Kyara's Beginning (Kyara Book 1)

Chapter 41

The season turned, and the nights grew colder. She could feel winter coming, and began to stock up, knowing that food was going to be hard to come by if she hadn’t returned to the stables. Helios helped her – he knew his way around the forest better than she did, still, and showed her the various places to forage for her food. He, too, had grown. He was now a long-legged yearling, gangly, and not quite coordinated yet. He was much stronger now as well, and she enlisted his help quite a few times, dragging back driftwood that they found. He was also strong enough to carry her, and they spent many a day contentedly riding around, happy to be in each other’s company. Together, with Helios hindering rather than helping, they built a small shelter for him, for when the seas grew rough with the violent storms. Often, the god visited her, and she slowly grew more comfortable in his presence. The day she was just finishing Helios’ shelter, the water shimmered slightly and she looked around, unsurprised.

“How are you going, youngling?”

She nodded at the god, and then turned her attention back to her task. “Fine.” It was true. She seemed to be thriving in the wild. Her skin had grown even darker, making her violet eyes stand out in her face, and her hair now had paler blonde streaks in it, bleached by the sun filtering through the water. The black was still the same, though.

“You seem to be happy.”

She glanced at him again, pausing. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I be?”

He came closer, and helped her with the last of the roof. “It’s lonely, isn’t it?”

She shrugged a shoulder. “Thank you. No, not really. I have Helios, and I return to the stables most nights.”

“I see.”

She looked at him, and began to swim to her glade, a little way away from the shelter. “What do you mean by that?”

He slid into a seat, watching her. “You are still alone, little one.”

She sighed, accepting it at last, and brought over a cup for him. “Here.” She slid into the chair opposite him. “I suppose. There’s nothing I can do about it, but. He’s still looking for me.”

“You really think he will stop?” His voice was dry. “Remember what he paid for you.”

It was too much. She glared at him, putting her cup down with a sharp crack on the table. She got up, spinning around and stalking to the edge. “You think I don’t know that?” Her voice was soft and even, but the evenness of anger. “I live with that every day!” She turned to face him, one finger running along the inside of her collar. “This is the reason I’m trapped here! I can’t go anywhere. And he knows that. He knows it’s just a matter of time!” She swam a little closer, her eyes cold and hard. “I know what he paid for me. But it was wasted on me. I’m not worth it.”

“You are priceless, dearest.”

She shook her head, hair swirling about her. “No. I’m useless.” A flicker of a smile flittered across her face. “So useless that he doesn’t care that he doesn’t have me.”

He watched her, caution in his dark eyes. “I think you are wrong,” he said at last, but pursued it no further. She sat down again, and picked up her cup. Instead of drinking from it, however, she turned it around and around in her hands, gazing into it as if it could tell her what to do.

“What do I do, then?” she murmured. “I don’t want to go near him, yet I cannot stay like this for the rest of my life, can I?” She looked up, meeting his eyes bleakly. “I don’t know what to do?”

He sighed, and reached out to take her hand. “You saved his life, didn’t you?”

She nodded. “What of it? It was nothing.”

“No, it wasn’t. He owes you a favour now, doesn’t he? Why don’t you use it?”

She hesitated, thinking it over, and then shook her head. “No. I can’t. It’s not the right time.” She gave a sigh, and her hand moved slightly. “You know,” she continued, conversationally. “You’re the only one whose touch doesn’t make me panic.”

He smiled. “There is another.”

“I know.” She tilted her head to him. “But it’s only you two. Why?”

“I don’t know.” He lifted one shoulder. “Maybe you’ll never know.”

She met his eyes sharply, a slight frown creasing her brow. There had been an odd note in his voice, but she didn’t know what it was. “Who are you?” she asked softly. “Can you tell me?”

He sat still for a moment, and she could see that his attention was turned inwards. Then, he shook himself slightly, and looked at her. “Surely you know my name?”

She shook her head, her mouth twitching slightly. “No.”

“Chiron,” he told her gently. “Surely that is familiar.”

She started to shake her head again, and then began nodding. “Yes. Storms, right?” She looked at him, to see his nod of approval, and then he vanished, merging with the water. She looked down at her hand, still placed on the table. She could still feel his hand on hers, and for once felt comforted by it, not panicked as she usually did at someone’s touch, no matter what the reason was.

~*~