Chapter Fourteen
The next morning, Freya was having serious problems looking the twins in the eyes.
Since the day was bright, they’d decided to go hiking through the woods behind the cabin, since everyone knew those woods like the back of their hands.
At least that was what the twins so adamantly stated, but after a while, Freya started to think they were lost. Not only that, but she feared what may happen if nightfall came and they were still there.
“Shouldn’t you and the palm of your hand get to know each other a little better?” asked Tanya mockingly.
“Give me a break, okay? That tree back there is what confused me completely, it shouldn’t be there.”
“Oh, didn’t you know? We had a March of the Ents in the woods last week, they must have misplaced the oak tree. Saruman must be unleashing Isengard again,” said Tara, absentmindedly.
Freya kept her mouth shut. The cousins were starting to pick on each other, but the truth was, she was tired.
She had never been athletically inclined, and her body had not yet recovered from years of privation.
She wouldn’t allow it, because she was turning on herself.
Had it not been for Evelyn constantly dropping something at her house, she wouldn’t know how to boil water most days, so lost she was inside her own head.
And since she had started working at the gym, Tanya was always bringing something “that she couldn’t possible eat” and leaving it in the fridge for her.
So, despite eating better, she wasn’t eating a lot, and the twins had taken notice and started to feed her spoonfuls of something they had in their own dishes before eating themselves.
Either one or both, and she didn’t know why.
“Aha!” echoed Declan’s voice, triumphantly. “I knew we were close!”
“We’re here!”
Here was a clean, pristine pond, whose waters seemed to spring from within the earth. It was hot, and not at all what Freya was anticipating since she was tired and sweaty from the hiking. She’d assumed they would go just on a stroll, or a picnic, but they wanted to bathe.
“I told you to bring your swimsuit, baby girl,” said Tanya, and Freya frowned.
“I forgot,” she muttered, and Tanya sighed.
“You should have said something before, baby girl. I would have lent one to you.”
And allow everyone to see her scars? Thank you but no thank you.
“Come on, I have a t-shirt you can use.”
“I don’t think...” she started but Tara yelled, “Come on, slowpoke! The water’s great!”
“You know how to swim, don’t you, baby girl?” asked Tanya in passing, before jumping elegantly to the lake. She cut through the water like a blade, seldom coming to the surface to breathe.
“Move along, fish!” yelled Declan before joining them in the water.
“You do know how to swim, don’t you?” asked Ciaran, studying her face. She did. Since she was four. But back then, her body wasn’t a train wreck.
****
“Tell me you’re weren’t really lost.”
“Of course not. Just needed to find my way around...”
Cutting the mind-link with his cousin, and taking her silence as acquiescence, he gently led her to the edge of the lake, his hand resting lightly on her back.
Her resistance was symbolic; she seemed like a stubborn little pup, and Ciaran was amused.
You want to behave like a pup, angel? Then let’s treat you like one.
He saw her dip her toe in, assessing the temperature.
He increased the pressure on her back, forcing her to enter the water at his pace.
She hissed when it reached her knees, and Ciaran stopped.
The hissing sound turned to astonishment as Ciaran began to scoop up the water with his cupped hands and let it fall gently on her arms. Goosebumps arose and he carefully ran his fingers over them, gently caressing.
She looked up and was surprised to see that he was staring intently at her.
“I’m here with you, angel. Every step of the way.”
Were they still speaking about diving into the lake?
“And if I don’t want to enter?” she whispered, even though she was half way in.
“Then we don’t,” he answered with a shrug.
“It’s not fair for you,” she said in a low voice.
“It’s not fair for you either,” he replied, shrugging again. “You’re young, you’re beautiful, and you live in hiding. You’re afraid of life and I won’t let you be. Not anymore. Let us enter.”
She frowned as his hand gently caressed her face. Carefully, his hands moved up to her shoulders and turned her toward the lake, where Declan, Tanya, and Tara stood, submerged up to their waists, watching her. Tara nodded slightly, and Tanya smiled encouragingly.
Declan’s gaze was indecipherable.
“Do you want to dip your toes and watch your life pass you by ... or do you want to dive in and embrace it?”
Freya hesitated and bit her lip. The pressure was immense. She could continue to hide, or she could dive back into the lake of life. Allow herself to live. Her parents were dead, but they would never want her to bury herself alive. They would want her to live.
She managed to smile. It was a shy smile, but it was a start. A smile that mirrored in Ciaran’s face and reflected on Declan’s. Declan extended his hand to her while Ciaran nudged her gently.
Freya smiled ... and dove in headfirst.