shifted like she was going to stand up.
I gently draped my arms over her to keep her seated. “No. We are going to clean up, then you are going to lie down. Please. They’ll be here soon enough.”
Her shoulders tensed, like she was going to argue, then they dropped again. “I’m very tired.”
“ Let’s get you in some water.” I pulled her out of the chair. She came willingly, squeezing her body against mine like she didn’t want me out of her sight.
We went to the bathroom across the hall from the room I’d been sleeping in. She tugged at the hem of her shirt. I helped pull it over her head, biting back the rage when I saw her body.
She’d lost a lot of weight. Muscles still defined her abs, but I could see every one of her ribs. Much worse were the green and blue bruises across her torso and ribcage. The Gifted don’t bruise easily, and when they did, they healed fast. Seeing the faded, large bruises all over her body betrayed the brutality of her treatment. I couldn’t imagine how terrible they were when they were fresh. I wanted to kill whatever or whoever did this to her.
But I couldn’t right now. I hid my shock, and smiled gently at her. I peeled her dirt-stained p ants gently down her legs, then helped her step out of her cotton panties.
I turned on the shower and let it heat up before I pulled back the plastic shower curtain. She stepped in, braced her hands on the wall below the shower head, and then leaned on the tile under the running water. The water moved through her long tangled hair, over her closed eyes, and down the length of her too-thin , bruised body.
I’d always thought of her as a tough, impenetrable, immortal. But she wasn’t. She could die. She could be hurt. She could be damaged.
I stripped off my clothes and stepped in with her. She turned and pressed her face against my chest and cried for a while. I held her tightly, wishing I could take away the pain from her thoughts and make them my own.
Finally, she stepped back. She shook the water from her hair, then plucked a bar of soap from the dish. I took it from her, then gently washed every inch of her body.
I cleaned every scratch, every bruise. I washed her hair, then rinsed it out. She leaned against the wall and I was grateful she was allowing my help.
When we finally got out, she found a clean towel in the cupboard and wrapped it around her. Her eyes were dark and hollow, and her steps faltered. The fatigue had finally caught up to her.
I picked her up, fluffy towel and all, and deposited her on the bed. I crawled in next to her, pressing our warm bodies together. “Sleep.”
“ I can’t,” she whispered. “We’re all in danger.”
“ Tell me.”
“ I know what we are, and it isn’t pretty. And there’s a cleansing coming, where humanity will be wiped out. We have to stop it.”
She turned to me, cupping my face. “I’m a demon, Gavyn. That’s what the Gifteds are. We are two sides of one coin, the Shyama and the Gifted. How can you love me?” Her eyes filled with tears.
I calmed the pounding in my chest. I wasn’t sure what demons really were, aside from pop culture references—big scaly beings of evil with horns and red eyes. My spirituality and divinity were a big tangled mess that I hadn’t sorted out yet, but I knew one thing for sure, Aurora was not evil or bad.
She was a miracle.
“I’ll love you till the ends of the earth, Aurora. I don’t care what label gets attached to you. For me, you will always be light and love, and very soon, I hope, my wife.”
She smiled wide. Her eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks as she fought sleep. “Asag. The rock demons. They plan to kill us all. We have to stop them.” She clenched the towel wrapped around her frame, as if she was going to rip it off and bounce out of bed, then mercifully slid into sleep. I watched it wash over her face, relaxing her features and deepening her breaths.
I waited until she was in a deep sleep before I left the
I gently draped my arms over her to keep her seated. “No. We are going to clean up, then you are going to lie down. Please. They’ll be here soon enough.”
Her shoulders tensed, like she was going to argue, then they dropped again. “I’m very tired.”
“ Let’s get you in some water.” I pulled her out of the chair. She came willingly, squeezing her body against mine like she didn’t want me out of her sight.
We went to the bathroom across the hall from the room I’d been sleeping in. She tugged at the hem of her shirt. I helped pull it over her head, biting back the rage when I saw her body.
She’d lost a lot of weight. Muscles still defined her abs, but I could see every one of her ribs. Much worse were the green and blue bruises across her torso and ribcage. The Gifted don’t bruise easily, and when they did, they healed fast. Seeing the faded, large bruises all over her body betrayed the brutality of her treatment. I couldn’t imagine how terrible they were when they were fresh. I wanted to kill whatever or whoever did this to her.
But I couldn’t right now. I hid my shock, and smiled gently at her. I peeled her dirt-stained p ants gently down her legs, then helped her step out of her cotton panties.
I turned on the shower and let it heat up before I pulled back the plastic shower curtain. She stepped in, braced her hands on the wall below the shower head, and then leaned on the tile under the running water. The water moved through her long tangled hair, over her closed eyes, and down the length of her too-thin , bruised body.
I’d always thought of her as a tough, impenetrable, immortal. But she wasn’t. She could die. She could be hurt. She could be damaged.
I stripped off my clothes and stepped in with her. She turned and pressed her face against my chest and cried for a while. I held her tightly, wishing I could take away the pain from her thoughts and make them my own.
Finally, she stepped back. She shook the water from her hair, then plucked a bar of soap from the dish. I took it from her, then gently washed every inch of her body.
I cleaned every scratch, every bruise. I washed her hair, then rinsed it out. She leaned against the wall and I was grateful she was allowing my help.
When we finally got out, she found a clean towel in the cupboard and wrapped it around her. Her eyes were dark and hollow, and her steps faltered. The fatigue had finally caught up to her.
I picked her up, fluffy towel and all, and deposited her on the bed. I crawled in next to her, pressing our warm bodies together. “Sleep.”
“ I can’t,” she whispered. “We’re all in danger.”
“ Tell me.”
“ I know what we are, and it isn’t pretty. And there’s a cleansing coming, where humanity will be wiped out. We have to stop it.”
She turned to me, cupping my face. “I’m a demon, Gavyn. That’s what the Gifteds are. We are two sides of one coin, the Shyama and the Gifted. How can you love me?” Her eyes filled with tears.
I calmed the pounding in my chest. I wasn’t sure what demons really were, aside from pop culture references—big scaly beings of evil with horns and red eyes. My spirituality and divinity were a big tangled mess that I hadn’t sorted out yet, but I knew one thing for sure, Aurora was not evil or bad.
She was a miracle.
“I’ll love you till the ends of the earth, Aurora. I don’t care what label gets attached to you. For me, you will always be light and love, and very soon, I hope, my wife.”
She smiled wide. Her eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks as she fought sleep. “Asag. The rock demons. They plan to kill us all. We have to stop them.” She clenched the towel wrapped around her frame, as if she was going to rip it off and bounce out of bed, then mercifully slid into sleep. I watched it wash over her face, relaxing her features and deepening her breaths.
I waited until she was in a deep sleep before I left the
Similar Books
