Page 23 of Shattered Heir
Why does he look so happy? Just a few hours ago, wasn’t he telling me that Shad was a waste of time? Wasn’t he just telling me to find someone else? What does he care about my desire to save Shad?
“Em, I care about what you care about,” he said, reading my emotions from my melody with his knight abilities. I assumed z He rubbed my back, and I just looked out the window.
I couldn’t say anything. I wanted to hang onto that memory of Shad’s for a bit longer. “
Is it a helpful memory?” Ryker asked after a few minutes of silence.
“It helped me,” I whispered. He nodded as if he understood. He could probably read the disappointment in my melody, still not knowing how I would save Shad, and yet also the joy of seeing him again.
“I am glad it helped, Emma.”
I looked him directly in the eyes for the first time that early morning. I didn’t believe him.
“Emma, come on, I want you to be happy. Of course, I want that, but maybe Shad isn’t what would make you happy.”
“He makes me happy, Ry,” I said with a snap.
“He seems to make you very sad lately.”
“He sacrificed himself forme,Ryker. He is in this mess because of me.” I let the guilt manifest itself through salty tears for a few minutes.
“He would want you to be happy, Em. He would want you to live your life.”
“Ry, please, just stop.” I closed my eyes and let a whimper out.
“Okay, I am sorry–gah. I don’t know what to do anymore.” He tangled his hands in his hair in frustration.
“Just be my friend, and stop telling me to give up on him. I love him, and I will do everything I can to help him.”
“Okay, I will try. I just cannot help but want to make you happy, and I know he makes you sad right now–because he is a soulless.”
I nodded. I could understand where he was coming from. “I am sorry I said I hated you,” I whispered, looking at him. He reached out and touched my hand.
“You don’t have to apologize, Em.”
“I could never hate you, Ry.”
“I know, Em. I know.” His smile was true in the moonlight's glimmer.
I leaned back down on my pillow.
“Goodnight, Ry,” I whispered. I heard him move and figured that he was laying back down, too.
“Goodnight, Em.”
Chapter Twelve
Isat on a rock behind the flower shop, facing the forest, picking petals from some flowers that Mary had said were “too dead to sell.” I needed some alone time and had been there for two hours, destroying flowers. We’d been home for an entire week. One week, and I had to start school the very next day. I had been training every other day with Keil to shield my soul at least enough to stop myself from spreading all of my innermost secrets around to other Terrans. It was all so complicated. The crystal was more of a band-aide versus an actual cure for the problem. I was grateful Shad had given it to me. I paused and lifted my hand to feel the warm crystal at my chest. How I missed Shad. The goal Keil and Mary had for me was to live without needing the crystal. That was something so many other Terrans could do easily. Melodies were one way to communicate on Terra, although Keil assured me that Terrans spoke verbally as well. So, although I had my crystal around my neck, which helped, if Cade was to show up with Shad's melody, he wouldn’t be blocked by the crystal, just like Shad had never been blocked. I did not need some psycho killer digging into my innermostthoughts. I leaned my head back, closing my eyes as I breathed out the afternoon air. It was getting colder; summer was gone, and fall was there, making the mornings and afternoons chilly. I had trained enough, and Keil said that I could go back to school. I still wasn't sure that I could contain the monster of corruption inside of me, though.
My solitude was suddenly disrupted.
“Hey there, Princess.”
I turned to see Ryker, walking over to me.
“Would you stop that?” I said, tossing a stem and picking up another flower to destroy. I hated him calling me “princess,” even more, then, than ever before.
“You are out here murdering flowers? Should I be worried?” he laughed as he sat beside me, bumping my arm with his.
