For me.
I shuffle down the hallway and lay eyes on them as the room opens up. They don’t notice me tucked into the last pocket of shadows in the corridor, but I watch them for a moment. Briar talks quietly with Rose as she sips her tea while Fen and Oak finish dressing in their armor, and Silas watches the balcony—as if waiting for the creatures to rush into the house at any moment. I clutch the wall nearest to me to keep it from crumbling, but I can do this. I can say goodbye to my friends.
“Briar?” I whisper, not realizing how weak my voice is.
They all pause and whip their heads in my direction as if they have seen a ghost. Briar bounds across the room in my direction, and she wraps her arms around my waist, keeping me upright. I can’t help but smile, their faces registering pure shock, and I feel a sense of accomplishment that I’ve at least made it this far in my current state.
Oak quickly moves next to Briar.
“I’m offended you all think you could leave without saying goodbye to me,” I say.
Oak chimes back, reassuring me that he did say goodbye, and I know he did. I roll my eyes. I mean the others: Briar, Silas, and Fenmore. I needed to see Briar— my best friend—before she left.
“Promise me, Briar, that you will return.” My eyes fill with tears, and I can’t stop my body from trembling from the pain and sadness flowing through my system like a river.
“I will come back, Maines,” Briar says. “I promise.”
I hear her words and register them; however, it’s her tone that puts me on edge. I know she will return, that I will see her again, but she made that promise to me, not knowing in what state she would be in when she returned.
I glance at Silas; his face is as hard as usual, but he gives me a nod without speaking—our silence an understanding that we’ve grown to share between each other. I understand what he means at this moment. He’s going to do everything in his power to return her to this house in one piece, regardless of what that means for his own life. He will protect Briar and will make every effort to do so. Silas Nastronde might be many things, but he is loyal, and I’d happily entrust Briar’s life to him.
Oak places his hand on the small of my back and leads me down the hallway back to the bedroom.
“I’m going to lay her down, and then I’ll shift to the pier to meet you all shortly.” He calls to the others, and they nod.
Briar keeps her gaze fixated on me as I disappear down the dark hallway. My hands begin to tremble, and I feel as if my chest is caving in. Panic rises in me, and with each step I move away from my friend, the more isolated I feel and the more I feel the darkness creep inside—as if it thrives when I’m alone.
Oak opens the bedroom door, crosses the room, and assists me into bed once more. A tear rests heavily on my lower lid and drops, swiftly rolling down my cheek like rain. Oak uses his thumb to wipe away the tear before sitting next to me on the bed.
“Are you alright?” he asks.
The tears don’t let up. “I think something bad is going to happen.”
“I’m going to be okay, darling.” Oak grabs both of my hands, pulling me to face him. “Nothing is going to happen to me, because I won’t allow it.”
“How do you know?”
“I told you I will never leave you, Maines Madden, and I meant it. I’ve done a lot of stupid things in my life, but lying to you will never be one of them. We have too much left to do in our lives for that.” He cups my face tighter. “Too much to do together.”
I nod, and Oak leans closer, pressing his soft lips against mine.
“If you needed another kiss,” he says against me, “you should have just said so.”
My tears wet his cheeks, and he pulls back, gazing into my eyes. I chuckle at his ridiculousness, and he takes the opportunity to smile at the sound.
“Maines Madden,” Oak whispers, his forehead against mine. “I love you. And I needed to tell you that.”
A hushed sob leaves my throat, and the darkness subsides for only a moment.
“I love you too, Hombern.”
He smiles, and I know he’s happy, but the weight of what’s to come dulls his joy.
“I need to go,” Oak says, standing and moving across the room, but not before turning back one last time to look upon me.
Even in my disheveled state, he gazes at me as if I’m the only person in this world. As if I’m the only person of importance, and despite being beaten, burned, and bruised, he makes me feel beautiful.
Oak leaves the room, and the door closes behind him, leaving me alone in the darkness with my thoughts. My chest heaves. I can’t shake the unsettling feeling that looms over me like a dark storm moving in. I told him I felt that something bad was going to happen, but I didn’t mention that I thought it was going to happen to me.
