Crap.
He looked so vulnerable, as if he was praying I hadn’t just heard and seen what I most definitely had heard and seen. Avis,who could see the energy of a soul, had told me he was a good kid. He was hurting too, missing Ariyon like we all were. It felt like I should give him a chance to at least explain why he’d canceled on taking Eden to the dance.
“Hey.” I stood, brushing off my pants. “I was just coming to ask you something,” I lied.
He frowned, smoothing back his hair. “You were?”
I nodded. “I’m still pissed about you ditching Eden before the dance—”
“My father made me. I didn’t want to,” he growled. “And for the record, I’m still pissed about you losing my best friend in the Realm of Eternity.”
Technically, he was in the Realm of Rebirth now, but this wasn’t the time to argue specifics.
A day ago, his excuse might have sounded lame, but after seeing how his father treated him, I believed him.
“I saved Ariyon’s life,” I shot back.
Hayes waved me off. “What did you want to ask?”
I was hoping Eden was going to be okay with this, but after seeing how his father treated him, I wanted to give him a second chance.
“Eden, Ayden, and I have been meeting after school in the library to try to find any information we can about how to get Ariyon back. Tonight, we’re going into the rare editions section with Master Clarke. We could really use some help. I’m on my way there right now.”
He peered up at his house where his father had just stormed off and rubbed his cheek again.
“Doesn’t the queen have her people looking into this?” he asked.
I nodded. “And so far, nothing. We aren’t waiting around.”
His lips pressed into a thin line. “Meet you at the library in ten.”
He turned to leave, but I caught his elbow with my gloved hand. He peered at me, and I held his gaze. “I haven’t been a healer for that long, but I can assure you they areanythingbut weak. You’re amazing. Don’t ever let anyone tell you any different.”
His chin quivered as his eyes filled with tears. I wasn’t sure if his dad treated him that way often. If he did, then I wanted to make sure someone was talking him back up after being cut down like that.
With a nod, he spun and walked away, wiping at his eyes.
Dammit, Avis was right. Hayes was a decent guy who seemed to have been put in a bad position the night of the dance.
This was going to complicate things at our library study group, but I hoped Eden would understand.
SIX
FALLON
“No way!” Eden growled, crossing her arms to glare at me. I had pulled her aside in the library. Ayden wasn’t here yet, and Hayes was on his way. I hadn’t told her the full story yet, and she was acting as I expected.
“E, listen. I stumbled across his dad reaming him out and…” I paused. It was private—what I saw was not something to gossip about—but I really wanted Eden to understand that I didn’t think we were judging Hayes fairly. When he’d dumped Eden before the dance to take Blair at his father’s request, we’d assumed he was just making an excuse or trying to please his parents. But this felt bigger. Like maybe his dad hit him often and Hayes went to the dance with Blair to avoid getting a beating that night.
I lowered my voice, leaning into her. “If I tell you something, will you take it to the grave? Tell no one?”
Her eyes widened and her face went slack. She nodded.
“I just saw his dad hit him, E. He’s a total monster. If his dad told him to break it off with you and take Blair to the dance instead, then I think Hayes did it to avoid his father’s temper.”
Eden gasped, her hand flying up to cover her mouth. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. “That motherf—”
“I know. But don’t say anything, okay? We all agree Ariyon needs us to work together. Let’s focus on that,” I told her.
