Oracle of Ruin by Haydn Hubbard

Author:Haydn Hubbard [Hubbard, Haydn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-11-19T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 26

Verosa

Emilie’s face breaks the moment I walk through the door. Instead of embracing me like the rest, she holds my hands to the light, running her gaze over my fingers then plying my mouth open to look at my teeth. She murmurs a prayer in broken breaths before holding my face to her chest. “Thank the gods.”

“You’re alive,” Derrín notes plainly, not bothering to rise from his seat by the window. “And in one piece, it would appear.”

I offer a puzzled look but don’t ask for any other form of explanation. Some gut feeling warns me that I don’t want to know.

Derrín finally rises, choosing to answer anyway. “I’m going to go bury the body parts,” he says as he brushes past me. I notice his eyes are red and slightly swollen, and I smile sadly to myself. The mechanic will never be able to find the words to say that he worried for me and that he cares, not for many years, no matter how badly he wants to. Some things don’t make sense with Derrín, and many never will, but I know he cares, even if he never says it.

Emilie pulls a blanket over my shoulders and steers me towards a room, but Rowan stops her with a soft yet stern look. I can see him mentally pleading for her to take a breath, and to let me breathe as well.

She sighs through her nose, suddenly looking incredibly old and worn. “I’ll be in my room. I’m glad to have you back safe, Verosa.” She runs a gentle hand down my arm, pausing to squeeze my wrist before walking off down the hallway, her arms tucked into herself, and her shoulders shaking.

“You should’ve let her stay.”

“She would’ve examined every inch of you to check for injuries and only stressed herself out more,” Rowan replies softly. “I’ll go check on her later tonight, I promise.”

“I’ll go see her too. I’d like to.”

“Whatever you wish, love.”

Warmth bubbles in my belly, spreading through my core and down my arms and legs before moving to my face. I rise up on my toes and press a kiss to his cheek. It feels hollower than when I left, and I can feel his jaw unclench as my lips brush across it again, slower now. His eyes darken, but he keeps his hands to himself as he escorts me to our room.

Back when we first found the inn, I’d hardly had any time to acquaint myself with the space. I was too thankful for solid walls, even if they were thin and splintering. Wood beneath my feet instead of soft earth. The relief was short-lived for the obvious reasons, but I have the time now.

The room Rowan leads us to is only a bit smaller than the one I had at Mavis’s, with wooden walls and shaggy rugs covering the floor. A small and weather-beaten desk sits in the furthest corner of the room near a window. Torn curtains have been pulled over it, blocking the reminder of the darkness surrounding us and keeping my mind from wandering.

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