“If you’re so knowledgeable, why don’t you do it yourself?” I snapped.
“Because you’re here, and you need my help.” He chuckled.
With an effort, I picked up a log and placed it on top of the wall I was building.
“That’s right, that’s looking better.”
“Don’t you have something better to do?” I asked.
“No,” he said and I could not help a sigh. “This country was always doomed to fail one way or another. Especially with the unlimited power some clans had. I often wonder what would have happened if the coup would have succeeded,” he said in a muffled voice.
“Does it matter? The disease would still change everything.”
“You don’t know that. Even the smallest ripple on the surface of the lake can create a huge wave somewhere else.” His eyes sparkled.
I gritted my teeth hating that he tricked me into a conversation one more time.
“What about your fiance? Are you back together?” He abruptly changed the subject.
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business.” I returned to another tree trunk and picked up my ax.
“She made the right choice back then. You are trouble, always was.” Sage watched me with a smug look on his face.
“I hope you know something that’s useful, because I’m tempted to walk away.” I rotated my blade and slowly removed tiny branches, cleaning the log.
“I don’t think you can. After all these years, you need me.” He laughed longer than it was necessary, and for a moment Iimagined punching him in the throat. “You know, it’s true, your father had women all over the country. He brought you home one day, leaving your mother no choice but to claim you as her own, to avoid embarrassment. You were the reminder of how little her husband respected her. And she had to put up with you, feed and clothe you. Look at you,” Sage continued.
I glanced at him, before returning to my work.
“They say that children are blessings, but you were the creature sent straight from hell to destroy her.” The old man dug into his inner pocket producing a small flask, “And everyone knew who you were. They dared to look at her with pity when she was such a proud woman. I think that’s what killed her in the end. You did.”
I rolled the log closer to the structure and with an effort, picked it up, placing it on top of the wall.
“She had to watch you during those events where you showed how skilled you were with weapons. You outshined her own children at some point, and no matter how everyone tried to put you in your place, you took everything from them. From your family. The child of the unknown whore.”
His last words made the acid spill in my stomach. I dropped the log toward him, seeing nothing but red.
“You are forgetting who I am and what I can do to you!” I moved closer to the old man, looking straight into his unhinged eyes.
He sat still, trying hard not to look affected, but he wasscared. I could detect the shifting of his eyes, the tense angle of his shoulders.
I dropped the ax to the ground and walked away before I did something I regretted.
“I may not be what I used to be, but I’ll tell you this; something is coming. Something big!” he shouted, but I did not look back.
The cottage was quiet when I opened the front door. I was surprised to see no one in the kitchen. The room was the most used in the house. All surfaces were clean, indicating that either Frid and Victor were out or they still have not woken up. My eyes fell on the portrait of Grace that had been wrapped in a towel in a way that made her look almost dressed. I remembered Victor placing the material over the painting while Grace mocked him for being a prude. Frid was laughing so hard, and even Alina hid her face behind her scarf.
I tried to slow my breathing, to pace myself, but the urge to see Alina was too pressing. I needed to know where she was, I had to know that she was alright. Carefully, I opened the door to the bedroom and frowned, noticing the bed that was already made, no signs of the girl in the room. All the clothes that were scattered on the floor the night beforewere neatly folded and the bouquet of winter flowers had been moved to a further table.
I looked back toward the kitchen and the sitting area. We had much more room since the dining table was out of commission. My eyes darted to the fireplace and then I saw Alina. She had fallen asleep in the side chair, an opened book on her lap, her hand still holding the page. Her skin was nearly glowing in the bright morning light, and a couple of loose curls had escaped her messy bun, framing her face.
My heart immediately took a giant leap in my chest and the feeling of overwhelming belonging took root somewhere deep in my soul. The anger and frustration I felt had evaporated, like they were never there. I took two quiet steps and crouched in front of Alina, watching the half moons of her beautiful eyes and the dusting of golden freckles on her nose and cheeks.
Unable to stop myself I touched her hand and watched a frown form between her eyebrows. She sighed, and her lips moved as if she was saying something. I smiled, tracing the smooth skin of her jaw.
Alina’s eyes flew open and she sat up, disoriented. Almost immediately her eyes focused on me, and a weak smile played on her lips.
“What are you...? I was not sleeping. What happened?” She sat up, looking around.
