See How She Fights (The Chronicles of Izzy #2)(66)

“He needs to feel like I am safe. At least for a night. Give him that,” I begged.

“If you do not tell him in the morning, I will. But for this night, you have my word. Now let me see what has happened.” He moved towards me and I lifted my shirt up so that he could see the new mark. Luckily my shirt was black or Kennan would have noticed the blood soaking through.

“Shit,” Conall jumped away from the mark. “Are the rest still there, Izzy?”

“Yes, they are. Can you help me fix this so that it stops hurting enough for me to make it through the night?”

“I can’t,” Conall said, staring at the rune that now occupied my left ribcage. “I can’t touch it, Izzy. That is a Hagalaz. It is the mark of destruction for rebirth. If I touch it I will feed into the power.”

“Then get me the stuff so that I can fix it,” I said through my tears.

“Alright, give me just a moment.” He moved around the office, gathering the stuff we would need to fix my side for the night. “Did you really have a message from my mom or were you just trying to get me alone?” He moved back towards me with a damp cloth and the salve as well as a pile of bandages.

“She said to tell you she loves you. She really has moved on now, Conall. She is with your father again.” I reached up and brushed my hand across his cheek. He pulled my hand close to his face and held it there for a moment closing his eye. I let him stay that way for a while before pulling away. “I hurt, can we get this fixed?”

“You need to clean it first, then spread the salve and bandage it. Swear to me you will tell him tomorrow.”

“I swear it.”

“So be it.”

I doctored my side up as best I could, wincing through the pain. It seemed that durn tattoo on my back was not good for anything. So much for protection. I finished applying the bandage and pulled my shirt back down to cover my ribs. I was exhausted and ready to be done.

“Let me help you up to your room.” Conall offered up his arm and I took it. I could barely stand on my own accord. I wasn’t sure if it was the new mark or having left a piece of my soul behind today that had done it. Maybe after a good night’s sleep, I would feel better. “Don’t let him touch it, Izzy. If he does, things will get worse.”

“But the bandage will protect it, right?”

“I’m not sure, I wouldn’t take the chance if I was you,” he finished as we reached the door.

“Well, goodnight then. And thank you for not ratting me out tonight.”

“In the future, please don’t ask me to keep things from him, Izzy. I understand your reasoning tonight, but not again,” Conall said, moving away.

“Alright then,” I sighed, opening the door.

**********





TWENTY FIVE


“Hey, everything alright?” Kennan moved towards me, wrapping his arms around me and squeezing tightly. Conall’s warning echoed in my mind and I pulled away slowly and trying to hide my pain.

“Everything is fine, promise. I’m just really tired. Do you think you could block me from the dreaming tonight?”

“Are you sure?” I could tell Kennan was doing his best not to push me. He had been reigning himself in all night and I wondered if someone had said something to him.

“I’m sure. I just need some sleep. I feel like I’ve been run over in a stampede. I love you,” I sighed, leaning into his chest. He reached his hand up and ran it through my hair.

“I’m worried about you, Izzy. What happened today with Aberto, when you died? You were gone for like three minutes. I thought I’d lost you.” His voice caught.

“I don’t know. He promised me answers and as soon as I find him to get them, I will tell you.”

“Alright. For tonight, I will let it go. You ready?” He looked down into my eyes causing my resolve to waiver. I didn’t like lying to Kennan. But I wanted him to have one night where he did not worry about me.

“Ready.”

Kennan reached up and gripped the sides of my face, chanting the words so familiar to me.

“I am going to change, then will you whammy me to sleep?” I grabbed some clothes and headed to the bathroom. I made sure to get long sleeves and pants to hide it all.

“Sure.” Kennan said slowly. I was terrible at keeping secrets. He knew something was up. Even if I wanted to tell him tonight I was too tired. It had to wait.

I changed quickly, tossing my blood soaked shirt in the trash. Even if I could get the blood out I would not want the reminder of what tonight held. My hopes of rest had been dashed and now I was left with yet another obstacle to overcome. Only this time, I had no idea what was waiting for me.

“I’m ready.” I laid down in the bed as Kennan chanted over me. I drifted off into oblivion without a dream in sight. It was glorious.

**********

I woke up still feeling sore and empty. I sighed, turning over to find Kennan staring down at me. I looked at the clock and saw that it was only five in the morning.

“Why are you up?” I asked sleepily.

“What did you want to hide from me last night, Izzy? I know you were keeping something from me and I haven’t been able to sleep at all. So could you tell me now?” Kennan got up from the bed to pace the room. This was not exactly how I had planned to break the news to him.