Page 104 of Vengeance Becomes Her

They all watched her expectantly.

“Like I told them, I need to sleep first. I’m too tired to talk and there’s a lot you should know. I just need to sleep first. Please.” She directed her words to Tristain. A glint of metal caught her eye from the corner.“What is that?”

“Armor,” Tristain stated. “I had them commissioned for all of you when we arrived.”

“How did you know my measurements?” It was the only retort she could think of as she sorted through how the gesturemade her feel.

He laughed letting his eyes rake down her figure. “I took measurements from your clothes…and from memory.”

Tristain searched her gaze, assessing her intentions. He must have seen the weariness pulling her down, down, down. After another moment he seemed to accept the compromise. “We’ll let you get some sleep,” he agreed.

“I’ll come find you when I wake.” She gulped down the glass of water he’d brought her as she moved her plate to the bedside table. Once the door closed behind them, she slid beneath the blankets.

She had to mentally work the tension out of her muscles. Instructing each part of her body to relax one by one. The harder part was convincing herself to close her eyes. She knew that she needed to sleep, but she worried they’d come find her. Although, she knew that was unlikely in broad daylight given the state of Silas. No, if anything, they’d want her to come to them. They would seek out any advantage they could. She accepted that comfort as her eyelids grew heavy and finally closed.

The sun was still bright when she finally woke up. She’d slept undisturbed for some hours. It surprised her what with their hunger for answers. But she was grateful, nonetheless.

She got to her feet, leaving the room to knock on Tristain’s door. He cracked it open. She could see the two women sitting on the bed behind him.

“Meet me in my room in ten minutes.”

He nodded.

She returned to her room to freshen up first. She needed warm water to breathe some life back into her. Her hair and teeth could use brushing too.

She watched herself in the mirror as she dressed, taking in the bruises around her arms from where the restraints had held her. There was a small gash on her head from when she’d hit the wall of the cottage. And then there were her eyes. There was a haunted quality to them now. They weren’t soft, though. If anything, they were wilder. She looked like she had something to fear for the first time in a long time. She hated it.

She entered the main room to find her three companions waiting. She took them all in, trying to gauge how she should go about unraveling the events that had taken place. Kyra leaned against the dresser watching her cautiously. Samara had her hands on her hips expectantly. Tristain sat on the edge of the bed, hands clenched in his lap. Her gaze latched on his as she took him in againwith new eyes.

His eyes were so unlike his brother’s. Instead of cold and empty, they were rich and warm like a roaring fire on a winter’s day. The fire that burned there now was fueled by his adoration and fierce protectiveness of her. This is what moved her to speak, the words flowing from her without any second thought as she took a seat next to him. His unwavering gaze kept her in the moment as she recounted the events of the night before.

She did, however, leave out the part about the wolf. Somehow that was the hardest to explain, to herself and to them.

Sitting in this room with them, she could almost convince herself it had all been a terrible nightmare. She rolled her sleeve up revealing the bruising as if she needed a reminder.

Tristain was pacing now. All nervous energy. She could see the wheels turning in his mind. Searching for a solution that didn’t mean death for them all.

Kyra moved to her side, her hand tightly holding Rhiannon’s. “We need to leave. We can’t fight this.” She squeezed. “You cannot fight this.”

“There’s no other choice.” Rhiannon stood. “But I think you all should go. It’s not safe for you. If I fail, it will take another in my place.” Her gaze shifted to Tristain. “Silas isn’t in control anymore. His body can’t contain it.”

His throat bobbed, eyes glistening with un-spilled tears of built-up grief and anger. She plowed forward, needing him to understand. “Tristain, you need to let it go. There is nothing you can do. Your plan ends here.”

“Perhaps he can be reasoned with. Maybe we can still save him.” The last part was a whisper.

She pulled the curved blade from her side, hooking it across his throat as she pressed him into the wall. “There is nothing to save. Your brother is a monster, and he has rightfully been consumed by one. He damned himself and he deserves his fate.Let. Him. Go.”

The tear that dove down his cheek flooded her heart with hatred for herself. That this was the position they were in. That she would have to be the one strong enough to do what he could not. It was always going to be this way, though. But fuck if it didn’t hurt withevery reminder.

“Tristain, go home. I will end him. No matter what. You don’t need to stay and watch. Spare yourself that grief.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

“Neither are we,” Samara spoke up.

Kyra nodded her agreement.

“You’re walking into almost certain death. This isn’t us going up against a man with a bit of magic anymore. This is something larger than I could have ever anticipated. We aren’t ready.”

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