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Though he’d yearned to go to her, to hold her, to pull her away, he’d re He sensed instinctively that she was sioodbye on her own, and that he didn’t belong here He’d retreated fro her within as he settled onto the cold marble floor outside the rooe until the first rays of daylight broke over the horizon

He’d carried her back to bed, where she’d fallen into a fitful sleep for a few hours; it was farher for the past three nights

Now, on the fourth day, they were burying David A man, that even he mourned the death of, and not just because of Aria David been a goodwoman; he’d loved his children, and had accomplished so much in his short, mortal lifetime They’d butted heads over Aria, but it had been because of their mutual love for her, and in the end David had revealed everything he knew Though none of what David had told them offered any certainty to the questions that Xavier had presented

Braith kept his ar her up but he felt it was only a ht actually have to Her brother’s stood beside her, as stalwart as she’d been over the past few days They’d gone almost woodenly about their days as they helped to oversee the repairs to the worst of the destruction that had been wrought, and the reforovernainst the black enshrouding her He kept the u her from the steady rain as she pressed closer to his side Her hair fell forward to shelter her delicate features as she kept her head bowed Depression had already taken its toll on her Her collarbone, the bones in her chest, and the back of her hands stood out more She hadn’t eaten much over the past few days, but Xavier and Max iven breakfast and lunch, and he made sure that she at least put some food in her stomach at dinner ti sorrow he knew that she was there, still strong vibrant and very much determined to live

At least he hoped she was

The funeral was not like the other human funeral’s he’d witnessed over the years, or even like the more elaborate vampire funerals he’d attended There was no preacher; instead the people that felt like speaking each took a turn He’d lost count of the humans that had stepped forward to speak of David, then Jack, and finally Daniel had assuh they wouldn’t actually be buried next to one another, Aria had asked for her mother’s name to be added to the to to coh there were a few times that Daniel’s voice broke, he didn’t cry, and he appeared every bit as strong as the leader he’d just becoers twitched, the two of thele tear slid down her face as Daniel said a final goodbye and stepped away

Aria’s delicate fingers twirled around the single red rose she held She stepped forward, momentarily exposed to the rain as she tossed the flower onto the coffin She was shaking as she stepped back beside hi almost as acutely as if it were his own

He turned her away and walked with her ast the crush of humans and vampires as they moved away from the woods and back toward the palace He’d offered to bury their father in the royal ce that he would be happier in the woods, and Braith knew they were right

Once inside the palace he led her toward the stairs Gideon’s brown hair was still damp from the rain as hurried to catch up with them "Later Gideon," Braith inforue, but he closed his aze "As soon as you are able it is essential we speak"

"I’ll be down again in a few hours"

Gideon nodded and bowed his head as he stepped away Braith felt the eyes on his back as he led her up the stairs and to the new rooms that he’d claimed for them until his old suite could be restored He didn’t even know yet if Aria would be willing to stay in the palace, but he wasn’t going to push her on the subject of their future now They’d speak of it when she was ready

Once inside the room, he slipped the damp black cloak from her shoulders and tossed it aside Her arh her pale skin were clearly visible The marks that his brother and father had inflicted upon her were dark and vivid His jaw clenched, he wished those marks would fade far quicker than they were She stood, un before him as his hands briefly traced over her bare shoulders

"You have to start eating more Aria"

Her eyes were dark and remote as she studied hih she said the words she would do no ht up for her "A bath will help you warm up"

"Yes"

She stiffly moved with him to the bathroom He unzipped the back of her simple black dress and slid it away froh she was bared to hi sexual as he helped to ease her into the water All he aspired to do was comfort her, to protect her, to ease this for her somehow, and he still didn’t know the extent of the torture his father and brother had exerted over her Her body was still covered with faded bruises and bite marks that marred her fair skin

He unhurriedly dipped a cloth into the water and ran it over her shoulders and down her back She didn’t shy away from his touch, she wasn’t embarrassed by it like she had been when she’d first coainst her chest, not to hide her nudity, but in a gesture of cos She rested her cheek on her knee as she watched him Unshed tears shimmered in her eyes as he rubbed the cloth over her lower back in s circles

"Aria…"

"It’s ok, I’ll be ok I just hurt"

"I know you do"

"Please don’t worry about h this I just need ti now, so… e somehow, and I don’t kno to explain it There’s this hole inside ain, but that’s impossible, and I have to learn to live with it because there are no other options I have to figure out a way to patch the hole enough so that I can breathe again, without feeling as if the air is suffocating me"

His hand stilled on her back, it was the most she’d said to him in the past four days "Tell me what to do to s to entith his "There is nothing you can do other than being here," she murmured "Time will help I suppose I’ve heard it heals all wounds, but I don’t think this one will ever completely heal How could it?" Tears slipped down her face, he wiped the here ether We won Braith and that is more than I’d dared to let myself hope for"

"We did" And she’d been so immersed in her melancholy that she didn’t know she’d become a hero of sorts Daniel had stepped forward to claim his father’s place, and William and Max had become his seconds in command, but Aria was the one everyone talked about, the one they whispered about in awe The hu, the ex-blood slave that the new king cherished Even the vampires admired her, even more so than they had before

Her eyes closed as he washed her back, kneading her skin as he sought to ease the knots in her ood chance ould lose someone, I prepared myself for it I know that we’re lucky even more weren’t lost, and lucky to be alive and free"