I figured bleeding to death wouldn’t be a very good way to go, so I took her hand.
“Okay,” I agreed timidly. She allowed me to lean on her until we got to a wooden bench a couple yards away. I watched and tried not to cry out as she slowly wrapped my leg in a piece of fabric. She secured it with a pin and smiled warmly up at me.
“There - all better.” Somehow her words made me feel safer. Or maybe it was the new experience of having someone take care of me. “What’s your name?”
“Hannah,” I told her.
“I’m Charlotte,” she said, and peered up at the sky thoughtfully. “Have you ever seen a live oak tree, Hannah?”
“The ones with the crazy branches?”
“Yes, those are the ones,” she chuckled. “When a live oak tree grows near the shore, the constant battering of the sand, wind, and water start to take its toll. However, instead of the branches breaking, they adapt. They twist and turn, eventually growing into a completely unique and beautiful tree. Once full grown, those twisted and mangled branches give that same tree the strength and courage to weather any storm.”
“That’s kind of cool.”
“So when things get bad and you start feeling all twisted inside, just remember that’s what will give you the strength and courage to weather any storm.”
“But, what if I do break?” I asked quietly.
“That won’t happen,” she said confidently.
“How do you know?”
“I have a very special talent for seeing who you truly are,” she winked at me and smiled widely. “And you, my dear, are plenty twisted. No storm could ever break you.”
For the first time in a long time, I laughed and forgot about my pain - not only the pain in my leg, but the pain in my heart as well.
As I found my way back to the glaring reality of consciousness, the haze around my mind was almost as comforting as the strong arms around me. My entire body was wrapped in a world of soft sheets and feathery pillows, while a light breeze on my cheek tickled my skin. Wait. Breeze? Strong arms? My mind instantly focused, and all of my senses sharpened as I underwent a quick inspection of my surroundings. Where was I, and most importantly - who the hell was lying behind me?
I realized with a start that the breeze I felt was the mystery person’s light breathing. I lifted the sheets ever so slightly to peek under and look at the arm that was wrapped securely around me. I blinked. Then I blinked again. It couldn’t be! But after another blink I realized it was really there. A black skull and crossbones covered the forearm.
“Good morning Pasha,” a magical voice whispered in my ear.
“Finn?!” I twisted around so fast I almost fell off the bed. My heart jumped into overtime as I took in his handsome face and the strands of dark hair that skirted his piercing blue eyes. “It’s you!”
“Were you expecting someone else?” Those deep blue eyes danced with mischief as his mouth curled into a crooked grin, and I almost fell apart right there beside him. That’s when I noticed his warm darkness wrapped around us. A feeling I had missed so much it made me ache inside.
“How did you..? When did I…? You’re okay!” There were so many frantic thoughts going through my mind I couldn’t seem to choose just one. I smothered him in a hug; breathing him in and touching the smooth skin of his arms, chest, back, and face just to make sure he was real. To my surprise, he was also completely healed. It was such a contrast from the last time I had seen him, the time in the cavern could have been a dream.
“I missed you so much,” he whispered and brushed a renegade piece of aquamarine hair away from my face; tucking it behind my ear. The sensation of his soft touch felt so good it hurt.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t be there - I wanted to come, I wanted to save you -“ He held a finger up to my lips.
“You saved me a long time ago,” he declared in a low voice, as his eyes fell to my lips and he leaned in. I closed my eyes and melted into the soft caresses of his lips on mine, the warmth of his mouth, and the way he pulled me close as if he were afraid that I might disappear. As the warmth of his darkness swirled around me and infused my senses with fire, his hand slid around to the nape of my neck. His kisses endured deeper and he pulled me impossibly closer. The heat of his body and the passion of his kisses healed the gaping hole that had been created by his absence. Unexpected tears sprang to my eyes as I became overwhelmed with relief and happiness.
“Don’t cry, Pasha,” he breathed as he kissed away a tear. “If my breath stinks that bad I can brush my teeth again.” He feigned embarrassment and covered his mouth, eyes wide with fear. I laughed through my tears and pulled him close once again; drinking up his nearness.
“It’s okay, I’ll just hold my breath so I don’t have to smell it,” I joked back. His words reminded me of how horrendous I must look. Morning breath and bed head hair was not how I had envisioned our reunion. I smoothed down my hair and wiped at my eyes to rid my face of any smeared makeup, as a litany of thoughts surfaced in my mind.
“So, when did you get back? Are your parents okay? Where’s Nadia?” I surveyed my tank top and cotton shorts. “And how did I get back?” He simply smiled at the deluge of questions, and propped himself up on his elbow as he continued to watch me with amusement. He laced his fingers through mine and gazed at me with an intensity that sent the thoughts into a tailspin.
“Nadia ran like hell when she saw Dad, so my parents are more than okay. I remember mom and dad returning with me yesterday afternoon and waking up in my body, but mom made sure that I went right to sleep. I must have been out cold too, because I have no recollection of your arrival in my bed. When I woke up to see you beside me, I thought I was dreaming.”
I looked around and realized I was, in fact, in the bed his soul-less body had been lying in.
And the bed his now half-dressed and very much alive body was lying in. Dorien and Tina must have driven me back from Kourion. The fact that Tina had been able to get that dress off of me while I was unconscious said a lot about her level of patience. I was in trouble if I had to get back in that thing without her. That’s when his previous words sunk in.
“Nadia…ran?” A sliver of dread blanketed my heart. “It’s all fun and games until Nadia doesn’t get what she wants. I bet she’s still in the midst of a temper tantrum. Or plotting her revenge.” Indignation coursed through my veins as I thought about her. I envisioned her pouting in a diabolical lair, complete with shrunken heads and jarred body parts; adding world domination to her to-do list right below torturing Finn and suffocating kittens.
“I have a bad feeling you aren’t far from the truth,” he snickered.
“Why was she so hell bent on having you as her husband if all she was going to do was torture you?!”
“She was more worried about obtaining my essence, rather than me,” he explained. “Which explains why she wanted to be bound in the first place. It also explains the vacuum she created. She wasn’t torturing me, Pasha, she was stealing my essence.”
“Being Princess of the Underworld not enough for her?” I replied cynically.
“Unfortunately not. But stealing essence is one thing…infusing it into your own is something else entirely. She wouldn’t be able to do that by herself. This is more complicated than just a spoiled princess wanting to be stronger. Others must have been involved.”