Page 5 of Realm of the Wicked

The oddly comforting scent of something that reminded me of a forest at night lingered on the handkerchief as I dabbed at my wet cheeks. His eyes lingered on me the entire time, although he said nothing. Every move felt deliberate, precise. His silence made me more uncomfortable than his actual presence. It would only take me five minutes, tops, to make it to the trailhead. I knew Grace would tell me to thank him, and make my exit, but she always thought I was far too trusting of strangers. Maybe I was, until her diagnosis, and strangers became the enemy.

Up until then, the kindness of strangers was the only reason we managed to stay afloat.

He hadn’t done anything to warrant my fear; if anything, he kept himself a respectful distance away from me. I held the handkerchief out to him with a smile. ‘Thanks. You didn’t have to stop. I’m really okay. I’m sure you have somewhere else to be.’

The man took his handkerchief back, tucking it into his jacket. When he looked up at me, his gaze seared right through me, leaving a funny burning sensation in my chest. I could picture him in a boardroom, commanding a dozen men with that stare, or elsewhere, doing something far more illicit. ‘Not at the moment, no.’

‘Okay, then.’ For the first time since he asked me if I was okay, I was uncomfortable. I shifted on the bench, wondering how long I needed to stay to make sure it didn’t look like I was running away from him.

‘You were crying.’ A statement, not a question.

With a sigh, I crossed my legs, shaking my ankle. ‘I was, yes.’

‘Why?’ His voice was genuinely curious, not cruel or judgmental in the slightest.

When I opened my mouth to speak, the words didn’t come. So instead, I shook my head, leaving the silence hanging between us. It wasn’t the kind of story you told strangers on a bench anyway.

‘Are you hurt? Did someone hurt you?’

I whipped my head around, only to see his dark eyes, so dark, they were nearly black, staring at me with something deeper than mere curiosity. ‘What gave you that impression?’

‘You’re alone for one. You’re also not dressed for the weather, so I’m left to assume something fairly traumatic must have happened.’ He pushed his hair away from his face in an effortless motion.

‘You’re not exactly dressed for the weather either.’

He shrugged. ‘I’m not the one crying.’

The way he kept his attention on me was unnerving and I shifted back and forth on the bench.

A bitter laugh escaped my mouth. I guessed we were doing this. I was going to spill my guts to a random stranger. ‘No. Nothing like that. My sister is sick.’

‘Oh.’ The quiet fire in his eyes died off, leaving him pensive once more. ‘Is she in the hospital?’

‘No. Not yet. The doctors can’t figure out what’s wrong with her, so they’ve given us a couple weeks to tie up any loose ends, and then they want her to go into hospice. They’re doing what they think is best for her, I know that, but I’m not ready for any of this. She’s all I have, you know? And I know that sounds unbelievably selfish but⁠—’

‘It doesn’t,’ he interrupted. ‘Make you selfish, I mean. It makes you human.’

I chewed on the inside of my cheek as I nodded. ‘Yeah. I guess it does.’

‘I had a family once.’ His voice was distant. For the first time, his eyes drifted off somewhere past me, lost in his memories. ‘Parents not in the picture?’

‘They died when she was eleven. It’s just been us for the last ten years. I don’t know what I’m going to do without her. I’m just trying to keep a smile on her face, and make whatever time she has left happy, and you know what no one ever tells you? Smiling is fucking exhausting. I’m tired.’ My cheeks flushed as I realized everything I had just blabbed to the complete stranger. ‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say all that. I’ll stop now.’

He shrugged. ‘I asked. There’s no need to apologize.’ His long fingers drummed against his thigh. I watched them silently. An anxious habit so at odds with his precise, confident demeanor. ‘You love your sister.’

Tears began to pool in my eyes once more as I met his gaze. ‘She’s my entire world.’

‘What would you do to save her?’

‘Excuse me?’

The stranger gave me a half-smile, shaking his head as if what he said made perfect sense. Which for him, maybe he did. Maybe he’d never been told no before. Maybe he never cared. ‘What would you do to save her? Is there any price you wouldn’t pay? Let’s say a miracle cure came on the market, but it cost a million dollars. What would you do?’

‘I’d work as many jobs as it took. Convince the bank to give me a loan. I’d do anything to make her better. She deserves a full life, no matter the cost.’ I chewed on my cuticle. ‘But it’s a moot conversation. According to the top doctors in the city, there is no cure. Only a miracle could save her now.’

When he spoke again, his voice was soft, but steady. ‘What if I could save her?’

I choked out a laugh, tears forgotten. ‘I must be very lucky to have met the only miracle worker in the city.’