Frozen 3

Chapter 9

Ryder 

Since the Dark Sea incident the night before, I didn't dare leave my hut. I remained enclosed within my walls, not wanting to face the outside world. I knew that I would have to deal with the most curious questions and remarks, the whispering in my path that was intended to be discreet but not. I was the one everyone knew by sight but hardly ever talked to. It was the perfect time for all those waiting for answers to finally come and speak to me, gathering my testimony by pretending to be interested in my life. I felt empty of emotion, not fully realizing that I had witnessed the death of a Northuldra. I didn't really know him, I just met him at the camp. But the desperate look and tears of his sons had destroyed me. I knew that feeling, that unbearable pain of losing a loved one, forever creating a deep hole in us, a wound that could not heal. I had experienced it again in the eyes of this little boy and this young man. This one had at first seemed to me to be a perfect stranger whose sad story had deeply touched me. Then, when I returned to Northuldra camp in the late afternoon, a few bits of conversation and memories had returned.

My brain seemed to have suddenly stopped functioning, preventing my thoughts from forming in my mind. But when I had finally returned to a safe place in my hut, which could keep me warm and dry, the connections had finally recovered, allowing me to regain my clear ideas. Honeymaren's face was turned upside down when I saw this man come back to me. That was my first clue. The second one intervened in my sleep, which I had difficulty finding. Those features, those thick brown hair, those tired grey eyes... This man looked a little younger than Erik, my sister's fiancé. I understood then. He was his little brother. This made Erik the eldest son of the man drowned by Nokk. This revelation had awakened me in the middle of the night, subsequently preventing me from returning to sleep. I then remained awake and, realizing that it would be impossible to go back to sleep, I stayed in the small room, lit a few candles and served me a large cup of tea burning as usual. Had Honeymaren told her companion the sad news? If so, how had he taken it? I had swallowed the drink in one go, no longer worrying about the possible burning of my palate and tongue.

I was looking at my hands that I was struggling to warm up from my involuntary swimming in the icy Dark Sea. It continued to shake uncontrollably, despite all my efforts. I never left the huge blanket of my bed that I took everywhere with me, bundling myself in. I settled comfortably in an armchair in the living room, determined not to move any more. My ribs, still very painful since my fall, prevented me from making many movements, condemning me to sit or lie down most of the time. The front door suddenly opened, leaving a freezing wind in the hit that made me sneeze.

"Bless you," said my sister, who had just joined me.

I looked up at her. She seemed depressed, certainly exhausted.

"How are you?" I asked her.

She did not answer, went to the kitchen, not even glancing at me.

"Honeymaren?"

Still nothing. My twin looked completely out of place, not even hearing my voice. I frowned, worried. She returned, with a smoking cup in her hand, and sat silently in front of me, with empty eyes. Her hair was barely combed, her complexion was pale, revealing large dark circles under her eyes.

"Hey, what's wrong with you ?" I tried again with a voice that I wanted as sweet as possible.