She was, but he sensed she didn’t mind. And that relaxed him. At least enough so he could beat back the darkness. “I need you to…” No, that wasn’t how he wanted to phrase it. “Would you…please…go to Kyrenia with me today?”
She lifted her dark lashes and stared at him from across the table. And as their eyes held, he picked up a memory flash, one she was projecting, though he was sure she didn’t realize she was doing it. Of seeing him standing in the middle of that burned-out courtyard at the colony, staring at the blackened ground around him, his shoulders hunched, his head dropped, and the shudder that had passed through him.
Pain and guilt and anger rolled through his chest. All the emotions he’d felt that day staring at the remnants of a battle he should have stopped from happening but now could never change. But before they could consume him, he had another memory flash. This one his own. Of her taking care of him, cutting his hair, comforting him after he’d nearly lost it, making him feel human again when she had no reason to even try.
A newfound strength surged inside. One that made him feel as if he could do anything, so long as she was by his side. “Please, Cynna.”
She pursed her lips and looked down at her plate. “Did you ask anyone else to go with you?”
“Only you. You’re the only one I want.”
Several seconds passed, and his pulse beat hard waiting for her answer. Finally, her eyes met his. “Okay. I’ll go.”
He reached across the table and closed his hand over hers, feeling like he could breathe again and knowing it was all because of her. “I owe you.”
“No, you don’t.” She pulled her hand from his grip and went back to eating. But as she did, something dark passed over her features. “You don’t owe me anything.”
But he did. More than she would ever realize. And he planned to make it up to her as soon as he got through this.
Nick was already agitated. Cynna could see it in his tight shoulders, in the way his jaw flexed, in the sweat gathering against the palm of her hand where he held her as they walked toward the gates outside the Kyrenia settlement.
They’d flashed here from the castle in Tiyrns, but as she still wasn’t able to flash through walls, even with him, they had to pass through the front gate.
He gave their names to the guards, and they waited. A few snowflakes drifted down from gray clouds above, and Cynna shivered in the lightweight denim jacket. She should have grabbed something warmer to wear, but she hadn’t wanted to take the time to find a coat. Nick had been anxious to get here so he could do whatever it was he had to do and leave, and she was anxious to help him however she could.
She shivered again, and he looked down at her. “Are you cold?”
“No. I’m fine,” she lied. Honestly, being cold was kind of nice. She’d been stuck in Zagreus’s tunnels so long, any kind of fresh air was welcome, brisk or not.
He opened his mouth to say something, but the giant doors groaned before he could get the words out, and then his attention shifted toward the doors rolling back and the courtyard appearing before them. He drew a steadying breath and muttered, “Don’t go too far. I may need you.”
Cynna squeezed his hand in reassurance. “I won’t.”
He didn’t seem to hear her. He’d already let go of her and was walking into the courtyard. Several people milling around spotted him. Excited voices rang out. A couple of children squealed. Before Cynna could get her bearings, a cluster of people formed around Nick, talking at once, people hugging him right and left, the crowd pushing her back until she was on the fringes, standing on her tiptoes to try to see over them.
Nick’s voice rang out through the crowd, but Cynna only caught pieces of what he was saying. “Yes, I’m fine,” and “No, nothing like that,” and “Yeah, I got here as soon as I could.” But with every answer, his voice grew tighter and more gravelly, and though his people probably didn’t notice, she could tell every question was grating on his patience and control.
She pushed her way through the crowd to try to get closer to him, ignoring the odd looks and whispers as she went by. A few muttered, “That’s her. The one from yesterday,” but Cynna ignored those too. She spotted Nick at the center of the crowd, and was only about four feet away from him when a slim, athletically built blonde called, “Nick!” from across the courtyard.
His head came up. His eyes narrowed on the female. Before Cynna could reach him, he excused himself from the people around him and pushed his way out of the circle, heading right for the blonde.
Cynna tried to follow but was trapped in the crowd. The blonde’s hair was pulled back into a neat tail. She wore jeans, boots, a long-sleeved T-shirt, and a light jacket. And her blue eyes absolutely lit up when they locked on Nick’s.
Nick caught up with her, and the blonde threw one arm around him, hugging him tight. And though Cynna knew she had no right, a burst of jealousy whipped through her, making her wonder who this new female was and what she meant to Nick.