The Secrets Between Us | ✓

|51|

Anaya stared at the rows of square lights hanging in the center of the wooden ceiling, trying to quell the terrible ache in her chest. It had only been a day, but the absence of Icarus was becoming unbearable. Every time she closed her eyes, vivid memories of him and their moments together flashed through her mind. She missed his smile, his voice, his touch, and just his overall presence. She'd grown so accustomed to the way he filled every space around her, like the very air she breathed, that she felt a strange sense of unease without him. Never again, she thought to herself, sighing.

"What on earth were you thinking?" Casey reprimanded, pacing back and forth in front of the bed. "You were too reckless!" 

Anaya let out another sigh, expressing her annoyance. "Can you stop repeating the same thing?"

"Only if you listen to me."

"Fine! I will be careful next time." 

Casey cast her a stern look. "Promise me." 

She rolled her eyes but couldn't stop the small smile that tugged at the corners of her lips. "I promise. Can I get up now?"

"No, you need to rest for at least a week."

"What? No way!"

"Your wounds may have closed, but they haven't fully healed. My powers can only do so much."

"Come on, I'm fine," she insisted, pushing herself up from the bed. She knew she needed to recuperate, but there was no harm in leaving the cottage for some fresh air.

Casey pushed her back down, receiving a sharp glare in return. "You won't be able to fight Lupinneaus if you don't rest."

"I don't think I can," she admitted in a low voice. She always thought she was brave, but her encounter with Lupinnaeus made her feel otherwise. Its ferocity was unlike anything she'd ever seen, leaving her shaken for the first time in a long while. There was no way she could attack it without getting herself killed, so she had no choice but to be reckless to get close to it.

"Rasharaya wouldn't have sent you here if you weren't capable of defeating it."

Casey had a valid point. Her mother was no ordinary woman. She was the queen of their kingdom, with knowledge and power beyond their comprehension.

"But how? My strength is no match for it."

"What do you know about Lupinnaeus?" Casey asked, trying to come up with a plan.

"Not much," she replied, her frustration palpable. "There's nothing about it in Icarus' library."

"There has to be something, no? Is there another library we can check?"

Anaya took a moment to think. "Maybe in the packhouse?"

"Okay. I'll find out."

"I'll come with you." Anaya frowned at Casey when she opened her mouth to protest. "It's not a battleground."