Page 69 of House of Ruin
Angry at Galliermo for being the monster he was.
Angry at himself because Blaze had been blind to his mother’s suffering, choosing to distance himself and hate her instead of being there for her.
Ah, theguilt.
It sliced through his chest, and Blaze had to rub the middle of it to make it stop.
Before he could open his mouth and spit more venom, Jolene and Alecto walked up the stairs to the porch.
When they took in the scene of Blaze, surely wild-eyed, with his mother, they came to a stop.
“Good evening, Auburn,” Alecto greeted, offering her a smile. “Everything good here?”
“Hello, girls. So nice to see you.” Auburn’s face lit up with a smile. She glanced at Blaze, then back at the girls. “Yes, everything is fine. We were just having a conversation.”
The only thing Blaze could focus on now was Alecto.
The weirdest thing had happened. The weirdest emotions swirled to the very surface the moment she came into his view.
He wanted to…bewith her now.
“You,” he said looking at her, his voice rough. He didn’t care how nasty he sounded. Alecto arched a brow. “Come with me.”
“Blaze—” Auburn scolded, brushing a hand over her dress as if embarrassed for his bad behavior.
Ignoring his mother and Jolene, Blaze strode forward, grabbing Alecto’s hand.
And then he was dragging her down the stairs and onto the path around the house to the maze at the back.
Alecto walked after him in silence, not once trying to twist her hand away or to stop him.
The maze was long, its path confusing. It was designed to make you lose your way and sense of reality, after all.
But Blaze knew the way well. He had wandered its gloomy corridors since he was a child, Andro in his wake as they hid from their parents and the real world.
It wasn’t snowing in Avalon Hills yet, but the chill had settled over the frosted grass. And as Alecto and Blaze made their way to the middle of the maze, the grass crunched under their feet.
Alecto’s hand was soft in Blaze’s palm, her fingers tightly wrapped around his.
Blaze’s heart made these silly leaps in his chest. And it was hard to breathe. But not because of the cold air trying to make space in his warm lungs.
Finally, the frosted branches of high hedges unwrapped, and the view of a naked tree appeared in front of them.
Its trunk was thick, a large opening tearing it in half.
“Oh, that’s beautiful.” Finally, Alecto came to a stop.
When Blaze turned to her, she was looking back in the direction of the house, but the maze hedges were tall enough to hide them from the outside world completely.
Blaze tugged her towards the tree. Thick purple liquid seeped out of the trunk, and firebirds hummed all around its wounds, drinking in the salve.
The opening in the tree was large enough for Blaze to walk inside without having to duck his head.
He smiled when Alecto followed him inside and found a set of round steps going around the trunk of the tree on the inside.
Without hesitation, Blaze took the step up. He pulled Alecto closer to him, keeping her hand in his tight grip.
The purple tears were running on the inside of the tree as well, and the sap leaked on the steps, making them slippery in places where firebirds hadn’t gotten to it yet.
