Page 12 of Visionary

Tears were falling before I had a chance to stop them.

14

AIDEN

Severn’s aura had never stopped pulsing random colors. When I opened my senses to check every now and then, it was never steady for longer than a few seconds.

He had been sitting on the couch now for almost an hour. He didn’t cry for long, but he didn’t speak either. I boiled some water and offered him tea, which he accepted. There were so many questions on the tip of my tongue, but I didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. I was already a complete stranger to him, and I didn’t know what we may have just taken him from.

“Can I get you anything else?” I did my best to keep my voice soft. This truly had to be overwhelming, and I wanted him to be comfortable. Without knowing Ceril’s real purpose for things, we had to keep Severn safe no matter what.

“That’s okay. Can I ask you something?” Severn turned his head to me, his aura shifting to a dark blue. The worry and sadness sat deep and heavy on my chest. “What does Vea want with me?”

Letting out a deep sigh, I reached over and placed my hand on Severn’s forearm. He was warm to the touch. I hadn’t noticed that before. Vampires were typically very cool-skinned; the sensation was strange. We both let out a soft gasp at the contact and pulled away from one another.

“Vea just wants you safe.”

Severn nodded and looked away. “Okay,” he said before standing up and walking down the hallway to his room. The door clicked shut, and I didn’t see him for the rest of the evening.

My phone buzzing on the nightstand woke me up the next morning. Looking at the screen, there were several missed texts from Desdemona.

Des

how’s it going?

did I lie to you about the Pulse Den? Pretty nice, right?

are you even awake yet?

helloooooo

Sitting up in bed, I typed out a reply to her.

Me

it's going fine. It is nice here, I’ll give you that.

I just got up. I’ll fill everyone in later today

Des’s reply was a middle finger emoji. Throwing the phone back on the bed, rolled over and went to the bathroom.

It was still early, probably around six if I had to guess, and Severn was already up. The door to his room was open, and the bed was made. Shrugging, I washed my face and got ready for the day.

I wouldn’t be leaving the Pulse Den any time soon, according to Vea. So I was glad to see that this place was stocked with lounge wear. With black joggers and a tank top, I made my way out into the living room to find Severn sitting on the couch looking out the window.

He sat with his back to me, leaning over the side of the couch. The white tank top he wore was similar to mine but cut more narrow. Peeking out from the top were two inflamed scars. The edges of the raised skin looked irritated and sore. It looked almost painful to move.

Were those from his wings? How long ago did Ceril remove them?

Slowly, I walked over to where Severn sat. “Hey,” I said quietly. “Are you okay?” I gestured to his back, and he just shrugged it off like it was nothing.

“They’ll be fine,” he said, rolling his eyes. “It happens all the time.” Severn turned to continue looking outside. “No one can see us through the windows, right?”

Sitting down next to him, I gave him a concerned look. I did my best not to reach for my senses. For some reason, reading him felt like an invasion. He was such a mystery to me every time I looked at him in this short period of knowing him. I needed to know more.

Shaking my head, I replied, “No. They have a special coating on them.”

“Good.” He nodded his head in approval as he readjusted on the couch, facing me now.