Blood & Bone [Book Three of The City of Eternity Series] [✔]

3.4: Lull

The forest was quiet around us, only the sound of crunching as my boots sifted through the snow to keep me company. I had taken to humming the same few notes of Dhana's favourite song as we went, hoping it would lull her into sleeping peacefully until we'd arrived back home.

She was safely in my arms, and I was forcing myself to suppress all of the worries crossing my mind; including that the jacket I'd been forced to wrap her body in was keeping her warm enough, scolding myself for forgetting to bring something. I had only allowed myself to repeat the phrase 'She's fine' as I ran home clutching her tightly, desperate to retreat back to the relative safety of our home.

Those reasonable worries ceased and were replaced as we arrived at the tree line around our property, trailing through the snow piles around the side of the house to get to the front door. I couldn't help but scorn as I felt my clothes clinging to my skin; of all times of the year to be failed, deep into the winter months would not have been my first choice.

A muffled cry meets my ears as I pass the threshold of our front door, the blurred movement being caught in my peripheral vision. I'd expected any number of things when I'd arrived home; a stray animal walking in from the cold to an official Central member who'd found out about Dhana somehow.

What I hadn't expected was to be greeted by Inas, kneeling by the coffee table and gathering shards of glass with the turquoise brush and pan we kept under the sink. She'd dropped both as soon as we entered the home, head darting towards us and face dropping into a concerned grimace.

"Dhana," She said softly, her eyes focusing on her body, still safely wrapped in my arms. Dhana made no effort to move or speak to Inas, but that didn't stop the woman from continuing, "You had me so worried."

The sun was peeking through the curtains, a pale winter light casting on her as she moved to stand in front of us, holding up a blanket; clearly noticing the jacket my wife was covered by wasn't doing much for the shivering.

Dhana had her eyes closed still, but by the sound of her heart, she was definitely awake. I imagined her body would be sore and aching, but I was given little choice but to carefully set her down with a soft nudge. My wife had grimaced as her feet touched the ground, shooting me a frosty glare as Inas wrapped her arms around her.

As Inas pulled away, I realised she'd wrapped the blanket around Dhana, and was now offering my jacket back to me. With a raised brow I took the jacket, and wrapped my hand around Dhana's back, guiding her toward our bedroom. I had to hold my breath during the walk, realising that of all the rooms, our room had been the most tarnished.

But to my surprise, that was no longer the case - Inas had clearly gone through the room already and straightened the furniture, changed the sheets and removed anything she couldn't fix. For the most part, our room had been put back to how I remembered it.

Dhana seemed surprised too, stopping at the door with eager eyes. Her hand had gone to the doorframe where scrapes still remained from the door being forcibly removed. I bit the inside of my cheek as she walked inside, holding her arm with a tight grip.