AN: Hi guys!! Sorry it's taken me so long to update, but I've been pretty busy with homework and stuff. So, here's the next chapter. Hope you like it! Also, I misnamed my last chapter. This is the real chapter seven.
Chapter Seven: Explanations
Ian's POV
What in the heck was going on? Amy and Dan were Madrigals? How could that be possible? They were Cahills!
I stared at them incredulously. Amy was looking back at me with an expression that said, 'Oh my gosh, do you hate me now?' complete with her fingers drumming against her leg. She was nervous that I didn't like her now.
Truthfully, I had no idea what to think. Amy was a Madrigal. I was a Lucian. We were pretty much sworn enemies. What would happen now? I had liked her. A lot. Now, though, I had no idea what to think. This was such a shock.
Now that I thought about it, though, Amy and Dan did act like Madrigals. They were always quiet and undercover, even if they weren't evil, like the other Madrigals.
Breaking the awkward silence, a man behind the Cahills said, "Hello, Ian. I see that it is a shock to you that the Cahill children's bloodline is indeed the Madrigals."
"Yes, quite surprised, actually," I replied to the man. He looked rather strange, wearing all black, because he was old.
"Well, now you know," he said. "Oh, look at the time, I must be going. Goodbye!"
The man gave me one final look. The look told me that he knew that I liked Amy, and he was giving us some time alone. I bet he knew what we'd been through in Korea and Australia and all the other betrayals or meetings that happened.
He was a crazy stalker old man. Weird.
Amy's POV
Still, after about twenty minutes since Ian had walked through the front door of our hotel, I was frozen with shock.
After Ian had daringly stood up to Jonah, I thought that maybe we were off to a good start for a possible relationship. I had liked Ian- even with his many betrayals- for so long that after he helped me I had fell for him completely.
But now, after this confrontation, I was pretty sure that was all over. Ian probably hated my guts now. Lucians and Madrigals didn't get along and they never would.
Why did this have to happen now? My life was horrible! Why? Why? WHY?!
I didn't realize that I was breathing really loudly and my eyes looked wild. Dan looked at me and said, "Dude, calm down. It's not like the world is gonna blow up."
"Right," I told him between breaths. Ian was looking at me with concern. He probably didn't know what I was doing.
"What are you doing, Amy?" Ian asked me.
What did it look like I was doing? I was panicking. "Do you hate me now?" I asked quietly.
Ian seemed taken aback. "No, of course not! This makes things a little more complicated, but we can still work it out! I love you, Amy!"
I gasped. He loved me! "You love me?"
"Yes, I do," Ian smiled. He looked really handsome when he smiled.
Smiling back, I said, "I love you too."
Dan practically threw up when I said that. "Yuck!" he exclaimed. "My sister is a love struck bafoon!"
"Bafoon isn't a word, you moron," I told him.
"Whatevs, I'm leaving," Dan gave me a look of disgust and walked out the door. Where exactly would he go to? Hide in the elevator? I smiled at the thought of Dan hunched over in the elevator trying to use his 'ninja powers' to make himself invisible.
"So, Amy, how's it been going for these last few weeks?" Ian asked.
"It's been pretty good. We were teamed up with the Holts for a while, but yesterday we broke the alliance because we were so close to the end."
"Really?" Ian looked intrigued. His amber eyes sparkled. "How many clues do you have?"
"Thirty eight," I responded, and then immediately regretted not thinking before speaking. I was so preoccupied with his eyes that I had given away how many clues we had collected!
Thankfully, Ian didn't run out the door to go tell Natalie. He just smiled at me, and then did something really unexpected.
"That's great, Amy! I bet you'll win!" Ian told me, and then came up to me and hugged me.
I could get used to this. It felt good to hug Ian. He smelled like clove, as always, and was warm. It was a good thing Nellie was still asleep, because she would have died if she saw what happened next.
Ian kissed me, right on my lips.
Maybe I had been wrong to think he would go running off. He was happy that I had thirty eight clues.
Ian looked at me, and smiled. Then he pulled his eyebrows together. What was he thinking about?
"How do you remember all of the clues?" He asked me.
I told him the truth, unafraid that he would betray me. I knew he wouldn't, now. He loved me. "We write down the clues on a sheet of paper," I said.
"Oh. That makes sense. But aren't you afraid of losing it?"
"No. We're really good at keeping track of it," I said. To prove I knew what I was talking about, I said, "Right now, it's in my suitcase."
Ian nodded. "Can I go to the bathroom?" He asked.
"Of course," I said. "I'll just be waiting on the couch for you to come back, and maybe we can go to lunch or something."
Ian walked over to the bathroom. I sat on the couch, thinking about how wonderful he was. He was gorgeous, and smart, and sweet, and he like me, of all the people in the world! I sighed with contentment.
When Ian came out, he looked sad.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"I just got a call from Natalie. She's wondering where I'm at. I told her I was at the market getting food, but I left two hours ago. She's getting suspicious. I have to leave. I'm sorry," he looked sorry.
"I understand. You can go if you have to," I didn't want Natalie to find out where Ian really was and come in with a loaded gun.
"Thanks, Amy, you're the best," Ian told me. He came over and kissed me on the cheek, and then left.
I smiled. Could this day get more perfect? I doubted it.
Realizing that I was cold, I went into the bedroom that Nellie and I shared and went into my suitcase to find a sweatshirt.
When I unzipped it, something was wrong. The clothes were all jumbled around, and I was positive that this morning I had folded them. Something was up.
While I was looking through the bag for my sweatshirt, I noticed something very important.
The sheet of clues was missing.
