Page 25 of Ashen Souls

I stared at his palm for a second before reaching out. His grip was firm, his skin jarringly cold compared to the phantom burns still echoing across my body. I let him pull me upright, swallowing a groan as my ribs shifted.

“Thanks.”

He just watched me, his expression a mask of polite concern. “You shouldn't be out here alone. It's getting dark and freezing.”

“I live close by. I can manage.”

“Are you sure?” He took a half-step back, giving me space. It was the perfect, non-threatening move. Exactly what a good guy would do. “I can walk you to the main road.”

“No. Thank you. I'm fine.”

He gave a small nod. “Get home safe then.”

He turned and walked away, his dark coat blending into the gray afternoon.

I stood there shivering, my ribs throbbing in time with my pulse. There was an itch in the back of my mind, a nagging familiarity. I tried to place his face, to connect his neat dark hair and eyes to someone from my past, but the memory slipped away. I couldn't tell if I had actually seen him before, or if my brain was just misfiring again.

By the time I forced my stiff legs to move, the stranger was gone, and the lingering fever was clawing its way back under my skin. The entire walk home, Daeren’s dark rasp echoed in my ears.

I'll fuck you with my mouth until you break.

I walked faster, ignoring the stabbing pain in my body. I didn't care if my parents were already back. I didn't care about the mud ruining the hallway runner. I just needed to get back to my bedroom, lock the door, and close my eyes.

8

Harper: It’s total bullshit that I've been stuck here since they discharged you.

Me: Harp, you had a reason. You had to go.

Harper: My lawyer is useless. The appeal went through, so I’m stuck here dealing with the fallout for at least another day. I swear to God, I’m going to set his car on fire.

Me: Just handle the court stuff. I'm fine. And please don't commit arson while I'm not there to be your alibi.

Harper: No promises. I’m driving back first thing tomorrow morning. Lock your doors, Aves.

Ilocked the screen and set the phone on the nightstand.

The prospect of seeing her tomorrow was the first actual relief I’d felt in days. Before the crash, I saw her almost daily. I hadn't realized how much the silence of my own life would deafen me without her constant noise.

I loved my family, but Harper was the scaffolding keeping my sanity intact. I’d known her since we were fourteen, but deep inside, it felt like I’d known her my entire life. Maybe longer. Sometimes I wondered if the reason I felt so numb to the men I dated was simply because my capacity for a soulmate had already been filled by her.

Except I wasn't completely numb.

The thought breached my defenses before I could stop it. His hands. His tongue. A spark flared low in my body, a tight pull that felt more like a brand than a memory.

Two sharp raps on the wood snapped me back to the present.

“Come in.”

The door creaked open, revealing my father. He stood in the doorway, trying for a casual posture that didn't quite fit his tense shoulders.

“Morning, sunshine,” he said. “You know you aren't actually a prisoner here, right? You're allowed to leave this room and, I don't know, speak to the people who pay the mortgage.”

“Am I?” I leaned back against the headboard, crossing my arms over my chest. “Because after the interrogation you and Mom put me through when I got back from my walk, staying in here feels like my only survival option until my ribs heal and I can move back to my own apartment.”

It had been a few days since the incident at the river. My parents thought my grumpy mood and the hours spent staring at my bedroom walls were a prolonged tantrum over being grounded. They had lost their minds when I walked through the front door, soaked in mud and river water.

They didn't know I wasn't sulking over their rules. I was mourning.