Page 9 of Heart of the Villain

“Sage, take a deep breath. Breathe.” Ryanna’s words were followed by the inhale of a loud, shaky breath.

“I—I want to make sure she’s safe. Please, make sure she’s safe. She deserves the happy ending the rest of us can’t have.”

Out of nowhere, a tickle in Marlena’s throat had her hurling herself against the wall to get out of sight, a hand shooting over her mouth to cover the cough she couldn’t suppress.

It didn’t matter if she tried to stay quiet. The mothers in the room adjacent to her had that maternal trait of super-sonic hearing, as well as the hearing of demigods. She was screwed either way.

“Marlena?”

There was no sense in running. Ryanna already knew she was there, eavesdropping on a conversation she had no business being a part of. Marlena rounded the corner slowly, drawing out the inevitable.

Both sets of eyes were on her, trying to gauge how much Marlena had heard. Sage’s deep auburn skin was splotchy from her blubbered crying, a deep set of near-black circles marring her under eyes.

Marlena’s head spun, but she wasn’t so sure it was from her illness anymore. Her nerves spiked. Unwanted anxiety creeping in that she’d become a target for her mother’s anger.

“What are you doing out of bed?” Ryanna asked, breaking the silence.

Marlena’s eyes bounced between her mother and Sage, who wiped at the tears rolling down her cheeks and sniffled.

“My cough” was all Marlena could say, and even though it was the truth, Ryanna looked at her daughter like she was a filthy liar.

“Get some honey and sage, throw in a little lavender, and she’ll sleep through the night.” Sage’s gaze fixed on Marlena. “But before you do that, come give me a big hug.”

Marlena shuffled her feet against the kitchen floor, afraid to move too fast in fear she would get dizzy again. Sage yanked her into an aggressive hug and kissed the top of her head. When she pulled back, she kept her hands on Marlena’s shoulders, holding her at arm’s length while peering deep into her eyes. “You take care of my girl, okay? Don’t let anything happen to her. The friendship she has with you, your sister, and Khort is all she’s going to have left.”

“Sage,” Ryanna growled, stepping beside them with a small bowl of the herbs Sage had instructed her to prepare. Marlena had been so lost in Sage’s embrace she hadn’t noticed her mother mixing together her friend’s suggestion in a cup of warm water.

Sage let Marlena go, backing away to let Ryanna in. “Drink,” she ordered.

Marlena didn’t hesitate, willing to do anything if it helped her feel better. When the contents of the cup were gone, Marlena turned to both the women and stuck her nose where it didn’t belong. “When are you leaving?”

Sage’s face fell, and her mouth opened to speak, but Ryanna interrupted. “Bed.” Her fingernails dug into Marlena’s bicep, escorting her back to the stairs. “You keep your mouth shut about this, do you understand?” Ryanna swiveled Marlena around to meet her eyes dead on, and the look on her face sent a shiver of fear down Marlena’s spine.

“Yes,” Marlena replied quietly.

“Yes, what?” her mother sneered.

“Yes, Mother. I won’t say anything.” So scared. Marlena was always so scared.

The sound of a door slamming shut erected Ryanna’s spine, and without another word to Marlena, she shot off in the direction of the noise. “Sage, come back!”

Taking her mother’s exit as a sign from the gods, Marlena scurried up the stairs and secured herself back in bed, where she was safe from the wrath her mother would birth when she realized Sage had disappeared into the night.

Vega’s raspy snore and the lavender lulled Marlena to sleep, but not before thoughts of Arlet’s safety clouded Marlena’s mind.

Who would Vega be if she lost her best friend?

All the air Marlena had been trying to hold in expressed from her lungs in a string of bubbles. Panic rushed through her as she fought against the hold on her head, and her eyes burned from the long water exposure.

Her fingernails dug into the hand holding her in place. Marlena hoped she drew blood as she fought to gain access to the sweet, sweet air only inches above her head. If only I could do more than just draw a little blood.

Now wasn’t the time to listen to the little voice in her head.

All she needed now was some fucking air! Thrashing uncontrollably wasn’t going to help Marlena, but her fight or flight was kicking in, and the urge to inhale got stronger by the second.

Just as she was about to give up, the hand tangled in her hair and yanked her to the surface. Her first gasp of fresh air felt like an inferno had roared to life inside her lungs.

Marlena hung on the side of the tank’s edge, glaring at her father, who had a bored expression on his face—the same look he always wore when he was around Marlena… like she wasn’t good enough for his full attention. “That was two minutes under your normal time. You need to create a patch of air. It should be easy, Marlena.”