Delta [Epsilon #2]

Chapter Thirty-Four

Kyra

******

(A/N): double update guys! Chapter thirty-five is up now as well!

Days had passed. Everything was relatively back to normal, or at least that should have been the case. Raina was back on her feet; Azure was shaken but otherwise alright; my wounds were almost healed. There was only one anomaly, one missing piece that should have been so small yet felt like a black hole in my life. 

The Delta. I hadn't seen him since. I hadn't seen him at feasts, training, or even in passing. 

The worst part? I couldn't stop thinking about him. No matter what I did to distract myself, no matter how many laps I took around the castle or in the forest, he was always on my mind. And even when he wasn't, I was always reminded of him -- be it by bumping a bruise or grazing a healing cut. Only then would I be reminded of our fight in particular. The fight I'd lost, in many ways. I hadn't been injured -- not badly, at least. Neither had the Delta. To anyone else, it may have seemed as though I'd won that fight -- forcing the Delta's hand and sending him away with a tail tucked between his legs.

But I didn't feel victorious. I hadn't won. Not physically, at least. The Delta had been stronger than me. He'd forced me into exhaustion. He'd proved to me that, no matter what I thought, I was not strong enough. Not strong enough for him, not strong enough for Azriel, and certainly not strong enough for a war.

Maybe that was just the message he wanted to get across. If that was the case, he'd succeeded. 

When I wasn't thinking about the fight, however, other things would plague my mind. Somethings, the Delta's pained face would flash before my eyes, the words of my name branded on his tongue -- Kyra. He'd called me by my name -- my real name -- for the first time, and I didn't know how to feel. It had sounded odd coming from his lips, almost alien. Maybe I should have felt victorious about it, but the anguish and regret on his face didn't bring me a sense of victory. At least, not in the way I'd hoped. 

I balled my fists. It was stupid. He'd hurt me far too many times to count, and one would assume me glad he'd felt a fraction of what I had. 

I glanced out the window. Not that it mattered, though. The Delta had probably forgotten about it all. Perhaps a woman was keeping him company, warming his bed and tempting him into forgetfulness. Maybe that would explain his absence.

The thought filled me with sudden anger, and I stood. Of course, only a man like him could be so shallow -- distracting himself with women, hiding away in his little abode. God forbid he come out and face his problems. 

I whirled and stormed from my room. Storming down the hall, I wouldn't have stopped if it weren't for the flash of gold to my left. I turned to see a girl hunched upon a green velvet sofa.

"Raina?"

Her eyes snapped to mine. They looked glazed over, the kind of sheen that accompanied a dull, aching pain. I noticed how her hair seemed to share in that dull gleam, as though every inch of joy had been sucked out of her. 

She scrunched her brows but didn't respond, her eyes not seeming to see me. I stepped forward. "Raina, are you alright?"

She blinked, then, her eyes narrowing with clarity. "Yes... yes. I'm okay."

I grimaced. "You're not. No point lying to me, I can see right through you." I smiled in the wake of my light-hearted jab, but her lips didn't return it. With a sigh, I sat next to her. "Right. Tell me what's wrong, Raina. You aren't yourself."