Chapter 20
AIMILIA
Aimilia woke up when the healers moved onto her burnt hand, hissing in pain and grabbing at Gavril’s shoulder.
She crushed it in her grip, causing him to wince as the healers cleaned the wound that was practically infected already from the way she’d been crawling around in the dirt with it. It was agonizing.
Gavril’s back was mostly toward her, and she appreciated the thoughtfulness, given the massive crowd around of people working to get the stadium and ground stabilized.
They’d had to remove what was left of her peplos to heal her shoulder and her strophion was filthy.
It certainly was not appropriate attire to be left in in front a group of fifty children, even if most of them weren’t paying attention to her.
Not that there was anything really to see on her other than blood and dirt.
As the healers crested over the worst part of healing her arm and the pain began to ebb, Aimilia muttered, “Thank you for sending Marcella after me.”
Gavril didn’t look back, only inclined his head toward her. “She didn’t go down there after you because of me.”
“Then I take back my thanks,” Aimilia said, pausing to let out a sharp hiss as another wave ripped through her while the red began to fade. “Here, have this instead: thanks for nothing.”
“You could thank me for being your pillow and rescuing you from Nikias.”
Aimilia squeezed her eyes shut, hoping everyone took the red tinging her cheeks as coming from pain at the healers’ work. His arms around her had been wholly unexpected. What had he been thinking?
She’d deal with him later. She shoved the memory of his arms wrapped around her down as she opened one eye. “Is that really a gratitude-worthy act compared to Marcella coming into a collapsing tunnel system to help me save a bunch of novices?”
Gavril laughed, shaking his head, gaze still straight ahead. Ever the perfect gentleman and friend.
“Are there any more serious injuries, Commander?” the healer asked as he finished Aimilia’s arm. With the rest just being scrapes and bruises, she shook her head.
“No, that was the worst of it. I’ll be alright for now. There are plenty of broken bones that need your attention.”
As the healer finished, Aimilia drew her knees up to her chest. She’d left her cloak in the box before jumping over the railing, and Gavril didn’t have his with him either. Not that she could in good conscience take his, given he was a married man and they had once been supposed to be engaged.
“Want me to take a look at the scrapes and all of that?” Gavril asked.
“I’ll survive. What I would rather have is something to wear so I don’t scandalize everyone when I have to eventually get up. Again.”
Gavril started to lift his hand to wave Marcella over, but then Aimilia’s vision went completely black as fabric fell over her.
She quickly grabbed at it, pulling it around her torso and looking up to see Nikias standing above her.
She looked down to see she was covered by Nikias’ commander’s cloak.
She looked back up at him and said, “Oh no.”
Gavril’s glare at Nikias had renewed all over again as Nikias smirked.
“Ah, yes,” Nikias said. “Unless you want to walk out of here and cause a much worse scene.”
“I just saved fifty novices almost singlehandedly. I think they can forgive me a little immodesty in the aftermath.” But she didn’t remove the cloak covering her.
“Why mar such an achievement by giving the gossips the opportunity to diminish your accomplishment with talk of how you looked afterwards?”
“If I leave here wearing your cloak, then that’s all they’ll be talking about. Not the fact that I just saved fifty children.”
“Or they’ll be talking about the fact that you saved fifty children and left in my cloak. I fail to see the problem.”
She wasn’t winning this one. Aimilia whipped around and gave Gavril a pointed look. “Do you know your brother has decided who his next wife is going to be?”
“I don’t think I like where this is going.” Gavril looked up at Nikias. “Please tell me this isn’t where I think it’s going.”
Nikias stayed silent, keeping his gaze on Aimilia, huddled beneath his cloak.
She huffed, digging her fingers into the fabric. “Oh yes, he’s delusional enough to think there’s some possibility it could ever be me.”
Gavril started to push himself to his feet, locking eyes with Nikias. “That’s what you meant when you said you were going to create a new plan?”
Nikias finally pulled his cold gaze away from Aimilia and raised an eyebrow at the blond. “It’s not my fault you didn’t ask any follow-up questions.”
Gavril opened his mouth, but Nikias cut him off. “Be angry later, we need to clear the stadium so they can do official repairs. You need to help get the novices back to the Academy. I need to take Aimilia back to the palace and start skinning whoever is responsible for this.”
Aimilia waved Gavril off. “It’s fine. I’ll survive a little more gossip connecting us. It’s not like it changes the answer he’s going to get when he tries again.”
Gavril still narrowed his eyes at Nikias. “Don’t think you’re going to get away with anything.”
“I’m not trying to get away with anything.
” Nikias’ voice was completely frigid. “But maybe you should be a little more concerned with your exhausted wife and the fifty children who are your responsibility instead of the woman you could never bring yourself to marry. Just because you didn’t think she was worth marrying doesn’t mean I agree, nor does it mean I’m giving up. ”
Aimilia was starting to think she should have let the last chimera take her just so she wouldn’t have to endure this.
“And here I thought maybe you were capable of changing, but you’re still the same—” Gavril started advancing, but then Marcella was between them, hands on Gavril’s chest, big eyes beneath her wild curls looking up at him.
“Gavril, now is not time.”
Aimilia just stared at the red fabric she was holding to her chest, unable to look at either.
Gavril stepped back, his voice washing over her. “Aimilia, if you need anything, you know where we are. You’re welcome to stay with us tonight.”
Then Gavril and Marcella were gone.
Out of the corner of her eye she watched Nikias’ hands flex as they departed.
And here she’d almost believed he cared.
Then Nikias was kneeling beside her. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”
Aimilia turned her head, shifting the cloak to start to wrap it around her better, hoping the motion hid her wiping at her eyes.
“It’s mostly true.”
“But that doesn’t mean I needed to say it.”
“Strategically, yes, you did.” Aimilia kept fussing with the cloak so she didn’t have to look at him.
“Given Gavril was my last prospect for marriage and the facts surrounding it, reminding me of it, and showing you’re actually the only man who does want to marry me for some bizarre reason, should benefit your case in convincing me to agree. ”
But then his hands were on hers, and she looked up into his eyes. His eyes stayed locked on hers as he began adjusting the cloak to adequately cover her when she stood up. He took his clasp with his name etched onto it and pinned it securely over her heart.
“If you think I’d purposefully hurt you so I could take advantage of it in order to get you to accept my hand, then I clearly have a long way to go.” Then he reached up and brushed the hair in her face back. “That’s alright. I don’t mind the distance.”
Her heart slammed against her ribs. Why was he looking at her like that?
Aimilia shook her head and whispered slowly, “You are making a very bad bet.”
“See, bet implies chance. I’m not a betting man.” Nikias’ eyes sharpened. “And I don’t need any Abyss-tainted Sight to know how this turns out, you and I. Now, let’s go home.”
“To the palace,” Aimilia corrected, voice still coming out soft and weaker than it should have.
She was just tired. That was all. It had nothing to do with Nikias being so close and saying… the strange things he’d been saying.
Nikias’ hands brushed over her shoulders as he pulled her up to her feet with him. “Yet.”
She rolled her eyes and swatted his hands away. “That doesn’t even make sense.”
“But it made you smile. And you think you stand a chance against me?” Nikias pulled back with a smirk before moving for the exit, leaving her to hurry after him, wrapped up in his cloak. She clutched the red fabric as the sun set below the horizon, casting them all in a golden glow.
Oh, if he thought she’d eviscerated him the first time she rejected him, he was going to be in for it now. She was going to relish wiping that smug smirk off his face.