"You did the right thing," says Dee, Catori's ghost companion.
"Then why do I feel so empty? I can't do anything but just wait for him to come in here to say something to me," Catori says, her anxiety rising.
"I don't imagine it will be good," Dee becomes concerned.
"I'd rather face his rage than to sit here fearing it," Catori notices how messed up this is.
She smiles at Dee's enthusiasm. Even dead, he makes her feel so warm inside. Only those with extra sight are able to see ghosts without the ghosts' effort.
Cade comes abruptly into the tent. He goes straight to the far side to disarm. Dee departs. Uneasy about the silence she stands up. Staying on her side of the eating bench she attempts to break the silence as softly as possible.
"Thank you," she offers as she must acknowledge he did save her from having to face another traumatic event.
He walks up to the bench, leans onto his fists and stares her in the eyes. She feels so small in comparison.
"What was your plan B?" he asks.
The thought of that moment makes her uncomfortable so she shakes her head.
She reaches her fingers into her bustier and pulls out a dagger. She sets it on the bench between them.
"I know. But it slightly upped my chance using the element of surprise to escape. And if that didn't work, plan B was to try again with this," she pulls a thin sharp piece of steel from her hair.
There's something else she wants to talk about, but she finds herself frozen between fear and insecurity. He leans in closer to her.
She nods in return, barely able look at him.
He gives her a chance to speak, but she's lost for words.
"You forget the part about not letting anyone else hurt me," surely that must be a sign of something more.
"That's because it's irrelevant," he smirks.
Her urge for companionship becomes very apparent. She doesn't want to leave. She wants his approval, his affection. Her breath shakes and she sits back down on the bed's edge.
She has nothing left. How's she supposed to just throw it away? Her eyes tear up.
"Don't be hard on yourself. We all have our issues and wanting love isn't the worst of it, but under your regular circumstances you'd really hate me," he isn't sure if he's saying this more for himself or for her. Connecting with feelings isn't something that can have a good outcome at this point in life.
For the first time his eyes turn soft and this night is the closest they ever come to loving each other. Instead of feeling like a captive she embraces passion and for this moment only all her agony and confusion disappear.
"Ah, they're creatures that tend to have both human and animal aspects. It kind of sits between this physical realm and the spirit realms.
"Fairy dust" he responds. She laughs aloud for the first time.
"Mixed with the blood of a virgin no doubt," either the alcohol is hitting her differently today or she's actually easing up about all this.
"Looks like she's got a sense of humor after all," he approves.
"No," she admits. He laughs.
"Interesting," she tries to make sense it in her head.
"We head out in the morning for Bullinvard, I will try to find some things for you to take when you leave tomorrow evening. I recommend getting off the island. I can't say for sure how much further our raids are going to go.
Cade lays there carefully thinking his reply. Not only is Thyatira far and difficult to find, it's a nexus that skips right through the their realm of monsters landing straight into the dark realm. He wants her to leave so that she'll be safe, not to land in the path of demons.
"No," he says and shifts into a comfortable position to sleep. She lays awake a while longer pondering on where she will go and what she will do after tomorrow.
Don't forget to click on the Follow button if you want to find out what happens in the final Part 6 : The Summoning.
For other stories that take place in the same world click "the nepenthe" in the category cloud on the sidebar.
For other stories of Catori click her name in the category cloud.
Thanks for reading, let me know if you liked it and please come back soon!