AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Why is leaving? I’m literally two minutes away if you need me.
Even my boss—aka, Natalie’s newly minted boyfriend—texted me.
Constantine
Hey. Hope I’m not out of line, texting you about non-work things. Just checking to make sure you’re okay. Not because I don’t trust Razbunare, I just know you’ve been through a lot, prior to moving here, and want to let you know I’m here as a friend who’ll have your back anytime you need it. Text me if you need anything.
It took one message to my boss, a few to Natalie, and two hours’ worth of back-and-forth with Rosetta and Shay before my phone calmed down yesterday. But I’m not complaining.
It’s been a long time since I had friends. I left the ones I’d made as my younger self behind when I moved to a new city to be with Doug. Once I was far away from everyone who cared about me, he began chipping away at my self-worth, making sure I alienated old friends and lacked the confidence to make new ones, even on a casual level.
I’m fortunate to have made some great connections since moving to Fate’s Falls. Rosetta was the first human I met when I moved here, and her high energy was a lot to take in at the point in my life when I just wanted to crawl into a hole and disappear. She refused to leave me alone to wallow, though, and I’m grateful she didn’t. We don’t spend a lot of time together—her big, bossy orc fiancé keeps heroccupied—but we’ve developed a daily texting friendship.
Her cousin Natalie is new to town, but now that she’s with Constantine, it’s safe to say she’s not going anywhere. That works for me because she’s one of those people who feel like they’ve been in your life forever after talking to them one time.
Shay is the kind of friend everyone should have, and I’m so lucky I get to spend time with her five days a week at work.
I never would have gotten close with a coworker in my previous situation. Too risky, letting someone who spends forty hours a week with me have insight into my personal life. In hindsight, if I had, I might not have ended up temporarily dead.
But then I wouldn’t be here. Andhereis working out pretty great.
Maybe Shay was right about fate. Something I’m sure she’ll remind me of as soon as the opportunity presents, probably in front of customers at work on Monday. I’ll take the embarrassment. Today, I need to see Raz.
I hated spewing old insecurities all over our first date. Hated it but couldn’t stop it from happening. My therapist says I shouldn’t expect a speedy repair for things that took years to dismantle. As much as that makes sense, I hate that I’m still broken.
But Raz was so good about my mini-breakdowns. So patient and accepting. Then our date ended without warning, because he had to go mete out vengeance somewhere.
A shiver rolls up my spine. The vengeance thing is…heavy. I said it didn’t change what I want, but it’s hard not to think about what he might be doing. Shay told me he’s killed before, and I won’t judge him for doing the things he was created to do, especially centuries ago. But does he still? If so, can I live with that?
What would that look like if this thing between us becomes a long-lasting relationship?Have a good day at work, honey! Don’t get blood on your pants because I’m terrible at getting stains out!
Of course, I’ve only ever seen him wear dark clothes, so blood stains wouldn’t be an issue. But still.
What about the people on the receiving end of the revenge? I’m sure some of them deserve what’s coming to them. Doug, for example, would’ve deserved it, had I taken Raz up on his repeated offers to grant me any vengeance. But I can’t stop thinking about the shoe being on the other foot. What if after I left him, Doug had wished for revenge on me? Would I truly be dead now? As much as I want to be with Raz, I need the answer to that question.
To get it requires an in-person conversation because Raz doesn’t have a phone. One of the less-serious details I learned yesterday while we were climbing to and from the crest of the waterfall.Vengeance demons have no need for phones.Revenge wishes haven’t adopted technology yet; they still arrive by brainwave.
Yesterday in the square, he said he’d see me soon, and I assumed he’d find me when his duty was completed. It’s possible he doesn’t know where I live, though if he’s been coming to The Brew several times a week for seven months because of me, the odds are good that he knows where my apartment is. Fate’s Falls isn’t a big place.
Maybe that’s too forward for him. Just because he has no physical modesty doesn’t mean he’s the make-a-move type. The opposite. If coincidence—or fate—hadn’t placed us both at the waterfall yesterday morning, we’d still be oblivious to the other’s feelings.
I’m still working on rebuilding the parts of me Doug broke, but I’m willing to take the leap and go to Raz. Besides, if I have to sit with my thoughts another day, I’ll be mentally unraveling by the time I get to work tomorrow morning. Shay is an amazing friend, but she shouldn’t have to collect my pieces when I fall apart. New me has much stronger glue than the old me. I’m not the weak, dependent person Doug made me believe I was. I’m strong enough to face my fears head-on. To survive whatever life, or fate, puts in my path. I need to remember that.
* * *
Raz’s cabin,tucked away in the woods, not far from the waterfall, is a five-minute drive from the edge of town. There’s no driveway, just a path from the road where I parked to the small clearing surrounding the wood cabin. The structure blends with the trees, looking as if it’s been here a long time, though I know Dak built it for Raz. That’s why it’s taller than your average single-story dwelling. Including his horns, Raz is close to ten feet. He’d have to crouch in my apartment or his horns would scrape the ceiling.
There’s no answer when I knock on the massive door. The sound peals through the silent forest, the only response coming from the temporary stoppage of birdsong.
It’s been over twenty-four hours since he left me in front of the bakery. Maybe that’s a normal amount of time to make someone’s revenge wish happen. I didn’t think to ask his definition of “soon,” assuming it’s similar to mine. But “soon” could mean an entirely different thing to a demon who’s been around as long as humans have populated the earth.
Waiting for an indeterminate amount of time skates too close to “clingy” territory. I want to be with him, but even if our relationship lasts, I won’t become a woman who can’t stand on her own. Not again. I’ll leave him a note, then head back to town and find Shay. Give her all the details she’s impatiently awaiting, then get some of her valuable insight about everything that’s happened so quickly.
The cabin’s front door has a simple sill, only a couple of inches deep. There’s no paved walkway, no place to sit, no smooth surface to write on.
Long-fallen pine needles crunch beneath my feet as I circle the cabin. A single oversized wooden chair sits on a small deck at the back, and I drop into it while removing the notebook and pen I carry in my purse.It’s always a good time to release negativity. If you can’t speak the words, write them down.My therapist’s suggestion. It has proven helpful. So has burning the pages I fill. I don’t want to look back and re-read those negative thoughts. There’s no place in my heart for hatred, even for someone who tried to destroy me.
Today’s words aren’t negative. They aren’t anything—because I can’t think of what to write. Pen at the ready, I stare into the woods, my mind as blank as the page beneath my poised hand.
