I think he’s lying.
“How did I get here?”
Silence stretches so long, I don’t think he’s going to answer. I hear his teeth grind, “You ran from me, Lumi. You ran. And then someone took you from my forest.”
My thoughts stutter, pieces scatter, nothing makes sense. It’s like trying to watch a movie with frames missing. A whole chunk of me is just.. gone.
Think, Lumi. Think. Why did you run?
“Why did I run?”
“I was hoping you would tell me that,Saelûn.”
I sigh, frustrated that I can’t remember. Everything feels like it’s made of fog and static.
“Did we argue?”
“No, nothing like that.” he pauses, his voice thickens. “I was struggling to control... a part of me. You had just taken a shower, and I asked you to block the door. We were supposed to talk when I got myself situated, but—” he swallows, “When I came to—you were gone.”
“Gone?” I blink at him. “Didn’t you say I had just taken a shower? How did I slip out without you noticing?”
“You climbed out of our bathroom window.”
“Our?” I echo.
“Yes, Lumi. Our. What’s mine is yours. I tracked you through the woods, but I was too late.”
“What do you mean—too late?”
My eyes threaten to shut again, but I force them open.
“You were drugged.” His voice tightens, “There was a puncture mark on your neck. Your scent was almost completely erased—and I haven’t had time to figure out how that’s possible.” His jaw clenches. “But I found you.I will always find you.”
My stomach drops
“Do you know—” The words catch in my throat. I can’t even force them out.
His fingers freeze where they’d been combing through my hair. The frame of my canopy bed cracks. His breath turns ragged.
“I couldn’t scent them.” His voice is strangled. “I don’t know if it’s magic or some kind of divine interference, but they produced no scent at all, except for the chemical trace of the sedative.” He lowers his head to rest right over my heart. “When I found you, your hand was already bandaged, and your boots were gone. They’d... tucked you in.”
I close my eyes, but the world won’t stop spinning.
“Why?” My voice trembles. “Why would someone drug me just to bring me home and put me in bed? It doesn’t make any sense.”
His voice turns low, bitter. He gestures around the room. “This is the violation. They wanted you to know they've been watching. That they can intervene—whenever they want. That they don’t need to touch you to hurt you.”
I shift under my blanket, fingers curling into the sheets. It feels like someone is squeezing my stomach in their hands.
I thought I was going to get answers when I walked into those woods. Instead, I came back with so many more questions.
“I need the truth, Andrik.”
“You have it.”
“No.” My voice is steadier now. “What I have is your protection; what I need is the truth.”
A flicker. A breath of hesitation crosses his features.
