Shrouded Away (Book #1)

Chapter: 29

She sat at the table with the plate of food In front of her. 

"Bradford mentioned that.." Smith trailed off as he glanced at Andrea's wrist. "May I see it"

Garren jerked his head up as Andrea placed her hands on the table rolling up the sleeve.

 Garren gasped, Smith just stared at it taking in every detail of it with eyes that were threatening to spill tears. He held her hand delicately and ran his thumb over it as if trying to rub it off. 

"Did it hurt?"

"No" she lied, getting the mark engraved on her skin was one of the most painful things she'd ever had to go through. 

She still remembers how the blood trickled down her wrist, how the blade went through her skin cutting it, how the pain shot through her veins and to her brain, marking that very day.

Garren cleared his throat in the darkening silence in the dining room.

"Ludere season is starting, are you gonna go, Andrea?" Garden asked.

Andrea rolled down the sleeve, "yes, I'm going with Callista tomorrow morning"

"She's on the cheer team,"

"I'm aware," she began poking the last bit of her mashed potatoes.

"Who's Callista?"

"You know Callista, the blond girl with leaves or flowers in her hair"

Smith's eyebrows furrowed with a thinking look on his face, trying to remember her. His mouth formed into an 'O' shape in realization, "the girl with the foster parents, yes I remember her. Wasn't she the one who grew mosses in your lab?"

"Yes, that was a few years ago"

"So are you going to play Ludere Andrea?"

"I'm not sure,"

"I played Ludere when I was your age, actually when I was ten. Even your brother Garren here played Ludere, didn't you Garren,"

"Just because I played it doesn't mean I liked it, I almost broke my working hand when one of the defenders swung their stick,"

"You should've seen him, he was crying his eyes out. If your mother was there do you know what she would've said?" He asked Andrea.

She shook her head.

"Yeah, keep on crying, now you won't have to pee" he laughed to himself.

"Did she play Ludere?"

"Of course, she was a champ! She loved playing Ludere, she despised playing in the rain,"

"But if it cost her team a shiny trophy she wouldn't mind playing in a storm,"

Both the men chuckled at what seemed to be a memory.

"She would be so happy to see that you are safe, Andrea. You look just like her,"

"But with brown hair,"

"She naturally had brown hair. A beautiful shade only time could bring"

Garren glanced at his watch and announced, "it's getting late, we have a meeting. I'll drop off Andrea on the way"

"Yes, it is getting late. Let Bradford know I'll attend the next meeting" he got up from the chair with a grunt and walked towards Andrea as she stood up, planting a kiss on her forehead.

He wrapped his arms around her, the smell of wine and tobacco enveloping her. 

He murmured into her hair, " take care of yourself and drive safe"

He ruffled his son's hair earning a sneer from him. He began smoothening it as they walked out of the mansion.

The moon shone in the dark, a gentle drizzle fell from the sky, gnarled trees hunched over most of the expanse, plunging the rest in shadow. 

The headlights of a car turned on a few feet away from them. The door of the car opened vertically, Garren moved to let her walk in.

The centre of the wheel lightened up in neon blue.

"Welcome back, Mr Garren. Welcome, Miss Andrea" the voice sounded familiar to Andrea.

"Hello Aurella"

"Which destination do you wish to go Mr Garren?"

"The Virdis tower, then the Magnus house"

Andrea looked out the window, she could hear the faint sound of music playing. 

The city was alive, its congested highways and glowing at eye pulsing with one massive heartbeat. The night sky was an endless ocean with rivers of stars.

"I hear mother whenever you speak," Garren said as his eyes were fixated on the road.

"How so?"

"She's practically in you when I saw you in the cell the other night. I almost thought you were her. I thought that ….." he let out a sigh before continuing, "I'm so glad I found my sister. Not a second passes without me and dad thinking about both of you. I was sure you'll never come back."

"But here you are…"

"I'll be done with your suit by tomorrow afternoon," he swerved, "in your form, you wrote black, green, and blue. Which one do you prefer, green or blue?"

"That was an ill-witted question,"

Garden snickered before repeating his question, "green or blue,"

"Green," she answered as they stopped In front of the Virdis tower.

"Destination reached,"

"You're just like her"

  The door opened, as Andrea was about to step out, she heard Garren say he's eyes on the road, 

"One finds happiness in the place where they wish for their heart to beat the last." He added, "I hope you find that place."