today.
    She fought back an urge to scan her thoughts and find out why. Alex had gotten lazy about keeping up a wall around her mind, but that was far from an invitation.
    Alex was the sort of girl that valued her