Page 61 of The Scars Within
I ignored the feeling and accepted Rhodes’s hand, letting him lift me back onto the saddle. But my gaze couldn’t help drifting back to the woods, where I locked eyes with a beast. A pair of glowing eyes stared straight into mine. All I could make out was the pointed ears and the glint of black fur under the moonlight.
But I wasn’t afraid. In fact, I felt oddly calm, as if I knew this creature somehow, though I couldn’t pinpoint how.
We arrived at the stables, and Rhodes reached up to help me after he dismounted. As I slid into his arms, a silent lightning bolt lit up the dark night.
I flinched.
His eyes went to the sky as he murmured, “Yeah. A storm is rolling in.”
My chest seized. The irony of a storm rolling in after spending the night getting lost within the storm of Rhodes is uncanny. Is this the universe warning me to stay away?
There haven’t been any terrible storms since before I was rescued. And I think a part of me has buried my fear of them deep down, pretending they don’t exist anymore. Storms were the worst assailant while I was shackled in that shed. My mental health worked closely with every storm that passed. While my mind drove me deeper into the darkness of my soul, the storms sent a tangible threat to the physical part of my existence.
“Scarlet?”
Rhodes addressing me by my first name snapped me back into the present. Shaking it off, I asked, “What?”
“Where’d you go just now?”
To hell.
I wiped my palms against my tunic to hide my trembling. I walked past Rhodes and softly petted Dahlia’s ears. He began unfastening her saddle, not pushing the question any further.
Rhodes set Dahlia’s saddle on the rack and came back for her saddle blanket when I finally found my words. “Storms just aren’t my favorite.”
I saw him pause in the corner of my eye. His hands rested on Dahlia’s back while his gaze was on me.
“You never know which ones will result in a beautiful day or utter destruction,” I said breathily, my voice shaking.
“Do you want to wait out the storm together?” He asked.
My eyes slid to his. As much as I wanted to say yes, I knew better. I may not have any true obligations to Shayde, but morally speaking, I know I need to end the night here. Tonight has been a whirlwind of emotions, and I need the night alone to sort through my thoughts.
I want to curl up in bed with my book and let my fantasy world inspire me to decide what happens next.
I cleared my throat, “No, I’m okay. Thank you, though. And thank you for tonight. I had a lot of fun with you.”
Rhodes grinned, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Me too. Goodnight, Scarlet.”
I lowered my chin and started to walk away, but just as I rounded the corner, Rhodes’s voice caused my heart to skip a beat.
“You know where my dorm is. If you need me, just knock.”
I was lost in my book when a sudden crash of thunder ripped me from my escape. Rhodes had mentioned that the weather would be bad tonight, but I was foolishly hoping it would pass us by. I tried to ignore the sounds, using the book in my hands as a shield against my growing unease.
Sharing my vulnerability may feel like being swept into a twisting storm, but being trapped within that shed was like bringing that metaphor to life. The thunder, the rain, the wind—they assaulted the flimsy walls of my Rock Bottom with such ferocity that I was certain both the shed and I would be torn away. I had made peace with the idea of dying at someone else’s hands, but the thought of being swept up in a whirlwind, tossed like a ragdoll, crushed by debris, or suffocated by the very air itself—that terrified me in a way nothing else could.
Another boom of thunder shook my dorm window, snatching my breath away. I could hear the glass trembling in its frame, the vibrations creeping through my bedpost and dragging me right back to that corner of the shed.
Rain pelted the roof, and the wind howled through the gaps in the planks. Cold drafts seeped through the cracks. Each whip of thunder reverberated through the walls, causing the structure to tremble and sway. The wooden beams creaked, and the frame struggled with every gust of wind. The air inside was thick with the smell of damp earth and wet wood. I could feel the rainwater seeping through the dirt beneath me, poolinginto a cold, muddy mess under my curled-up body. With every gust of wind, I watched as a corner of the shed wall lifted slightly from the ground, threatening to tear away. My only source of shelter was ready to take me with it.
Another whip of thunder roared, ripping a scream from my throat. I didn’t even realize it at first, but after the second boom, I instinctively curled back into a fetal position, pressing myself against the corner of my bedpost, my face, arm, and legs all leaning against the wall.
Just like I did in my corner of Rock Bottom.
My fingers were clenched so tightly that I could feel my nails digging into the skin of my palms. My breath came in shaky gasps, each one more desperate than the last, as if I couldn’t quite get enough air.
“I’m. Fine. I’m. Safe.” I choked out the words between ragged pulls of breath.
