Page 143 of Storm of Secrets and Sorrow

Theon’s lip curled at the casual use of the name.

“Why are you so tired?”

“I don’t sleep well here,” she answered quietly.

“That makes two of us,” Theon muttered.

There was silence for a long moment, and he wandered out to the balcony, pulling the doors closed behind him.

“Tessa?”

“Hmm?” she murmured, sounding like she was half-asleep already.

“Did Cordelia routinely withhold food from you?”

He could feel the tense silence through the phone before she said, “Who told you that?”

“Is it true?” When the seconds ticked by and she didn’t answer, he pressed, “Tessa?”

“Is Luka there? I want to talk to him again.”

“Again?”

“I mean I want to talk to him.”

“I’m assuming we don’t have much time. I think it’d be better for both of us to talk to each other,” he said evenly.

“You mean better for the bond,” she countered.

“No, I mean for you. Maybe it would help you sleep better.”

“Everything is so white here,” she murmured. “There’s no room for darkness.”

“Tessa.”

“I know, I know. The balance,” she muttered.

“I wasn’t…going to say anything about that.”

“Oh.”

“Have you had any dreams lately?”

“What kind of dreams?”

“Any odd ones?”

“Only the same one of you killing me,” she said around another yawn.

“What?”

“I have to go.”

“Tessa—”

“I’ll talk to you tomorrow sometime.”

The line went dead, and he was left staring at the blank phone screen yet again.

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