Chapter 44
Chapter Forty-Four
Light streamed in through an unfamiliar bedroom while pain lanced through Owain’s head.
It took him several moments to be able to open his eyes fully and take in his surroundings.
He was on a bed; of that he was sure. The soft mattress underneath him was a stark difference from the bedrolls and frozen earth that he last remembered sleeping on.
He bolted upright as memories cascaded into him making him wince. Or was that the pain that now suddenly radiated from his back and abdomen? He remembered him and Orla being attacked near the barrier and the terror that overwhelmed him at the thought that Orla had been harmed.
He had told her to run, had begged her to save herself. So why was he here, and where was Orla? Slowly, he made his way to his feet, realizing that he was stark naked. Looking around he recognized where he was. This was his mother’s cabin. Which means he made it across the barrier somehow.
Reaching into a drawer of the wardrobe, Owain pulled on a pair of old pants before making his way around the cabin. He didn’t know how he would have been able to get here on his own, but he didn’t hear or see Orla as he walked out into the small sitting room and kitchen.
Slowly, fear started to creep in. Had he made it here alone? He didn’t know how long he had been unconscious for, but with how extensive his wounds had been, he knew it must have been a while.
Looking down, he saw that the large circular scars on his abdomen were now joined by large angry welts from where his newest wounds had been.
Seeing the evidence of their attack brought it all back into sharp relief.
The cold bite of steel against his flesh.
The assumptions that he was going to die.
But that if Orla lived, it would have all been worth it.
Now, as he looked around the small room, he started to fear that somehow she didn’t make it.
His life was not worth continuing without her.
Feeling himself starting to panic, he went to the washroom to splash cold water on his face. That would help him calm down so he could think clearly.
While in the washroom, he heard a rustling from the bedchamber.
Owain looked into the room to see a frantic Orla tearing at the bed, pulling away pillows and blankets as if looking for something.
Every ounce of his fear was alleviated in that moment.
Orla was here. She was alive, and she was clearly looking for him.
“Looking for me?”