19. Brinley
Chapter 19
Brinley
T he door to the study opened, and Brinley looked up to see Gabriel stop in his tracks at the sight of her sitting in the window seat. She had her knees pulled up to her chest and had been watching the sparse clouds float by, the people walking along the streets below. She’d opened the pane of glass enough to feel a slight breeze. Now, she stared at the alpha as he continued toward his desk.
It had only been two days since he had her bent over it. The thought made her cheeks heat.
“You do know that door isn’t locked, right?” He used a key to open a drawer and shuffled through pages of parchment, searching for something. “I told you that you’re not a prisoner.”
“And where, exactly, would I go?”
Taking out a ledger, he shrugged. “Take a walk through the village and get some actual fresh air.”
Brinley scoffed, and he turned to face her. “Right. Because wandering the streets among beasts who want to eat me is such a great idea.”
She could practically hear his eyes roll as he went to open another drawer. This time, he pulled out a small coin bag. “No one is going to eat you, bijou.” A beat passed before he added, “Not enough meat on your bones. Plus, witch’s blood is sour.”
She scowled at his back. When he looked over his shoulder, as if to see her reaction, she saw the amusement in his gaze. He was teasing her… That was new. She didn’t know how to handle that, so instead, she narrowed her eyes and said, “Stop calling me that.”
“Never.”
“At least tell me what it means.”
“Not a chance.” He shut the drawer and faced her. “I have people to visit today. Want to come with me?”
The offer confused her even more. She didn’t want to appreciate it, and she definitely didn’t want him to know that was her reaction. But was it even a genuine question? She tried to divert the attention to someone else. “Going to see Joel?”
The goal had been to get under his skin like he did to her, but he didn’t take the bait. She’d seen the two together a few times since that night she overheard them talking about their past. It was clear they cared about each other, but it didn’t seem like love.
Not that she had any experience with love or really knew what it looked like. Besides, she’d told herself more than once that it wasn’t her business.
He raised a brow. “Does that possibility bother you?”
“Why would it bother me? I don’t care who you sleep with.” She looked out the window again, trying to show just how much she didn’t care. What happened a couple days ago was a one-time thing, a mistake she wouldn’t make again. An incredible, world-shattering mistake she couldn’t stop thinking about. Especially in the quiet hours of the night while lying alone in the dark… in his big bed that somehow still smelled like him.
“I might see him, but I meant I had work to do in the village,” he said. When she didn’t respond, he sighed. His footsteps receded. “Get some fresh air. Someone will accompany you if you do; you’ll be safe. I’ll see you later.”
The door clicked shut, and Brinley finally looked around the rest of the room. She took a deep breath as she hugged her knees and rested her head on them. Her vision turned blurry with tears, and she squeezed her eyes closed, her chest aching with grief. She missed home so much it made her sick, but not nearly as much as the thought of her slaughtered people did. Every night, she heard their screams. The silence that followed their deaths. And just because some of the wolves here had treated her kindly didn’t mean she could just forget that. Or the fact that they had killed her parents, as well as an uncle and grandfather she never got to meet. It was a front that wouldn’t fool her.
“Brinley?” a soft, feminine voice said as a hand touched her shoulder.
Her head snapped up to find the girl from upstairs—Gabriel’s sister. Brinley used the ends of her sleeves to dry her cheeks and forced the mask of indifference back in place. “What?”
The young woman didn’t so much as flinch at the harsh tone. “Are you all right?”
A sardonic laugh left Brinley’s throat. “My people were attacked, my only family and friend were killed, and I’m being held captive by my enemies. What do you think?”
“I’m sorry,” she said without hesitation. “I… can imagine the pain you’re in right now.”
“No, you really can’t.” Brinley lowered her feet and stood to get away from the girl.
“Both of my parents were killed by the time I was twelve,” she said, making Brinley pause near the door to the bedroom. “Everything has been taken from me. An entire future I… It might be a different cause of pain, but I do understand.”
Brinley turned toward the DeLoup and was reminded of how young she looked—at least a few years younger than herself—yet, somehow wise, mature. Like she had, indeed, lived through too much in her short life.
“What do you mean about an entire future?”
The girl gave her a sad smile. “It’s not something I talk about.”
Brinley nodded, moving closer. “Because it’s too painful?” She hesitated, thinking about the night Gabriel opened up. “Or because you can’t?”
Her smile became genuine. “You remember?”
“I…” What did she say to that? Gabriel had also remarked on her forgetting something, but she had no idea what they were talking about. There weren’t any holes in her memory. She remembered everything from her life—or at least, most of it. Of course, she couldn’t recall every single second, but who could? Instead of answering that, she said, “I know there’s a curse preventing Gabriel from speaking about things, so it wasn’t a difficult jump to assume you can’t either.”
A brief flash of something akin to sadness filled the girl’s blue gaze before she cleared it and smiled. “Clever.” She held out a hand. “I’m Rosalyn, or Rose.”
Deep down, Brinley knew Rose couldn’t have had anything to do with the attack on her birthday, but she still hesitated before reluctantly shaking her hand. She pulled back quickly, unable to help herself.
“That’s all right.” Rose lowered her arm and glanced around the room as she moved to lean against the window seat. “I actually just came down to speak with my brother.”
“He left a few minutes ago. He said he had business in town to attend to and people to see.”
“Oh. What about Pax? Have you seen him?”
Brinley shook her head. “Not since yesterday.”
Rose nodded and pursed her lips, as if considering something. That was when Brinley noticed her face paling. Her hands shook, and she looked exhausted. Clearing her throat, Rose said, “Will you just tell them I was here the next time you see them?”
“Sure.” Brinley’s brow furrowed in confusion at the odd shift in behavior. The girl mumbled her thanks and made to leave, but she stumbled, catching herself on the desk. Brinley rushed to her side. “Are you all right?”
“Mhmm.”
But Brinley could see how much she struggled to stay upright. Ignoring the tiny voice inside telling her not to help a DeLoup, she reached for Rose’s arm. “Why don’t you sit for a few? I can get you some water.”
“No,” Rose whispered. “I just need to return to the solarium.”
There was no way this girl was making it out of this room on her own, let alone up a flight of stairs.
“Could you maybe find Brighid to help me get back?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Brinley lifted the girl’s arm around her neck. “I can help.”
Rose nodded, and the two began moving. It was a slow trek. Halfway up the spiral staircase, Brinley wished she could figure out how to use her magic to make it easier. She hadn’t been able to so much as lift a quill with her powers. She didn’t know how she’d managed to bring Gabriel home or heal him last week.
Eventually, they made it to the solarium. It was even more beautiful than Brinley remembered it. She all but carried Rose to the settee and lowered her onto it. Seeing her shiver, Brinley grabbed the blanket from the other end and draped it over her lap. She put a hand to the girl’s forehead, but she didn’t feel feverish.
“I’ll go find the healer,” Brinley said.
Rose grabbed her hand. “No, don’t. She can’t do anything for me.”
“But you’re sick. Surely there’s something…” Her words trailed off at the sadness in Rose’s big blue eyes. This wasn’t just exhaustion or illness. It was more. An entire future she wouldn’t get. Was that what she’d been about to say earlier? “Can I get you anything?”
“No, but will you stay? I feel like we could both benefit from some company.”
Brinley debated it for a moment. “Your brother will kill me.”
To her surprise, Rose rolled her eyes. “No, he won’t. But it can be our little secret. What he doesn’t know won’t kill him.”
As much as Brinley didn’t want to admit it, she liked this girl. When Rose curled her legs up, making room on the settee, Brinley smiled and took a seat. She looked around the room, relaxing against the backrest. It was so bright and colorful. Inhaling deeply, she tilted her face up and closed her eyes, letting the scents from all the different flowers and plants fill her as the sun soaked into her from the countless windows.
“This is so much better than fresh air.” Then, realizing what she’d said, she glanced at Rose.
Her sad smile told Brinley she knew it wasn’t true.
“When was the last time you left this house?”
“A couple weeks ago. I stopped attending school last year, but I used to walk through the village with Gabe or Pax occasionally. My favorite place is this courtyard a couple of streets over… Paxton helped me down to it recently,” Rose said.
“Courtyard?”
She nodded. “It’s at the center of a bunch of buildings, most of which are now abandoned. My father used to tell me that when he was younger, it had been a well-kept area for people to gather, like a park. When things between the DeLoup and sorcières escalated, it was as if they forgot about it. By the time I started visiting it as a child, it was nothing but ruins… but it’s still beautiful.”
Brinley shifted on the settee to face her more. She had a way of speaking, of making everything sound dreamlike.
“The columns around the space look centuries old, and one of them is partially crumbled to the ground from a battle before I was born. The grass has grown so tall in areas that it has consumed the stone benches.” Rose sighed. “But at one end, there’s a weeping cherry tree.”
“What’s that?” Brinley wasn’t an expert on plants, but she’d never even heard of that kind.
Rose’s smile widened. “Do you know what a weeping willow is?” When Brinley nodded, she said, “It’s like that but with pale pink leaves.”
“Pink?” She couldn’t imagine such a thing. Yet, even as she thought that, she saw it in her mind. She could almost picture the exact place Rose described.
“Pink.”
Both women laughed softly before drifting into a peaceful quiet.
“It’s beautiful, still thriving.” Rose turned her eyes to the room surrounding them. “Despite being forgotten, it still lives. Day after day, it stands there, just waiting for someone to take notice. Growing up, I spent so much time beneath its long branches. I’d bring my paints out there or my sketchpad, and it was as if I was in my own little world. I always promised to fix it up one day, but now…”
Brinley’s heart ached at the words. Reaching out, she put a hand over Rose’s. “You will.”
Rose turned her hand over and entwined their fingers. And for the first time in her twenty-one years, Brinley wondered if just maybe it was possible that one DeLoup wasn’t a monster. Because surely this sweet girl who loved art and plants, who missed a tree as if it were a family member, wasn’t one of the vicious creatures from Brinley’s nightmares.
But if Rose was truly as kind as she seemed, what if there were others? What if she wasn’t just the rare exception?