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The shock was clear on her face. She could tell that something had really rattled me, and if it really rattled me when it came to a fight, then she would be terrified. I didn't like the thought of her being scared, but if it helped keep her safe, then I was willing to go that far.
Wyn deftly unwrapped and rewrapped my bandages, ignoring any love bites from Thorn, which I was thankful for. Still, her face did pale slightly when she saw my wounds, but she didn’t ask about them, which I was also thankful for.
Wyn opened a cupboard that I hadn't even noticed before and pulled out some more clothes, tossing them to me as she did so before taking some for herself. Once we were both appropriately clothed with multiple layers, we returned to the guys downstairs.
The tension in the room was palpable. I couldn't help but wonder if Thorn had confessed what had happened last night to Ronan. The other man was so angry that the tips of his ears had turned red, and he was practically vibrating with rage.
"Ready?" Thorn asked.
I gave him a nod. I still didn't completely trust him. What I had done with him last night...I shouldn't have. He and I both knew that.
It was some sort of spell that had been cast by the moonlight and desperation I'd been feeling. Call it magic or temporary insanity, whatever it was, we both knew it was a transgression that should never have happened, even though the urge to repeat my actions was there and even stronger than before.
If I thought I'd been frustrated. Then I was so very wrong.
The need to go to him and touch him was stronger than any I'd felt before. It felt like if I let him out of my sight, then I might just faint or something, or turn into one of those wailing women, the kind that I despise, that couldn't do anything without their partner present.
The five of us left Sanctuary, and we followed Thorn around the tree to where the ghoul had attacked me last night. The carcass was still somewhat there, but it had clearly been feasted upon by other animals.
"Did another ghoul do this?" I asked.
"How are you still alive?" Wyn muttered next to me.
I tried to smile, to play it off like I hadn't been convinced my life was going to end last night. "Because some asshole ruined my escape plan."
"No, it wasn't another ghoul that did this. Probably a neya, they are scavengers and I think dead ghoul is probably one of their favorites."
"It certainly made short work of it," I said.
Ronan nodded and muttered, "The amount those things can eat is truly terrifying."
We lapsed into silence, and as we emerged on the other side of the thin strip of forest that sanctuary was surrounded by, I saw the main path leading away. "This will take us to the capital?" I asked.
"Yep," Ronan's answer was abrupt, to say the least. Apparently it wasn't just Thorn that he was upset with. If I was going to be taken by soldiers, guarded by them, whatever that was supposed to mean, then the least I could do is try and figure out as much about these lands and my condition as possible.
"So what exactly does it mean to be moon marked?" I asked, wondering if they would actually give me a straight answer. I wasn't holding my breath for one though.
"You really don't know anything, do you, little one?" Trevor said.
I tamped down my annoyance with a steadying breath. "You're right, I don't. So how about you explain it to me?"
"Being moon marked means that you're connected to the magic of the lunar goddess. It means you have a strong connection to the night, and sometimes even a connection to animals of the night. Can't say I've ever seen one as big as yours, at least from what I can tell. Maybe I should ask Thorn how big it is." Trevor smirked as I looked over my shoulder and glared at him.
"Nothing happened. I just rescued her from a ghoul and treated her injuries." Thorn repeated as though it was some kind of statement he'd had to memorize.
Trevor looked between us, not completely convinced.
Ronan decided to take pity on me and said, "Most marks are small, like mine, for instance." He paused and pulled up the edge of his shirt, displaying what would normally have looked like a burn mark, except for the fact that it seemed to be lit from within, as though there was a fire burning just under his skin. It was only about the size of one gold coin, or maybe two at the most.
"Mine is obviously my eye," Thorn said, gesturing to his face as though I could ever forget what that eye looked like. It was practically the stuff of ghost tales.
"And you?" I asked Trevor.
He grinned at me again. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
I couldn't tell if he was trying to flirt with me or make fun of me. The one thing I did know was that out of both of the men that had shown me their marks, neither of them were even a tenth of the size of mine. "And is it the same for moon marked in terms of size?" I wondered aloud.
Thorn nodded. The idea that most of the marked had something that small on their bodies was kind of terrifying when compared with the size of mine. "Yours seems to have grown exponentially, whereas most of us just increased slightly over time, though I'm sure that's something to do with the veil. There's nothing wrong with that, but it does mean that you're very powerful. At least that's the correlation that we've discovered with other marked."
