Chapter 29
Kalyani yawned as she rolled onto her back.
What was she doing in Varum’s bed again?
Had she climbed into it? She sat up at the thought and immediately clutched her head as it began to pound.
She groaned as she remembered drinking the nectar the night before.
Varum had warned her that it hit hard, and he hadn’t been wrong. She’d only had two glasses.
At least she thought it was only two. Truth be told, she couldn’t remember much of that night after the first glass. She held her head and looked around the room for him. To her relief, he was nowhere in sight.
“Oh, my head,” she murmured. “I’m never drinking that again.”
Her mouth felt as if it had been stuffed with a rag.
She needed water, but that meant moving.
She wasn’t sure what was worse: staying there with a dry mouth or attempting to walk.
Kalyani cautiously moved the covers aside and climbed out of bed.
She carefully made her way into the kitchen and poured a glass of water.
She drained it and then refilled it to take to the table. Once she was seated, she propped her head in her hand and closed her eyes. The pounding subsided a little, but not enough for her liking. After she’d finished the second glass of water, she decided a bath would make her feel better.
Relaxing in the hot water had a positive effect, though it didn’t erase her headache completely.
Kalyani reclined in the tub and moved her legs and hands as if she were swimming.
It had been days since she had been in the water, but she hadn’t felt the ache in her chest that she normally did when she stayed away.
Was it because she was already in the water?
Surely, that couldn’t be the case. She might be far below the surface, but she was still looking at it much as she did from shore.
Had Varum done something to her that would ease the longing she had for the water? It might not have been intentional. Or could it have been? The Sea Elves didn’t want to share their world with anyone, not even other races of their kind. Why would they be okay with her?
Her stomach sank at the thought. Varum had asked many questions about her swimming. So had Nirav, now that she thought about it. But what did it matter if she liked to swim? It wasn’t as if she would ever be able to dive deep enough to find any of their cities. She wasn’t a threat.
Kalyani climbed out of the tub, no longer able to relax. She dried off as the water drained and then dressed. The house was empty again, leaving her to move about and search through things as she wanted. She walked to the shelves in the living area and looked over the objects and books there again.
She chose one of them and flipped through the pages, but it was in a language she couldn’t read.
She returned the book to its place and sighed as she turned around.
There really was nothing for her to do. She didn’t know when Varum had left, so she didn’t know when he would return.
That left her hours to do nothing but sit idly with her thoughts.
Kalyani trudged to the sofa and sat. She stared at the spot Varum usually occupied and tried to recall her missing memories from the night before.
She really hoped she hadn’t said something stupid or insensitive.
It wasn’t as if she was new to alcohol, but she hadn’t ever had so much that she couldn’t remember things.
Strangely, she didn’t worry that Varum had harmed her in any way. Which was odd. She should fear that, shouldn’t she? It wasn’t as if she knew him very well. He was a stranger and her jailor. Actually, she didn’t know what he was. The more she discovered about him, the more confused she became.
“So, maybe drinking wasn’t the smartest thing I could’ve done,” she mumbled.
She’d been feeling sorry for herself and depressed at not being able to go home.
Anything could’ve happened in that missing time.
Yet she had to admit that Varum hadn’t tried to harm her, other than when he grabbed her neck.
And even then, he hadn’t used any force.
There had been plenty of opportunities for him to hurt her, and he hadn’t.
Why would he wait until she was drunk? He wouldn’t.
Though she wasn’t sure how she was so positive about that.
Kalyani couldn’t sit there and let her thoughts go round and round.
She needed something to do to help with her boredom and the headache.
She walked to his room and set about making the bed.
He didn’t scatter things about, so there wasn’t much to pick up or straighten.
Once she found a cloth, she wiped down everything in his room and the bathing area before moving into the main rooms.
She took her time, carefully lifting an item to dust it, and then the area around it before replacing it in the exact same spot. Even then, she was finished all too soon. The pounding of her head had diminished significantly, and she used that time to get something to eat.
The pantry had been restocked, but she wasn’t sure when. She shrugged and looked through the unrecognizable items. Not being able to read the labels made it even more difficult. She settled on bread and a jar of what looked like jelly that smelled delicious.
She set everything out on the table and tested the jelly.
It was like an explosion of flavor in her mouth.
She quickly slathered a large helping of it on the bread and devoured two pieces.
It wasn’t that she minded eating alone. It was that she was alone.
She couldn’t even say that it was quiet, because it wasn’t.
The sounds of the water and the life within it were a kind of background noise like the waves rolling onto shore.
Why then did she feel so lonely? The waves had always given her a kind of comfort. Even when she first woke in Tarangarh, the sounds of the ocean had been enjoyable. Now, it was a reminder of being a prisoner, of being an outsider in a world where everyone hated her simply because she was human.
Kalyani cleaned up and found herself back on the sofa. How many more days did she have like this? She didn’t think she could handle even another hour, much less days. She dropped her head into her hands and felt tears prick her eyes.
The jiggle of the door’s handle snapped her head up. She stared at it with her heart in her throat. Varum wouldn’t jiggle the knob. He would just walk in. Did that mean someone was trying to break in?
“Varum?” a soft voice called through the door.
It was a voice Kalyani recognized.
She slowly pushed to her feet as Tanira twisted the handle again. Kalyani took a step back. What was the elf doing? Was Tanira really trying to break into Varum’s home? Right on the heels of that question was the realization that if she did, Kalyani would be caught.
Panic built quickly, turning her blood to ice as she frantically looked around for a place to hide. She could fit beneath the sofa, but she would be visible. Same with the dining table. The bedroom was her best choice. It would also be the first place she looked if she were searching for someone.
The handle twisted again, harder this time. Varum’s magic should hold, but what if it didn’t? What if Tanira busted in and found her? Kalyani’s life would be over. Or would it? Tanira wanted Varum. Would she really turn him in for harboring Kalyani?
None of this should be happening. She would be back with her family now if Tanira hadn’t meddled. And now, the elf was doing it again. Neither Nirav nor Varum was there to run interference. Kalyani would have to deal with this on her own. She didn’t want to die in Tarangarh. She refused.
She dashed into the bedroom and bent to look under the bed, but there was no place to hide. She checked in the bathing area before scanning the room. Her gaze landed on the armoire that held his clothes. She hurried to it and yanked open one of the doors.
Her hope dwindled when she saw there were mostly shelves.
She shoved aside some clothes and climbed into the armoire by lying on her side with her knees drawn up to her chest. She stretched out her fingers to grab the doors and pulled them closed, even as the jiggling of the handle grew louder and more forceful.
Tanira was going to bust her way in, one way or another.
Kalyani was doubly glad that Varum had closed the lattice over the windows so Tanira couldn’t get in that way.
Kalyani wished she had some way to contact Varum to get him here.
She squeezed her eyes shut as if that would shut out the sounds of Tanira attempting to break in.
Kalyani didn’t know how much time had passed before she got a cramp in her hip, and then her feet went to sleep.
Belatedly, she realized that she didn’t hear the handle being jiggled.
Did that mean Tanira had given up? Or did she get in?
Kalyani could’ve kicked herself for not paying attention.
She wanted to stretch out her legs, but she didn’t dare come out of hiding until she knew for sure that it was only her and Varum.
Time ticked by. Eventually, she dozed. Until a bright light woke her. She held up her hand to shield her eyes as she blinked them open.
“What are you doing?”
The sound of Varum’s voice instantly eased the tension in her muscles. She dropped her hand and took the first easy breath she had taken in hours.
“Are you going to answer me?” he demanded.
She nodded and moved one of her cramped legs to get out, except her body didn’t work properly, and she tumbled out. But she didn’t hit the floor. Instead, she found herself in his arms. She looked up into his face, creased with worry.
“Are you hurt?” he asked in a soft voice.
Kalyani licked her lips. “Just stiff. I should be fine once I walk around.”
He stood and lifted her to set her on her feet, but he didn’t immediately release her. Instead, he held her until he was sure she could stand on her own.
“Thank you,” she murmured and stretched her back.
“I’m waiting for an explanation.”
She cut her eyes to see him standing with his feet apart, arms crossed over his chest. It wasn’t anger she saw, but concern. Kalyani glanced back at the wardrobe and tried to imagine what it must have been like to find her there. “I hid.”
“Why?”
Her head swiveled back to him. “Someone tried to break in.”
His entire demeanor changed as his worry shifted to outrage. “What?”
She tried to take a step back, but he held her firmly. “Someone tr—”
“I heard you,” he bit out. “I’m just…trying to understand.” His brows snapped together. “Are you certain?”
“She was jiggling the handle.”
“She?”
When most people were angry, they yelled, spewing words with emotion like flames.
Not Varum. He became as frigid and unforgiving as winter.
His eyes went still and dark like a bottomless lake.
His voice softened, but the steel in his words carried his fury.
Yet it was his body that told the biggest story.
He was motionless, like a predator ready to pounce on its next meal.
“She?” he asked again.
Kalyani nodded once. “It was Tanira. I heard her call out your name.”
His gaze shifted to the side. She debated whether to step away from him, but in his present mood, she decided it was safer to stay where she was.
“How long was she here?”
Kalyani shrugged. “I’m not sure. It felt like a long time, but I can’t say for certain.”
“You believed she would break through my magic.”
It wasn’t a question but a statement. Kalyani found his unusual gaze locked on her once more. “She seemed determined to get in.”
“Then I need to have a word with her.” He dropped his hands and took two steps back. “This won’t happen again.”