Page 124 of A Soul to Guide

If anything approached him... it would die.

Raewyn remained in the water after Merikh had thrown her into it to hide her scents of both fear and blood. The sounds they produced as they fought were awful, and the smell of their blood was like sweetness and iron. She wanted to gag.

There were things she was never supposed to hear, like yelping cries, whimpers, skin and body parts tearing.

She’d shuddered every time and just buried her face against the dirt, waiting for them to finish.

Once the fighting stopped, only one remained. She didn’t know who it was, but she thought it might be Merikh. His echoes of whimpers and growls made her heart burn.

None of this was her fault. It didn’t take away from the fact that she was the cause of it, even though she hadn’t meant to injure herself.

His whines drifted over the area, and she had no idea where he’d gone, since she was thrown off her placement within the ward. She thought it might be near the entrance of his cave due to the dome’s edge disappearing through the cliff’s rock, but she wasn’t quite sure.

The heat from the sun faded, but the water was warm from being bathed in its light all day. That didn’t stop her from shivering from the cold that came from blood loss, or the pain that radiated up her hand.

She could barely move it. Not just because it stung – she’d also damaged something vital in it. The only fingers that could move were her thumb and pinkie, and trying to move only made it ache more.

The water stung, but she kept it submerged to minimise her blood scent.

The water was so deep there that her toes barely skimmed the muddy ground. She floated and held on to a rock jutting from the edge.

He’s in pain,Raewyn thought with sympathy as his high-pitched, quiet whines continued.He must be really hurt.

She waited until they faded before she lifted her head over the side.I hope the other two Duskwalkers are okay.

The tears that pooled in her eyes during the fighting had long ago abated, and they started up again at the thought that Merikh might have killed them. They were siblings. She couldn’t imagine killing her own family.

She didn’t want her being the cause to weigh on her conscience.

“M-Merikh?” she cried, wondering why he hadn’t come to fetch her from the water yet.

She wanted to get out, to see if he was okay.

His answering growl had her shrinking momentarily, until she lifted her head over the edge again. She growled back like she sometimes did, hoping that would help calm him.

His deep, echoing snarl was so frightening that she submerged herself completely, head and all. When a few seconds passed and he didn’t approach to attack her, she came up for air.

She didn’t know how long she stayed there. Minutes? Hours? She eventually grew tired and held onto the ledge as she rested her head on the crook of her elbow and closed her eyes.

Everything went quiet, and she thought Merikh may have fallen asleep, like she was beginning to.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen,” a feminine voice whispered. She sounded so far away, and yet Raewyn could tell she was right there, beyond her hand.

She opened her heavy eyelids, and a ghostly, human-shaped white wisp darted away. They had loose, curly hair, and sharp but kind eyes.

Just as she was beginning to drift off again, a groan carried over the short distance. She peeked her eyelids open but didn’t move.

“Shit,”Merikh wheezed before letting out a curt whine.“Everything hurts.”His voice was groggy, like he was tired or dizzy.“Shit! Raewyn!”

He sprinted over to where she was within a few seconds of shouting her name. It was odd to hear him approaching, since he was usually so light on his feet.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice back to its normal bass as one of his hands wrapped around her thin wrist.

The dull ache in her hand instantly faded, and she became stronger, like the blood she’d lost was returned. He’d healed her before he’d taken her out of the water, probably wary of her scent right now.

“You didn’t have to do that,” she admonished quietly, as he slid his hand down her biceps to pick her up at a stronger point in her arm. She grabbed the torn shirt around his shoulders to help support her weight. “You’re injured. You didn’t have to add to your pain. I stopped bleeding.”

“Don’t worry about it. I didn’t feel it, since I don’t have that hand right now.”

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