Ena wasn’t safe here anymore.Hewasn’t safe here anymore, if he’d ever truly been. They would have to flee and take whatever books they could with them to figure out the rest of the binding spell.
Because one thing was for certain: despite what Cole asked of him, unless it washerchoice, he could never let Ena go.
Chapter Twenty-five
Ena
Enawasasleep.Shedidn’t know how long she’d been that way, but she could sense that it had been a while. The potion they’d given her when she had first woken up had knocked her out cold, but her consciousness had come and gone. Sometimes she’d fallen into a deep, dreamless sleep, and then other times, she’d felt herself waking up, only to be dragged under again in a seemingly never-ending cycle.
But this time felt different. Her eyes felt so heavy, but still, they began to flutter, and with effort, she was able to crack one of them open. She struggled with the other one and only got it so far open before deciding to let it close again. She could feel that that side of her face was swollen—it throbbed and was uncomfortable—but there wasn’t much pain. She guessed she had the potion to thank for that.
Looking around with her one good eye, she saw that she was still in Ty’s room.
“Ena!”
Movement from the other side of the room caught her eye and she tracked it. It was Lara.
“How are you feeling?” Lara asked as she approached the bed.
“I—” Ena went to answer, but her voice came out in a croak. It sounded rough and dry, and hurt to use. She moved to swallow and winced at the dull pain that accompanied the movement.
“Sorry, hold on. I’ll get you some water.” Lara moved to the table and poured Ena a glass of water from the pitcher there. Bringing it over to her, she leaned over the bed to tip a tiny amount into Ena’s mouth.
“More?” Lara asked gently. When Ena gave a small nod, she poured a few more mouthfuls into Ena’s mouth before Ena turned her head away.
“Thank you,” she managed to croak out. The water had helped, but her voice was still messed up. That had to be because of the—
Ena flinched as the unwanted memory resurfaced. Gunnar’s meaty hands around her throat—squeezing—as she tried desperately to drink in air.
The terror she’d felt. The helplessness.
“So how are you feeling?” Lara asked, jolting Ena’s attention back towards her.
“O-okay, I think,” Ena answered, fidgeting uncomfortably as the adrenaline petered out of her body once more. She was suddenly keenly aware that she hadn’t moved in Gaia knew how long, and her limbs felt strange.
“Here, let me help you sit up,” Lara said. Carefully, she propped another pillow behind Ena’s head and then came up onto the bed next to her. Together, being careful of Ena’s broken ribs, they shuffled her upward into a sitting position.
Just then, the door opened, and their attention shifted as Ty entered the room.
Sudden relief washed over Ena so intensely that her good eye began to tear up.
“You’re awake,” he said, rushing over to the bed in a few long strides. He knelt down beside her and grasped her uninjured hand in his. The look on his face made Ena want to cry even more. He looked relieved, too, but his stare was so intense, like he didn’t want to blink for fear that she’d disappear.
“You’re back,” she croaked out.
She saw him wince slightly at the sound of her voice, but he hid it well, and brought his hand up to push hair away from the uninjured side of her face. “I am. I got back this morning. I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you woke up. I was with…”
Ena’s hand tightened unconsciously, gripping Ty’s harder. She knew what he’d been about to say. She could see it in the look of fury in his eyes. He had been with Cole.
Even the thought of his name made Ena’s heart rate kick up and brought a panicking tightness to her chest. She had to actively calm herself down, closing her eyes for a second and taking as deep of a breath as she could with the dull pain still echoing through her ribs.
“How—how long have I been asleep?” she managed to ask, desperate to change the topic.
“Just a day or so,” Lara answered. “The pain-numbing potion was also a sleeping draft, so unfortunately now that you’re awake, the pain might come back.”
Ena nodded, but felt her stomach tighten at the prospect of more pain. She was familiar with the type of potion they’d used, and she knew that would likely be the case.
“I’m sorry we couldn’t do more for you,” Lara continued. “We only have so many potions on hand from trades with the Covens.”
