“How do I know you haven’t already done something to him?”
Myrus scoffed at my question.
“Him? William?”
Yeah.
Him. William.
Who else would I be talking about?
He was literally the topic of this discussion… if this was even considered that.
Myrus started to lift that letter up and away.
I whimpered and unconsciously reached for it, despite my bonds. I winced at the feeling of the rope rubbing against my wrist.
He grinned and leaned closer to me again.
Ugh.
Bad breath.
Gross.
Go away.
Leave the letter and go the heck away.
He wiggled the page in front of me, like a person that tortured a dog with a bone, through a screen door.
I glared.
“Oh, did you not finish reading yet?” he carelessly threw the words out, in the worst sing-song voice imaginable.
Everything about what just came out of his mouth, along with his breath, was just wrong.
“I…” I started to respond and thought better of it, gritting my teeth as I turned my head away.
For a moment he was silent. We both were.
And then he stood tall again.
“I haven’t done anything to him. Not yet.”
I didn’t look at him as I replied. “I don’t believe you.”
“I don’t suppose you would. But it’s the truth.”
My eyes drifted back over to him, meeting his. And as much as I hated it, it really seemed that he was telling the truth this time. Not that I hated the thought of nothing happening to Will. That part was fine. I was glad he hadn’t done anything to him… it’s just… like he was proving me wrong by admitting the truth. Because I said I didn’t believe him.
It was like he won.
Won what?
I had no idea.
But I hated the thought of him winning at anything.
At least now I was sure Will was alright… at least for now. The only very limited comfort I had. Currently, he was fine. I could deal with that.
“If you didn’t finish reading, shall I read you his words?”
I glared at him. Why would I want him to read Will’s letter to me? Like I’d want to hear Will’s precious words come out of that filthy mouth of his? Ha. No way. That was literally the worst idea on the planet. Why would I ever want that?
My response was kept simple.
“I’d prefer it if you didn’t.”
“Hm… but that’s the only way you’ll get to know the words now – is if I read them aloud.”
I clenched my jaw, staring at him for a long silent moment. Somehow… I knew he wasn’t lying. Again.
Why was everything that came out of his mouth terrible?
He wasn’t going to let me see that letter again. And I – I didn’t want to…
I wanted to know what Will wrote.
All of it.
What if he burned it? I mean, that really was a form of cruel punishment, but he just basically told me that I’d never be able to read the words again if I didn’t take the offer.
Damn.
I closed my eyes and spit out the words with venom. It… it was supposed to be a private letter. Private. And now it wasn’t. I was angry on Will’s behalf. I was angry on mine.
I was angry at him for this ridiculousness.
“Then read.”
My hands started to shake as he started to speak, holding up the page in front of his face.
“‘Dear Lynn, it’s been months since we’ve talked. I know I’m a bit old-fashioned with this letter writing thing instead of phones, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad.’”
I squeezed my eyes shut, listening to the words themselves, not the voice speaking them. In my mind, I managed to trade his voice out for Will’s. I was hearing Will speak his words. I could see him, faintly, standing in front of me in some unknown meadow filled with various grasses and flowers. Sunlight was pouring down on him, obscuring some of his face with the glaring brightness of it. I could pretend I was there, that he was there with me, that his mouth was moving.
That he was the one speaking.
I was oh so good at pretend.
It felt real.
I could almost feel the warmth of the sun.
“I wanted to come by your pack next week and say hi in person,” he told me with a small smile. Then he sheepishly ducked his head down and I saw his dark hair, the strands that normally gracefully grazed his forehead now hung down away from his skin. “I’ve been meaning to stop by for months. We haven’t talked in forever, even though we don’t live that far away from each other,” he admitted. “It just felt like something was stopping me, some kind of fear maybe, a ridiculous excuse, I know.”
He gave a small Will-like chuckle and took my hand in his as he knelt down in front of me. But soon enough, he was laying down in the grass, pulling me down with him. I laughed quietly, falling to the ground with a sigh and a smile. The atmosphere was nice, until he spoke again, his tone all-too-serious.
“Something happened recently-ish. Well, not too recent. It was a few months ago… I’ve just been so busy that I haven’t taken a moment to stop and think too much of it over and I really want to talk to you about it. I shouldn’t be so cryptic, I guess. It’ll be better if you know beforehand. Probably.” His hand squeezed mine gently and then let go. He stood back up, leaving me on the ground, now just sitting there as he faced away from me. “I ran into my True Mate… and she turned and ran from me. I followed her around the giant boulder and she was just… gone. I tried to call out to her, and she didn’t show.”
Disappeared. His True Mate disappeared on him.
Just like how I’d run from mine.
It meant what I thought it did, right? It meant – it meant we…
My heart was in my throat as he turned around again. This was just like when I read that line on my own the first time. I wished I could see his face. “It made me think of you.” The light was too bright on him. I reached for him, feeling panicked all of a sudden, like he was preparing to leave. “I don’t want you to vanish like that out of my life. Maybe it’s selfish, but there’s something I’d like to run by you. Don’t be nervous, though, I don’t expect an answer right away, I just want your opinion, like usual… even though it’s an unusual question.”
Another smile. It was all I could see on his face. Sure, I could see his broad shoulders, the way his shirt hung loosely on his frame, flowing in the gentle breeze. I could see his sweats and shoes. I saw how some of it didn’t really match. But, I wanted more. I wanted to see him. My hand stopped short of touching him. I felt my bottom lip tremble. Why couldn’t I reach him?
“Now, I’m being cryptic again, aren’t I? Haha, how silly of me. Somehow, I can write out things involving my True Mate, and yet I can’t seem to figure out how to write down the question I want to ask.”
What question?
I wanted to shout it.
I wanted to ask.
My eyes opened slowly.
But Will wasn’t here.
He wasn’t really here.
As Myrus finished reading the letter in his annoying voice, I longed to dive back into the fantasy – the one with the meadow, the one with Will.
What kind of question was it that he was so scared to write it down? Was he going to ask me to help find her? Was he going to tell me he’d reject her? Would he want my blessing?
What would he do when he found out who was with him that day? What would he do… if he knew it was me?
William…
He was…
He was my True Mate.
We were fated to be with each other. By gods or by some unseen force of destiny.
My heart plummeted to my stomach and the air suddenly felt freezing around me.
If he came here to rescue me, he was walking right into danger. He was walking right into a trap.
Don’t come.
Don’t come here, William.
Please… stay away.
Stay safe.
But even as I whispered those words in my mind, I heard Myrus’s laughter, felt his gaze, heard the rustling of the paper he folded back up in his hands, his footsteps as he walked back to his desk.
I felt frozen. Cold.
There wasn’t any need to contemplate or wonder.
I’d fallen into a trap.
I’d fallen…
And this time… I couldn’t allow Will to help me up.
I had to figure this out myself… somehow.
I mean, if I could figure out how to get my powers to work again, then I’d be out of here… probably.
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