Ricky abruptly entered the room, her expression one of disillusionment. She remained silent, pacing at the entrance while I sat quietly on the bed, preparing for her outburst. When it appeared she was struggling to articulate her emotions, I stood and approached her in an attempt to console her, but this only exacerbated her fury. She manoeuvred past me to the bed, seizing a pillow and striking it against the mattress repeatedly. She continued to assault the bed until her breath became laboured with rage, and I observed in trepidation as she screamed in exasperation.
When she eventually loses fuel, she tosses the pillow off to the side and closes her eyes while she gathers her breath.
“He referred to you as Dad today,” Ricky sobs after a prolonged silence, her voice fractured. She stoops to retrieve the pillow once more and hurls it at me. “Bray called you Dad!” she retorts, tears streaming down her face. “Did that hold no significance for you?”
I gaze at her in astonishment. It held immense significance for me… How could she fail to recognise that?
“No, I…,” I stutter, as Ricky seizes another cushion and hurls it at me.
“Then how could you?” she pants violently. “How could you offer yourself up for war like that? After claiming Bray… How could you leave him like that?” she cries. “Tell me! Tell me how?”
I swallow the lump in my throat, attempting to construct the words in my thoughts but nothing spilling out of my mouth.
“I placed my trust in you…” she laments, vigorously wiping away her tears. “I entrusted you with my heart and Bray’s heart. What am I to convey to him now?” she weeps. “What am I to say? That you are abandoning us for a conflict in which we have no involvement? That there exists a possibility you may never return? What am I to do!” she exclaims. “You were meant to be his father. That is what you led me to believe. How can you simply leave him? He will not comprehend this, Jadi. He will not grasp why, one moment, he has a father, and the next, he does not!”
She sobs into her hands, her shoulders trembling violently with each cry. I attempt to embrace her and offer solace, but she merely swats my hands away.
“Don’t touch me! Don’t you dare touch me!” she shrieks, shoving me away.
But I know my touch is the only thing that’s going to soothe her down right now so I grip her wrists to keep her from pushing me away again.
“Therefore, do not lay a finger on me!” she exclaims, violently struggling against me. “Do not touch me!”
I cradle her cheeks, pressing my lips to hers to assuage her wrath. Initially, she strikes my chest and shoulders with her fists, but as I gently s**k on her lower lip, she gradually relaxes. I feel her tears on my face as I kiss her, her body quivering in my arms.
“Please, do not abandon us…” she pleads, encircling my neck with her arms and drawing me nearer. “I have only just found you… Do not forsake me. Do not leave Bray without his father,” she weeps. “I implore you. Please do not depart.”
For an instant, time halts as I contemplate her words, my heart racing rapidly.
Do not abandon us…
“I-I’m not le-leaving you,” I mumble, my lips touching hers. “I-I’m fighting for y-you. For K-Bray. For Melina.”
“But you’re-”
I clamp my fingers on her lips to hush her.
“I-I don’t want to r-run… I-I don’t want y-you to live in fe-fear.”
“I’m already running,” she says. “What’s a little more running? We can leave. We can go somewhere far away. Somewhere where no one can find us. We can be safe-”
“N-no,” I shake my head. “N-no more run-runnning. Th-that’s not the li-life I-I want for y-you or K-Bray.”
“However-”
“I love you,” I declare, my heart racing as I reveal my genuine emotions to her. Ricky gasps, her eyes brimming with tears. “I love you and K-Bray. However, I cannot love you in fear. I cannot subject you to that. Please, try to understand. I am fighting for you.”
“You need not!” she exclaims. “We can-”
“You are unfamiliar with my father, Ta-Ricky,” I assert, shaking my head. “He has been engaged in conflict with John for years. If he discovers that my mother is alive and married to his most formidable adversary, he will stop at nothing to instigate war here. I cannot allow that to transpire. I must ensure your safety. I am compelled to assist John in resolving this.”
“It is unjust!” Ricky retorts. “This is not your conflict! Why must they involve you?”
She snuggles up to my chest, clutching me tightly as if to keep me with her forever… And I would gladly stay by her side for all eternity.
“I will not undertake any unnecessary risks,” I clarify. “I will adhere to all of John’s instructions and exercise extreme caution when confronting the Scarlett Haven wolves and the King’s army.”
“Jadi, this entire war is a risk,” She retorts. “Nothing you do will be low risk.”
I acknowledge her correctness, although I am depleting my resources for alleviating her anxieties.
What if we mark her? Jimmy asks. What if that helps to strengthen our tie so she’ll know we are okay? Perhaps we could even mindlink her from a distance. We can already read her thoughts. Maybe a mark will enable us connect even further.
She is reluctant to be labelled, I contend. Furthermore, there is no assurance that a label will provide any significant impact for us.
We will not ascertain unless we enquire, Jimmy urges. Furthermore, if we perish in that environment, I wish to depart with the knowledge that my companion bore my mark and was aware of my thoughts of her in my final moments.
I remark that you are excessively dramatic, while Jimmy glares at me.
He insists that I ask her, and when I decline, he threatens to assume control.
Resigned, I exhale, suppressing the constriction in my throat and moistening my parched lips.
