Page 96 of Castian

The boy nodded, leaning his head down to rest on Oye’s stomach before he closed his eyes, obviously tired from all the excitement.

It didn’t take long for them to be wrapped up and on their way to the hospital, the little boy had to be taken to the human hospital for several obvious reasons. Luckily Oye had woken up in time to insist that he was taken there, it was obvious she was worried about him entering Veil City.

Castian planned on asking her more about how she’d gotten her hand on an elven child, but he felt like it wasn’t the time to interrogate her about it.

OYE’S PAIN

OYE/CASTIAN

The minute she awoke she knew she wasn’t at home, or even at the orphanage. The smell of sterile clean invaded her nose. Taking her mind back to the time she’d awoken to learn that she was the only person she had in the entire world.

While she’d visited Sabina several times at the hospital, she herself tried to avoid it as much as possible. Being in the home of healing didn’t bring her many good memories. Hearing something squeak, she finally opened her eyes. The fluorescent light overhead dimmed magically sensing the sensitivity in them.

The long cords that hung from her arm swung as she shifted attempting to push herself up.

A large hand landed on her shoulder. “Don’t move.”

She swallowed, recognizing that voice immediately, the English accent thick with emotion. “I want to yell at you for endangering your life. Sacrificing yourself without my permission, and for not once telling me that you and Nathan’s relationship would lead to this possible outcome. But the longer you lay there and require care I can’t. So, don’t move.”

She couldn’t help herself, she smiled.

“You’re smiling.” Castian’s tone turned indignant.

She turned her head, and was welcomed with the sight of tight lips, grim blue eyes and a gruff five o’clock shadow decorating his handsome face. “It’s nice.”

He quirked a brow. “Putting your life on the line, and worrying me to death, is nice?”

“Being worried over, that’s nice,” she explained, ignoring his attempts at keeping her flat on the bed she pushed herself up and he reluctantly helped her. “What happened?”

“He tried to tie you to Ishtar, a higher being,” Castian explained, standing to adjust the blanket behind her back. “Fortunately, the backlash of magic shattered the glass, and it basically destroyed the lab, which resulted in him nearly dying but…well, he decided defeat wasn’t for him and self-destructed.”

“He killed himself?”

Castian gave her a short nod.

Oye wasn’t sure how she felt hearing that news, a part of her had always wanted to find him and kill him for what he’d done. While another part, had just hoped he’d learned his lesson and she’d never see him again.

“The guys are searching through the human’s facility, and they’ve found several Beings held within tubes similar to yours. All of them have been tied with higher beings or lower.”

Hearing this, Oye asked. “Did they find Eliza?”

That was the most important thing they had to find her. She would hate herself if everything she’d done had gone to waste.

He gave her a short shake of the head. Her hopeful expression dropped, seeing this he continued. “They are still searching, so there is still a chance of them finding her. Just give it time.”

Oye wanted to yell at him that they didn’t have time, witches who were taken never showed back up normal. Eliza was different, she’d never endured any of that and while Sabina only thought of her as a friend she’d grown up with Eliza. Eliza was far more important than she seemed, to them and to Lanias. They had to find her and fast.

Lost in thought, she felt more than saw Castian settle his hand atop hers. She didn’t look at him, but suddenly she was overcome with the urge to tell him about herself.

“Remember when I told you I killed my mother?”

Castians hand tightened atop hers, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“I should,” with a short laugh, she knew she couldn’t escape facing the past. “I am similar to Lanias and Sabina, I was held by Dr. Clinger and experimented on. Originally, I was going to be killed. I’ll never forget the way he looked at us, the grey witches. He sneered at the guard for the mistake in taking us. He was only interested in the little girls who’d shown aptitude with more than one element. A witch like me whose gift was focused on metal was less than a dud in his eyes.”

She swallowed; the memory of that horrible man’s hate was still fresh. The way he’s said the names that had been fire branded into their arms still echoing in her ears along with the smell of her flesh burning. “So, in order to make use of us he started attempting to enhance our magical ability. For some of us that meant being submerged, no, drowned in the very thing we’d been created to use.”

Castian held his breath afraid for the first time that any words from him would derail her from telling him her story, he settled in the chair near the bed. A part of him wanted to stop her from telling him about the horrors she’d endured as a child.

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