the mean guy. The guy who’s easy to hate. The guy I casually throw insults at because I know nothing I say or do can penetrate the armor he’s built up around himself. Witnessing his heartbreak just doesn’t feel right.
He stumbles around to the other side of the bed and slides down with his back against it. His shoulders continue to shake as he buries his face in his hands. I squeeze my eyelids shut over the tears threatening to form. Part of me wants to leave Ryn alone with his grief, but another part of me feels a sudden and unexpected urge to comfort him. I want to say something, but for the life of me I can’t think what. What could I possibly say that will make this any better?
I quietly close the door behind me before walking toward him. I go slowly, as though approaching a dangerous animal. I touch his shoulder, expecting him to throw me off and begin yelling at me. Tell me this is all my fault somehow. But he doesn’t move. I sit down on the floor beside him—a challenging task, given the size of my skirt—and slide my arm around his shoulders. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. To my great surprise, he leans into me, burying his face in my neck as the shuddering of his shoulders continues. I tense for a moment, then relax and put my other arm around him.
*
Around about the time one of my legs starts falling asleep, Ryn pulls away from me, as though suddenly realizing exactly who it is he’s leaning against. He tilts his head back against the bed. I wait for him to say something, but he remains silent. Has he fallen asleep? I can’t tell if his eyes are closed without looking at him, and I don’t want to look at him because I feel awkward enough as it is without adding eye contact into the mix.
So I wait. And while I wait, my thoughts find their way back to Nate. Nate, Zell and Scarlett. Nate knows Zell, and Nate knows Scarlett. But now it appears Zell and Scarlett also know each other. Perhaps the ‘boss’ Scarlett referred to was Zell, and he was the one watching Nate. Or it could just be that Scarlett is the date Nate brought along to the ball tonight. The thought makes me want to break something.
Ryn’s breathing has settled into a steady rhythm, suggesting he’s fallen asleep. I shake my head. Did it not cross his mind that perhaps we should get out of here first and then take a nap? I idly twist Calla’s bracelet around my arm and wonder how long I should wait before I wake him up. I need to get him out of here quickly so he can’t do something insane like publicly confront Zell about Calla’s death. Which leads me to another thought: Why did Zell kidnap Ryn’s little sister in the first place? Was it even Zell? Maybe he doesn’t know what’s going underneath his own—
In a flash, I’m seeing through Calla’s eyes. She’s running down a dark, stone passageway. Someone is chasing her. She rounds a corner and runs smack into a large man.
“What the hell?” He grabs her. “How did she get out?”
“She tricked me!” someone yells from behind Calla as she wriggles and screams.
“You idiot, I told you not to believe anything you see around her. Get her back to the dungeon, and get one of those bands on her ankle.”
Calla is handed over to someone else. He carries her quickly back the way she came, down the passage, through a doorway and—
She’s gone. I sit up straight, my heart racing. What just happened? “Ryn.” I tug his arm. “Ryn, wake up.”
“Mm?”
“She’s not dead. I saw her.”
“What?” He stares at me, confused.
“I was just sitting here playing with the bracelet and all of a sudden I saw her. She escaped, but someone caught her and took her back to the dungeon.”
“Dungeon?”
“Yeah, I heard someone say ‘dungeon’.”
Ryn is on his feet in an instant. “Do you think it’s here? Underneath this place?”
“Yes.” The word is barely out of my mouth, and Ryn is across the room, pulling the door open and running out. Too bad he has to run
He stumbles around to the other side of the bed and slides down with his back against it. His shoulders continue to shake as he buries his face in his hands. I squeeze my eyelids shut over the tears threatening to form. Part of me wants to leave Ryn alone with his grief, but another part of me feels a sudden and unexpected urge to comfort him. I want to say something, but for the life of me I can’t think what. What could I possibly say that will make this any better?
I quietly close the door behind me before walking toward him. I go slowly, as though approaching a dangerous animal. I touch his shoulder, expecting him to throw me off and begin yelling at me. Tell me this is all my fault somehow. But he doesn’t move. I sit down on the floor beside him—a challenging task, given the size of my skirt—and slide my arm around his shoulders. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. To my great surprise, he leans into me, burying his face in my neck as the shuddering of his shoulders continues. I tense for a moment, then relax and put my other arm around him.
*
Around about the time one of my legs starts falling asleep, Ryn pulls away from me, as though suddenly realizing exactly who it is he’s leaning against. He tilts his head back against the bed. I wait for him to say something, but he remains silent. Has he fallen asleep? I can’t tell if his eyes are closed without looking at him, and I don’t want to look at him because I feel awkward enough as it is without adding eye contact into the mix.
So I wait. And while I wait, my thoughts find their way back to Nate. Nate, Zell and Scarlett. Nate knows Zell, and Nate knows Scarlett. But now it appears Zell and Scarlett also know each other. Perhaps the ‘boss’ Scarlett referred to was Zell, and he was the one watching Nate. Or it could just be that Scarlett is the date Nate brought along to the ball tonight. The thought makes me want to break something.
Ryn’s breathing has settled into a steady rhythm, suggesting he’s fallen asleep. I shake my head. Did it not cross his mind that perhaps we should get out of here first and then take a nap? I idly twist Calla’s bracelet around my arm and wonder how long I should wait before I wake him up. I need to get him out of here quickly so he can’t do something insane like publicly confront Zell about Calla’s death. Which leads me to another thought: Why did Zell kidnap Ryn’s little sister in the first place? Was it even Zell? Maybe he doesn’t know what’s going underneath his own—
In a flash, I’m seeing through Calla’s eyes. She’s running down a dark, stone passageway. Someone is chasing her. She rounds a corner and runs smack into a large man.
“What the hell?” He grabs her. “How did she get out?”
“She tricked me!” someone yells from behind Calla as she wriggles and screams.
“You idiot, I told you not to believe anything you see around her. Get her back to the dungeon, and get one of those bands on her ankle.”
Calla is handed over to someone else. He carries her quickly back the way she came, down the passage, through a doorway and—
She’s gone. I sit up straight, my heart racing. What just happened? “Ryn.” I tug his arm. “Ryn, wake up.”
“Mm?”
“She’s not dead. I saw her.”
“What?” He stares at me, confused.
“I was just sitting here playing with the bracelet and all of a sudden I saw her. She escaped, but someone caught her and took her back to the dungeon.”
“Dungeon?”
“Yeah, I heard someone say ‘dungeon’.”
Ryn is on his feet in an instant. “Do you think it’s here? Underneath this place?”
“Yes.” The word is barely out of my mouth, and Ryn is across the room, pulling the door open and running out. Too bad he has to run
Similar Books
