Chaos and Trust #3
“We’re on the same side now,” I say as patiently as I can manage, which isn’t all that much.
“We have been since Saltwater.” Since I learned the truth of the Given and was prepared to lose everything over it.
Twice now, I’ve given everything up for Wren.
“That’s why I helped you and your sisters. Why I called for Maia.”
“Maia.” Sharp violet eyes meet mine, and she scowls. “Who is she anyway? Your girlfriend? Or your wife?” Her voice sharpens on the last word.
Wait. Is this . . . Is Wren jealous?
“You think I’m with Maia?” I clarify. “Romantically?”
She crosses her arms. “Aren’t you? Why else would she be so nice to you? Why else would she help you?”
On one hand, it delights me that Wren is jealous. On the other, her Mark is flaring, and I’ve seen that happen enough times to know that what comes next isn’t good.
“That’s not how it is between us,” I say quietly but firmly. “Maia is my best friend’s sister. That’s all.”
A beat passes as my words settle between us, and Wren blinks. “Really?”
Her Mark dims, and I exhale. “Yes. I’ve known her since she was a child.”
“So you’re not . . . involved?”
“No. We never have been. She’s basically my sister.” Maia and Theon have been far more like siblings to me than my own half brother ever has been.
“Oh. Okay.” A heartbeat passes, and the fire in Wren’s eyes flickers, then goes out. “My sisters will be all right with her, right?”
“Absolutely. I would never have left them otherwise.” I may be a Hunter, but I’m not cruel enough to leave young girls alone to fend for themselves. Only a monster would do such a thing.
Another long moment goes by before Wren’s bottom lip wobbles, and she seems to deflate. When she speaks again, her voice is soft, heartbreakingly so. “All right. That’s . . . that’s good. My sisters are safe, and I’m . . . I’m . . . here.”
She waves a hand around us, and oh, gods. Are those tears lining her eyes? Yes. Those are definitely tears, and now, they’re streaking down her face.
Burning suns, my chest aches at the sight.
“Wren—”
She steps away from me, shaking her head. “No, Gabriel. I’m alone, and my family is gone again.” Her eyes meet mine, and the pain in them has my heart seizing. “They’re gone, and once more I’m on the run. Sore. Shaken. And with . . . with you.”
My mouth parts, and I say her name again.
“You were hunting me, Gabriel,” she says softly. “I was your prey. And that . . . that makes all this”—she gestures between us, as if that’s supposed to mean something—“so suns-damned difficult, I don’t even know where to begin.”
She’s not the only one. No matter how strong that hook is that’s drawing me to her, we can’t erase our past. The way we met. The things I’ve done.
“I’m sorry.” The apology doesn’t feel like enough. Nothing feels like it’ll ever be enough. “I didn’t know about the sacrifices.”
No one knows what happens to the Given. The lies have been woven deep within the fabric of our society, and it’s only since Wren revealed the truth of the gods-blessed to me that I’ve been able to pick them out.
I’ve always known King Andreas to be a cruel man—the scars on my back are a testament to that—but it wasn’t until I learned what was being done to the Marked Ones that I realized how heinous he truly was.
Thank all the gods, Wren ran from her fate. If she hadn’t, she would’ve been killed, and we never would’ve gotten the chance to meet.
I shudder as a vision of her lying on the cold stone floor of a temple, her throat slit and blood pouring from the wound flashes through my mind.
Bile rises in my throat as I try to force the thought away, but it takes all my concentration.
Taking advantage of the moment, Wren takes several more stumbling steps back.
Suns save me, but I have to clench my fists to stop myself from reaching out for her.
After a few moments, she sighs. “I believe that you didn’t know about the Given.
I mean, I didn’t, either. Not until I saw .
. .” She hugs her arms around her stomach and trembles.
“But Gabriel, I . . . I don’t know what to say.
Who to trust.” Her eyes fall, and she shakes her head dejectedly. “I’m just . . . alone.”
Her agony is a living, breathing creature. I want to soothe her pain, but I don’t think I can say anything to help.
“I have something for you.” Stepping away from Wren, I dig through Chaos’s saddlebags until I find what I’m looking for and return to her side. “These are for you.” I hold out a bundle of clothes.
Wren eyes it for a long moment, not making any move to touch them, so I add, “You may not trust me, but we’re on the same side. I’m trying to help.”
It’s all I can do—all I can think about. Ever since Wren’s magic flared and sky-colored flames licked her hands, she’s been the only thing on my mind.
Everything I’ve done since has been for her.
When she reaches out and takes my offering, I let out a breath. I’m not sure why it’s so important that she knows I’m here to help, but right now, it’s the only thing I care about.
As she unravels the bundle of clothes Maia sent and walks to the back of the cave, I head over to Mist. Crouching before my familiar to give Wren privacy, I make a vow: I will gain Wren’s trust if it’s the last thing I do.