Chapter Two #2
A chair creaked in the corner, and Arianna shot up in bed again, heart pounding. A wave of dizziness rocked through her from the sudden movement, but upon spotting the dark-skinned female reclined in the far chair, Arianna let her magic evaporate.
Holy gods above.
Raevina just stared at her, those golden eyes piercing even in the dim light. Her legs were crossed at the knee, the female’s face grim. A book rested in her hands, the pages flipped open to the center.
“You aren’t going to have another fit, are you?” Arianna’s face heated as she realized Raevina had been watching her the entire time. She couldn’t even remember everything she’d done.
Arianna ignored the question. “What time is it?”
The book snapped shut and Arianna winced at the noise. “Late morning.”
Late morning … another day wasted when they should be moving, getting her sister to safety. That was another problem yet to be resolved.
Arianna glanced at Raevina again, still debating whether the female from Fiadh could be trusted.
Zylah had done her best to convince Arianna that Talon wasn’t a traitor. None of them were, but something wouldn’t let her believe it. Not after she’d see him—Arianna clamped a hand over her mouth, trying to hold back the rolling nausea.
Raevina suddenly sat straighter. “Please tell me you’re not—”
Arianna leaned over the edge of the bed and vomited all over the wooden floor. She coughed up bile along with the remnants of last night’s dinner.
Another wave rolled through her body, and Arianna’s stomach clenched again. She was hanging off the edge, clutching the blankets with both hands. The feeling slowly dissipated, but her back was throbbing now and the headache—
“I’ll get Zylah.”
Arianna didn’t move. She just lay there, gasping for breath, trying to prevent her body from dry heaving again. She hated this. Vulnerable. She was far too vulnerable among people she wasn’t even certain could be trusted.
Silence engulfed the room. Moments later, light footsteps padded across the floor, then a warm hand drew familiar lines across her back. Icy relief eased the ache enough for Arianna to sit up.
Zylah sat on the edge of the bed, concern etched all over her face. Tierney, the female who owned the home, stood in the doorway with a bowl of water and a rag in hand.
“Better?” Zylah asked. Arianna only nodded, still struggling to catch her breath. Zylah drew another mark over Arianna’s chest, then moved up to her neck. Tierney walked slowly into the room, keeping an eye on them both.
Arianna tried to push Zylah aside. “I can clean it.”
“You most certainly will not,” Zylah protested.
“Don’t worry,” Tierney said, a look of wonderment on her face despite the task she was about to undertake. “I’m glad we’re able to care for you.” She moved around the bed, and Arianna looked away, embarrassment heating her face.
“Are you still in pain?” Zylah asked.
“Only a lot.”
The female grimaced, then helped Arianna sit forward a little more before drawing more runes down her spine. “How are the headaches?”
“Just as bad as before.”
Zylah was silent for a time, but her fingers never stopped moving.
The runes were still such a strange concept.
Magic created from nothing more than a symbol and the energy of the world.
But was that energy endless? Did it have consequences?
They had so much to learn about their world once the war ended. Provided it ended in their favor.
“Let me try something.” Zylah’s hands moved up Arianna’s neck, her fingertips light and cool. The female drew a few more runes, these smaller than the last. Ice flew up her spine like a dam being released, the sensation stretching all the way to her temples.
“There,” Arianna said, finally able to relax her shoulders.
Zylah scooted closer, fingers prodding Arianna’s vertebrae, drawing symbol after symbol.
The tension unraveled like a spool of thread, and a web in her mind finally cleared.
She breathed a bit easier. Progress. Just a bit more and maybe she’d be able to gather her thoughts. Formulate a plan. Protect her sister.
“Better?”
“Much.” Gods above, she could finally breathe.
Zylah’s hands traveled lower and lifted the hem of Arianna’s shirt. The half-breed made a sound that had Arianna grimacing. “That bad?”
“I don’t understand why the bruising is still so prominent. The runes should be doing more.”
“Maybe it’s because of who I am.” She couldn’t heal herself after all. There was no reason to assume the runes would be any different. She was just thankful her head wasn’t splitting anymore.
“Sive would be able to heal it if she were here.” Both fell silent at the mention of the woman’s name. They didn’t even know if she was still alive. Zylah’s hands kept working, running up and down Arianna’s spine. “The swelling is gone, at least.”
“Can you do anything about the stiffness?”
“Does it still ache?”
“As much as the headaches.”
Zylah’s hands drew another symbol, and that same cooling sensation spread through Arianna’s muscles. She sighed in contentment.
“Whatever that is, it’s working.”
“It’s a new rune. Sive was trying to teach it to me before we left, but it’s more complicated than the others. I kept forgetting a line.”
“Glad you figured it out.” If Zylah could keep healing her like this, then she’d be able to travel soon. Maybe even tomorrow, depending on how Ellie responded when they woke her. Arianna clenched her teeth at the thought and all the complications that might come with it.
Zylah replaced Arianna’s shirt and adjusted the pillows. She scooted back, looking Arianna over, then scrunched her brows. “I could help you rest a bit more, if you like.”
“I’m tired of resting.” Not a complete lie, but she didn’t want to tell Zylah about the nightmare or the hands that threatened to grind her bones to dust. She didn’t want to feed the shadows with fear.
Arianna was silently grateful Zylah had allowed her to wake at all. They’d sedated her after the incident with Talon and … that demon. She shuddered, remembering how close he’d been standing to her, his vile magic swirling at his feet.
And now she had to be okay with him residing in the same house.
Arianna looked toward the doorway and the hall beyond. Just on the other side of a door, her sister rested in a comfortable bed. They’d changed her into clean clothes and had someone monitoring her well-being around the clock.
Her sister. Her sweet, innocent, proud, little sister.
Arianna’s throat swelled, wondering if Ellie was trapped in a nightmare herself, reliving the brutal reality of what she’d done.
She was so close. The one person Arianna treasured above all others was just a few feet away, yet it felt like a chasm stood between them.
Zylah had helped her limp into Ellie’s room yesterday. She’d nearly crumbled from the sight.
Ellie looked so much younger in her sleep.
Her cheeks had sunken in, giving her a skeletal appearance that was far starker now that her little sister wasn’t coming at them with her sword raised.
She carried marks on her wrists from the shackles that had bound her.
There were new scars all over her body, some across her arms, others on her legs.
Talon had done his best to hide the shackle around Ellie’s ankle, but Arianna knew the chain was there. She understood, even if she didn’t like it.
Arianna swallowed back the tears, the sensation burning all the way down her throat, choking her.
Zylah’s gentle hand covered her own, startling Arianna back to the present. “She’ll be okay.”
Arianna wished she could share in Zylah’s confidence.
“When do we wake her up?” At the very least, Ellie needed to eat. Even runes couldn’t help with that.
“Soon. Talon wants to see you first.”
Arianna’s jaw clenched. “Why?”
“He wants to talk.”
Talk. As if that would solve everything. “Where is he?”
“Downstairs, likely listening in like the nosy Fae he is.” Arianna’s jaw worked. “Rion is down there, too.”
She bristled at the demon’s given name, and magic sparked through her veins. Rion. What a stupid, simplistic name for a creature so vile. It didn’t even come close to encompassing all the atrocities he’d committed.
She’d never forget the look on Talon’s face when he had returned from the battlefield. She couldn’t forget the blood either, or the bodies—Arianna reached for her head. No—bodies? Where had she seen bodies? She couldn’t recall, but they were so clear. So—
Shadows spun through her mind, revealing glimpses of things she thought might be memories. But they were empty. Cold. So different from the ones filled with childhood moments between her, Talon, and Ellie.
But of course they were cold. It was war and death, and destruction. Nothing about it would be warm and inviting.
Her teeth ground together, the thrum in the back of her head threatening to resurface.
“Are you all right?” Zylah’s gentle voice startled Arianna away from her thoughts, slamming her back into the present.
“Fine.”
“You know I can smell a lie just like everyone else.”
“So what?” Arianna bit out, instantly regretting her tone. Zylah just wanted to help, but … did she? Or was this just another ploy meant to waste time? Everyone around her felt like an enemy, like her entire world had been turned upside down.
“What are they doing?” Arianna tried. She imagined the males plotting. Conspiring all the ways they might use her for their own agendas. But … Talon wouldn’t do that. He’d never done that. Right? She gripped her head again. He might now. Everyone had a price. Everyone could be bought.
Zylah waved one hand, unfazed by Arianna’s earlier tone. “Drowning in another bottle of whiskey. Discussing all the horrible shit options we have right now.”
Arianna scrunched her nose in disapproval. “Not sure drinking is going to solve our problems.”
“Not sure it’s going to hurt either,” Zylah countered. “Especially considering our situation.”
“What is our situation?”