“I just want to understand why.” Of course, she was asking for more information. The woman either yelled at him to stay out of her business and give her space, or she pried into his own life. Did she not notice the inconsistency of her actions?
“That’s none of your business, especially since we are trying to give each other space, right?”
She shook her head at him. Her long, blonde hair whipped across her back and shoulders. “Yeah. Forget I asked. Good night, Savine,” she said as she walked back toward the bedroom.
As she left the room and he heard that odd zipping sound, Savine leaned his head back on his chair, closing his eyes as he rubbed his throbbing temples. What was wrong with him? Every bodily urgewanted him to get closer to this woman, let her in, and bear his fucking tattered soul to her. It felt like an instinctual need that he’d never experienced before.
But opening up to this woman? That was the most dangerous thing he could do.
Chapter eighteen
Kyla
Kyla hadn’t heard from Avery all morning, and Savine was no help when she asked him how she adjusted to the idea of permanently residing in Aeritis. It had been two days since Avery returned, bruised and covered in the Hylax’s blood. Kyla wasn’t worried when she kept to herself the first day after her return. But two days? That seemed reason enough for her to check on Avery.
Kyla had tried to ask what Savine and Avery talked about when they shared a space together, but Savine responded with some nonsense about Avery sleeping in a small tent inside his bedroom. He said Avery kept to herself in there, and he hadn’t wanted to disturb her privacy. He hadn’t bothered to check if she needed anything before he left his tent in the morning, either. When Kyla questioned whether he knew if Avery was still in the small tent, Savine only responded with a cryptic reply that he could still smell her, so she was still in there. Her brother had a lot of issues that he’d never dealt with in the years after his imprisonment. But one of them had to be how to behave around women. Goddess alive! Did he even bother talking to the poor woman?
Kyla walked past Kersi, the guard on duty, and into her brother’s tent, but he didn’t stop her even though she knew Savine wasn’t there. He and Garnel were doing military drills with a third of the troops every morning.
“Avery! Are you here?” Kyla called. She heard a small sound, almost animalistic. As she crossed from Savine’s sitting room to the bedroom, Kyla saw what Savine meant. Avery was inside a tiny, brightly colored tent in the corner of Savine’s room.
Kyla immediately sensed Avery’s emotions bubbling forth from the tent. Even with her glamour in place, the emotions reared up, ready to swallow Kyla down. Despair, regret, and fear filled the air.
Damn Savine to the Abyss! How had he not noticed that Avery hurt so terribly? Why didn’t he think she would need some help as the reality of her life settled in? Men, her brother especially, were so often concerned with their own needs that they forgot to see the pain glaring out of others.
“Would you like to walk with me to the river?” Kyla asked. The seconds ticked away as Kyla prayed to the Goddess that Avery would, at the very least, reply to her question.
“Thank you for coming by, Kyla. But I’m fine here. I need to rest,” Avery responded from inside her tiny tent.
“Come with me. If only to stretch your legs. Please,” Kyla said. To Kyla’s surprise, Avery unzipped her tent and poked her head out. Dark circles lined her eyes. Her hair was disheveled, and Kyla caught the scent that Savine mentioned.
“I can’t. I just… I just want to be left alone.Savinehas respected that. Can you please too?”
Avery began to crawl back into the tent. Kyla wouldn't let that happen. She reached out her hand and touched Avery’s arm, the last part of her still sticking out. The shockwave of emotions that flooded Kyla was almost overpowering, even for her. Kyla’s body shook, and her essence writhed with discomfort as she took in the weight of Avery’s emotions.
Oh, this poor girl. She was in this world against her will and mourning her family. Kyla felt her fear, pain, and surprisingly, some desire mingled with all the heartache. Yearning too. Yearning that was confusing and unwanted.
Kyla couldn’t stop herself from manipulating Avery’s emotions. Not when she felt so much. When she felt too much. She had to concentrate on all her essence to suppress Avery’s naturally occurring emotions. But she was able to send her peace through her touch, and Avery sighed. Her body relaxed as she slid to the floor of the tiny tent.
“I can breathe again. What did you do to me?” Avery asked. Kyla had her head inside the small tent, and she saw all of Avery’s possessions around her. That huge bag that she clung to looked empty.
“I am an empath, Avery. I can feel and manipulate others’ emotions. I gave you a temporary reprieve from all that you were feeling.”
Avery looked at her, brows creased, and a scowl was on her typically sweet face. “Wow, that is incredibly invasive.”
“I didn’t do it to hurt you. I simply wanted to give you relief. You are in mourning. But you don’t need to suffer.”
Avery scowled. This was not going the way Kyla had planned. She thought she could be a comfort for Avery. Someone that Avery could trust. She wasn’t sure why, but she wanted that. She wanted this lonely woman to know that even in their cruel world, she would be a friend to her.
“I’ll never see the people I love again. I’ve been pushed here against my will, and I can’t return home. I don’t think I’ll survive in this place. All I feel is mourning and suffering, and I don’t want you changing that.”
Avery reached to zip up the tent again when Kyla spoke one last time. “Wait, Avery. All I want is to help you. I want to be a friend to you when youneed one most.”
Avery talked to Kyla through the tent now, not bothering to open it again. Even without looking at her, Kyla could sense that Avery was angry. Her voice shook, and despite the peace Kyla had tried to provide, rage was overriding her other emotions.
“Just get the hell out of here! Let me be! In a few days, I will have to ride on an elk and travel to yet another dangerous place in this world. Can’t you give me the next few fucking days to be alone with my hurt? I don’t want it numbed. I don’t want it taken away. I want to feel it all, because when I walk out of here, I will not have the luxury of being in mourning. If I am, someone will probably kill me for being weak. So just get out.”
Kyla left without saying another word. She had overstepped in her desire to help Avery. Maybe her brother was right. Maybe she should have let her be as she grieved the loss of her world.
