Page 21 of Shattered Heir
“Emma, I want you to know that I love you, and I will always—” He was cut off and his head dropped again. My melody pulled back as he raised his head once more, looking at me, the gold gone from his eyes.
“Sorry, my head hurts sometimes—on and off.”
I heard someone clearing their throat, and I turned to see Ryker in the hallway.
“Keil is ready to leave, Shad,” he said, folding his arms. Shad moved away from me with a smile in my direction.
“I will see you later, Emma,” he said with a nod as he walked past Ryker.
“Em, you really cannot help yourself, can you? What were you going to do? Kiss him?” He looked horrified.
“It's not like we haven’t kissed before.” I was still stunned by what had just happened.Was that really my Shad there for just that moment? What does this mean?
“Yes, but Emma, he is a soulless. You cannot kiss him; I forbid it.”
How dare he, I thought as I let the anger sizzle and rise up inside of me, not just because of Ryker, but because of everything, and especially because of the frustration at having Shad back for just a moment and then having him gone once again. It was too much for my heart, and then, there was Ryker, telling me what I could and couldn’t do?
No, heck no.
“Heck, no, is right; don't let him boss you around,”a voice agreed with me somewhere within my soul, and it lit a fire in me.
“Forbid it? Excuse me, but who do you think you are to forbid me from anything?” I walked up to him, furious.
“I am your guardian knight, Emma, and whether or not you realize it, losing Shad is not the worst thing that can happen to you.”
“I completely disagree,” I said, folding my arms.
“Emma, there are plenty of people you could be with. Shad is a lost cause, and you can’t just go around kissing people–least of all, him.”
What a jerk. What a total and complete—
My thoughts were interrupted by that voice again: “Let it out; let him have it,”the voice continued.
I paused for just a moment, wondering if I was going crazy, or if the monster of corruption inside of me had somehow developed the ability to talk with me. I was too angry at that moment to care.
“Shut up,” I snarled.
“No. Do you want your soul to be even more corrupt than it already is?”
“Of course not, but I am not giving up on Shad. Stop being so horrible!”
“Then don’t kiss him. If you do, some of his corruption will meld into you.”
I turned on my heel and decided that I didn’t want to speak with him anymore. He was my best friend, and sure, my guardian knight, too, but I was so tired of him always telling me what I could and couldn’t do.
“Em, I am just trying to help you!” he called after me, and I turned around on the stairs toward him, and I let the monster rise up for a moment.
“Don’t! I—I Hate you–this–everything, Ryker!” I shouted; then I turned my back to him, walking away.
I lay on my bed fully clothed, feeling horrible for everything. I hated him? No, that wasn’t right; I didn’t hatehim;I hated how he was behaving, hated what he was saying to me. I knew that I needed to apologize in the morning because I was too frustrated to do it at that moment. I curled up into a ball, closed my eyes, letting the exhaustion of the day take me to the sleep I so desperately needed.
I slept.
‘I can’t last a day longer,’ the thought came as I sat up in bed, looking across the street. Only it wasn’t Shad’s house I saw from the window; it was mine.
‘The urgency to see her is so strong,’ another thought came from inside me, and as I looked down at myself, I realized that the thought must have been from one of Shad’s memories because as I looked at myself, I was looking at a shirt-clad male—a rather attractive male. His urgency was palpable, and I let the memory take me away to view what Shad wanted me to see, although I was lingering on him and his rather snug shirt, for far too long. Was it my fault that he had ample muscles?
I walked into the small bathroom across the hall from my bedroom. I would never get used to how homes were on Earth. The walls seemed to be made of paper, rather than a proper and strong stone construction. It baffled me. My melody swarmed around me, and I controlled it as it sought her and reached for her. I knew that I needed to control my melody because it was wild and crazy for her melody—her soul. I brushed my teeth in the small sink and got into the shower. The heat from the water calmed me down a little as I stuck my head under the flow. That day was the day. It was the day that I would meet her. I had to—because I was dying inside from staying away from her. As that realization fell over me, my melody sped up for joy, and I couldn’t help but smile.
