Page 12 of My Soul Is His

I don’t see Sebastian and I swallow the lump in my throat, turning toward Sid to ask where he is, but I’m interrupted by footsteps. I brace for the impact of a demon coming to hurt me, but instead the smell of tobacco and Sebastian fills my senses. Glancing over my shoulder, I see him.

“My dove,” he chuckles, a low rumble in his chest, “Up early, are we?” Dark shaggy hair covers his forehead, and light shines over his tongue ring. I take in his appearance. No injuries. Sebastian’s skin is covered with the tattoos I’ve touched a million times and he’s here instead of my mind.

“Where were you?”

With a weary sigh, Sebastian glances at Sid, then his gaze returns to mine, intense and unwavering. “Exploring alternative places. I decided to start early. How’d you sleep?”

“Short, almost like I was stuck on the muddy floor of a hut without you.”

I walk away from them. My limbs throb with a restless energy, my skin stretched and taut, as if a drum about to burst.

Heavy footsteps run behind me, and Sebastian grabs my elbow. “Marla, what’s going on?”

I try to shake from his grasp, but his fingers only tighten as he turns me toward him and grips my chin roughly.

“Nothing… I feel like you’re lying.”

A wave of terror floods me. Trusting someone means being vulnerable enough to ask them hard questions, even if the answers might sting. When you spend your entire life as a punching bag, enduring relentless, unwarranted abuse, yoursurvival hinges on your ability to suppress your insecurities, to bury them deep within.

“I promise—I was checking. I believe I have a few ideas that will hold us for some years at least.”

We all head out to see what he has found.

My muscles scream in protest after a while. The exhaustion is as though we’ve walked for a decade, each step a lead weight. I don’t think anyone grasps the intense fatigue of inactivity, a weariness that settles in like a heavy fog. Boredom and fear are the main staples of Cavum Terra, and sometimes it’s more life draining than being alive.

We come to a dilapidated structure that’s rotting and its roof gone. It appears to be an old treehouse on the ground, intertwined with limbs that someone turned into a home. Massive, moss-covered rocks are scattered across the front, and weathered, grey logs form the outside walls.

“This?” I ask, and he nods as we stand in front of it.

“I think this is doable. I saw it this morning and although I didn’t check the inside, together we can fix it up.” Sebastian grabs my hand before pulling me toward the makeshift door.

Eerie quietness fills the space as we all go in. Musky dampness surrounds me, but it’s nicer than our tunnel. After Sebastian moves the wooden panel across the opening, I glance around.

The roof, a haphazard weave of branches and interwoven trees, offers little protection should the demons choose to attack.

There are a handful of chairs made from branches and covered in bark and as I continue over the yellowed-grass floor, I find a large table which stretches the entire side of the wall.

“Two bedrooms, convenient. This is someone’s home. No one puts this much effort and then abandons it. We should go,” I say and open the back door, which leads to a ravine surrounded by boulders.

Six

Sebastian

This entire place was a fluke, but I couldn’t tell Marla I was meeting with the Lords instead.

I rake my fingers through my messy hair before peeking into the bedrooms. Each contains a makeshift bed, with hoodies scattered around, giving a sense of comfortable habitation. She’s right. People made this a home and lived comfortably for a while.

“We won’t mess anything up, only fix the few things we can see broken. If they return, we’ll leave. Otherwise, it’s ours. Think that’s fair?”

“Agreed. Let's tackle those rocks, because someone is going to get hurt. Maybe you two can work in here?” Sid glances at the women before heading toward the front door.

“Fine, but we’ll have to go out and welcome new souls soon. The air has shifted and they’re coming,” Marla says.

“Deal. I promise we’ll leave if they come back.”

She grins at me, and it fills my heart with warmth.

I join Sid in the front yard, and together we heave the massive boulders, creating a rocky barrier, the scent of turned earth thick in the air.

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