Page 23 of Sage Haven
Every morning.
I told myself it was curiosity.
Precaution.
A necessary awareness of anyone who might be a threat—anyone who got too close to a body that needed to stay buried, but that wasn’t the truth, and I was tired of lying to myself.
I couldn’t look away.
Not from her.
Until she would leave my vision.
I would stand there, hands braced against the railing, eyes fixed on the distant line of trees where she would eventually disappear. And when she did, when her silhouette would eventually slip through the forest’s edge like a shadow returning home, I knew I’d go back to feeling empty.
“Are you going to talk to her,” Castor’s voice cut through my thoughts, sharp and unexpected, “or just keep watching like some creep?”
I turned, not startled by his presence but by how long he must have been standing there without me noticing.
He leaned against the opposite side of the railing, one brow arched in lazy amusement, but his eyes were sharp.
Always sharp.
“I’m trying to figure out what she’s up to,” I replied, defensive without meaning to be. Like I was justifying something I didn’t fully understand.
Castor smirked. “Easiest way to do that? Walk down there and ask her.”
I didn’t answer.
Didn’t look at him.
Just stared back at her as she knelt among the flowers, running her fingers over the petals like they were something sacred.
“What’s the matter with you?” Castor asked.
There was a cadence in his voice I didn’t hear often.
One that sounded like concern.
“Nothing’s the matter with me,” I snapped.
And he didn’t push.
Didn’t need to.
The silence that followed between us after said everything.
After a long moment, he sighed, “I’ve got errands to run before the festival. You’re still coming, right?”
I exhaled, slow and tight.
“I can’t—”
“You can,” he said, cutting me off, “you said you weren’t missing Nerv play again. I’m holding you to it.” He nudged my shoulder with his before continuing, “I need this. And so do you. One night.” He held up his index finger. “One night won’t kill you.”
I clenched my jaw.
Felt the resistance crumble in my chest.
