Page 17 of In Your Light

And by the gods if that didn’t feel like Fyn had reached both hands into his chest and prised open Hadeom’s ribcage. He tried to swallow down the lump in his throat, but the pain in his heart made it impossible.

“I should go,” Fyn said quietly, handing his mug over before he turned to walk away.

“Wait,” Hadeom said quickly. “Where are you going? Are you going back home? Will you be safe there? If your brother raises his hand to you...”

Fyn grinned at him, his hair gleaming like threads of gold as the sun chose him specifically to shine upon. “I’ll have to go back eventually, I guess. But I might run past the village first and see if they have a bed for me for a day or two. Pax should have calmed down by then. If not, who knows? There’s a whole world out there, right?”

“You can stay here,” Hadeom said. The words were out of his mouth before his brain could stop them, and now his heart was holding its breath because foolishness and hope were basically the same thing. “If you want. There’s a second bed. I’m not much in the way of company, but at least you’ll be warm and dry. And it’s your food anyway, so...”

Fyn’s grin kicked Hadeom’s heart back into rhythm. “Okay,” he said.

Hadeom let out an embarrassed sigh, pretending his cheeks weren’t showing the blush he could surely feel. “The village will be more exciting for you. I understand that. And just so you know, it would be best if you don’t mention me by name to anyone at the village. You won’t be well-received.”

Fyn laughed. “Because of your winning personality, right?”

“Something like that.”

Fyn gave a nod before he took off at a sprint through the trees.

Hadeom stood for a long while, listening to Fyn’s footfalls fade to silence, and then he stayed there, breathing in deep and exhaling slowly, trying to dispel his erratic thoughts and feelings.

The clouds rolled in, low and grey, the wind turning cold now that Fyn was gone.

Hadeom rolled his eyes. “Why did you send him to me?” he said to the wind, to the river, to the mountain shrouded in mist as he trudged back to the hut. “Do you think it’s funny?”

The wind replied with a flurry that sounded an awful lot like Cern’s laughter.

He closed the door to shut it all out just as the rain began to fall.

Chapter

Five

FYN

Arriving in Tenebrae, Fyn walked out into the clearing behind the building with the steep roof and painted windows, the same as he’d done before because it gave the folks adequate time to see him.

He didn’t want to surprise anyone or have them think he was up to no good or trying to hide. Plus, it was the closest entry point after leaving Hadeom.

Hadeom....

That man was confusing. He was a paradox of things Fyn couldn’t get his head around. As if every part of him had a counterpoint.

It was no wonder he needed time to rest and heal.

Though Fyn couldn’t deny he was intrigued. And attracted to him. There was something about his dark and mysterious ways that Fyn wanted to unpack and air out, maybe let some light in to see what remained of the man who claimed to be broken.

Yeah. Confusing was one way to put it.

Tenebrae was quiet and seemingly empty. Fyn had been hoping to spot Aurin or Salem on the grass again and maybe catch another glimpse of the kitten godlings, but no, the only person he could see was the human sitting on the end of the pier.

Not wanting to surprise him, he called out before he got too close. “Hello,” he yelled, giving a friendly wave.

The man spun quickly, clearly startled, and then he visibly relaxed when he saw it was Fyn. “Oh, hey,” he said.

Fyn jogged over and up onto the pier, grin firmly in place. “Sawyer, right?”

Sawyer nodded. “Yeah. And you’re Fyn?”