Page 81 of Between Soul and Vessel
“Not much for words today, hmm?” she purred, voice soft. “That’s alright, I’ll tell you anyway . . . It’s because when you were just a boy, you would always try to stick to my side. Just like a little shadow.” Her translucent fingers slid up my neck, floating across my mask. “Do you want to hear another story?”
I continued to ignore her.
If there was one thing I knew, it was that if Avriel and I managed to escape, the empress would never stop looking for us. Which meant we needed to disappear entirely. Just like the white-haired female had—the one the empress was trying to find.
Better yet, the one the empresshadn’tbeen able to find.
I looked at the Moriel Forest, a curious brow raising.
“Oh, come on now,” the empress said, her imaginary fingers pulling on my face.
I jerked my head to the side, away from her.
The door was nearly soundless as it opened swiftly, soft footsteps ushered inside, and then the door closed shut. I looked up, and my heart quickened at the sight of her. Avriel. She offered me a small smile, and the empress’s phantom instantly disappeared.
“Well, did you come up with a plan?” she asked, rushing to my side to look over the map. Her scent hit me, and I couldn’t help but take a step closer to her, desperate to breathe her in.
“I have ideas, but none I’m extremely fond of,” I replied. “I was thinking about the white-haired female—”
“Sage,” she cut me off gently. “Her name is Sage.”
“Alright, I was thinking aboutSageand the vuleeries, particularly the Moriel Forest. Perhaps that is where we should go,” I said, my attention drifting back to the map.
“The vuleeries would tear the meat from our bones if we tried to enter their forest,” she countered. “Unlike Sage, we’re not Nockrythiam’s mate. They have no reason to help us.”
“But you helped Sage,” I said. “That has to be worth something.”
She was quiet for a moment, thinking it over. “I don’t think it’s worth the risk. Plus, the empress already has guards watching the forest, looking for any sign of Sage.” A brief pause. “What about the Northern Mountains? They are more secluded, and fewer people live there, so we wouldn’t have to worry about someone recognizing us as much,” she said, then giggled. “I’m sure we could find a cave to call home.”
I smirked at that. I’d happily live in a cave with her, if that’s what it took for us to be together.
She let out a breath. “I’ve never seen them before.”
“The mountains?” I asked, unable to pull my gaze from her.
“Mhm. I’ve heard they are beautiful. That the snow sparkles like diamonds when the light hits them. I’ve never seen the sea either, but my mother used to talk about it with such fondness. She grew up by it. Right”—she tapped a spot on the map—"here. In a small village called Okanoe.” A tendril of hair slipped beside her face.
Instinctively, I swept it back, tucking it behind her ear. “Then I will take you to both places,” I promised her.
She looked up at me, eyes wide with those unspoken feelings, the ones she had kept buried for years. “You would do that for me?”
“I would do anything for you.” My hand moved to her cheek, caressing it. Her skin was so soft. So warm. Everything I had dreamt it would be.
Her hand rested over mine as she whispered, “Will you take your mask off? So that I can see the real you?”
“You will not like what you see,” I warned.
“I doubt that.”
I paused in a brief moment of hesitation.
“Please,” she whispered.
My fingers slid from hers as I reached behind my head and unfastened the clasp. I removed the mask and waited for her to gasp in shock, waited for her to step back.
But she did nothing of the sort. Instead, she raised her delicate fingers beside my face, and asked, “May I?”
I nodded.
