Marked Claws (Mystic Bonds #2) | COMPLETED

1. Cara

And then everything went black again.

•○•

When I came to the second time, I felt lighter.

There was a gold colored ceiling which met my view when my eyes flitted open. It was pretty, I suppose. There was the structure of a dark furred wolf on it. Gleaming yellow stones embedded into the structure where the eyes were. It was just the head and mane, like it was pouncing out of the wall right at me.

I stared at it, unblinking until I finally closed my eyes again and then opened them.

The color was ebony.

Of the wolf's face made jutting out with such structure, I mean.

I inhaled slowly, undoubtedly feeling tendrils of a familiar scent of sage and wood wrap around me. The scent was stronger and I could sense it better.

My eyes still remained glued to the ceiling.

The breeze was warm but hints of freshness lingered. It passed over me, moving strands of my hair against my cheek.

I just took my time, feeling different. 

Alive.

"Oh, you're awake!" A voice that was speaking of strength made my eyes snap to the side.

A woman stood there with a grin on her face. Her raven hair was cut short to her jawline and she wore a sleeveless black tunic gilded with green and gold. A pair of tight-fitted green pants were on her legs and leather boots inched upwards. Her skin that was visible was a pretty shade of well-tanned brown. She was almost a dark beauty.

She approached and I tried sitting up on the cloud - uh, I mean bed I was on.

I could only get myself to lean up on my elbows and weird feelings of rejuvenation and exhaustion surged through me.

"Glad to see that you're awake." She genuinely looked happy but my eyes were riveted to hers.

There was something so....familiar about her entire being. And it wasn't just recent, something was knocking at the doors of my memory. I narrowed my eyes slightly but she only patted my shoulder.

I thought I'd have flinched away but instead the familiarity in the touch had me sitting relaxed.

"Here, have some water." She handed me a goblet full of cool liquid and I was thankful because my throat felt dry and hoarse. I couldn't even speak or swallow. 

Where had I been? The dessert? In the pits of hell?

I silently took it, letting the water travel down my throat. For some reason, even the smallest of things felt like they had a ginormous presence and as if I was feeling them after an eternity. Deep into my bones and the very essence of my being.

As I drank, something clanged against the steel goblet. My eyes burned as they looked at the intricately made silver-red bangle still resting on my wrist.

When I finished the contents of the glass, the female took it and then sat down on the bed in front of me.

"How long was I....out?" I don't think that was the correct word either but it was what it was and I was grasping at straws right now.

"Three days and then you were conscious yesterday before you slept the entire day. So technically I guess four days?"

Three days.

I know I was dead but it seemed so surreal. There was so much I had to sort through but I had made a chest inside my mind where I stuffed it all away.

We stared at each other and I finally decided to comment on something, "Your eyes are beautiful." My voice came out scratchy.