Seda gasped and attempted to get closer to them.
“Stay here, Seda. Let them tend to him,” Kalon said to her. She took a step back, standing next to Kalon, who placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She did not shirk away from him. She nervously bit her nails and looked at the bloody body of Ruel in Cahir’s arms.
Cahir growled low in his chest but focused his attention back to Ruel.
Benny ran up and looked at him. “Fuck,” his face paled. “Put him here.” He grabbed a small blanket and laid it out on the ground. Cahir placed Ruel down, and he groaned loudly in pain.
“My daughter. I saw my baby,” Ruel panted as pain ripped through his body. Cahir and Benny looked at each other.
“Seren! We need that medic bag!” Benny shouted. Seren ran over and handed it to him. Benny pulled out some gauze and placed it against Ruel’s open wounds.
“It is no use, Benny,” Cahir said as his blood continued to soak the cloth. Benny kept trying to mop up the blood, refusing to give up. Ruel groaned in pain and coughed.
“No more, please,” he begged Benny. “It’s my time. I will see her again, this time. I’m coming for you, sweetie.”
Seren, Kalon, Ojore, and Askold walked up and circled them as Roya remained near Seda. They held their hands over their hearts and hung their heads solemnly.
Ruel slowly stopped breathing.
“Mother Goddess, guide Ruel into the afterlife. Watch over him and grant him safe passage. Forgive his sins, for he has loved and lost but has had you and Solios in his heart. May he rest in peace and get to share his love with his daughter once more,” Ojore prayed.
Cahir looked over at him. Praying to the Mother Goddess and Solios was not a common practice among humans. They prayed to Lord Mordred for their protection, further proving he wasn’t who he was pretending to be. Cahir held his hand over his heart and said “amen” with the others. He did not know Ruel long, but they shared laughs and triumphs together. He prayed that Ruel would find his peace and that the Mother Goddess would bless his soul, for this life is hard, and good people deserve to find solace.
Roya flew up into the sky and searched around for any more Hailecs. Ferona and Feich stood back with Seda, protecting her in case any appeared.
They tookturns sleeping after they laid Ruel to rest in a dark patch of soft ferns. No more Hailecs attacked the group for the remainder of the evening. As the sunrise cast its coral-colored glow across the sky and through the scattered trees, and the mistdispersed, Cahir looked down at Seda. Her face was so peaceful as she slept.
What magic was purple? The Fae were green, and monsters generally favored the color red. He never heard of purple before in his long, magic-filled life.
He watched Seda as she slept, her chest rising and falling with gentle breaths. His hand lingered in his pocket, where he still had the necklace he needed to return to her. Never before in his life had he felt such emotion for another being, and the way he was starting to think and act was concerning. His desire to care about this whole ordeal was decreasing day by day.
He no longer cared if the monsters continued their rule, if the dome fell, or even if he had to burn down villages or kill people to keep her safe. More than anything, though, he was starting to worry that he wasn’t going to be around to get herhome. He had less than ten days. Actually, he didn’t even know how many days remained; the last few were a blur.
She stirred, and he quickly glanced away, not wanting to get caught staring at her while she slept.
He almost died last night because he couldn’t think straight. When had Seda ever said things like that to him?Never. She only saw him as a friend. He felt the twinge of sadness pierce his heart when he thought about that.
Would she only ever see him as a friend?
Sure, they were close. But not in that way. Roya was right, he was a fool for falling for the tricks of the Hailec. He needed to distance himself from his own heart and to keep his head straight. He would still be her friend, but he could not allow his foolish emotions to get in the way of the one thing he had to do most.
He had to protect her.
He needed tocareabout the lives of others, the murderousrule of the monsters, and the farmed humans living in Joro for the monsters’ consumption. It is what Seda would want.
She has compassion and kindness. She couldn’t even witness an injured person at the hands of another without needing to look away.
Seda opened her eyes and looked at Cahir. “Morning,” she said to him with a yawn and sleepy eyes. He gazed back at her, his eyes lingering on her soft lips before quickly looking away.
Stupid, unlearning fool.
“How did you sleep?” she asked him.
“Fine,” he replied. “How is your ankle this morning? You think you can walk today?”
She looked down and rolled her ankle around. “It feels much better.” She smiled over at him, and he quickly looked away, feeling his gaze drawn to her perfect, full lips once again.
“Is everything okay?” she asked.
