The Winds of the Past [Rune Factory 4]

Chapter 54

Empty, lifeless, sea-green eyes, thickly fringed with dark green lashes, stared skyward. I gathered her up in my arms, the aching emptiness consuming me from within as I howled my grief to the universe.

I awoke with a start and found that I'd fallen asleep with my head resting on her chest, where, to my immeasurable relief, her heart beat even more strongly than the last time I'd listened. Her hand was still clasped in mine—even in sleep, neither of us had let go of the other. I sat up, and looked into a pair of stricken azure eyes staring at me from across her bed.

"Will... will she be okay?" Leonel asked in a barely audible whisper.

I smiled sympathetically at him as I nodded. "Yes. She just needs rest—lots and lots of rest—right now. But she's going to be fine."

His shoulders slumped as he breathed a sigh of relief. "She... she saved me. Even though I said I hated her, she still saved me. That big dragon was... it was going to eat me. I was so scared, I couldn't even move."

I hadn't noticed him there before, but now I saw Barrett leaning against the doorway, watching his son. He walked over, crouched down next to him, and put his arm around the boy's thin shoulders. Leonel leaned against his dad, then continued, hesitantly. "She ran right between me and the dragon just as it was about to bite me. That... that's the last thing I remember until I woke up when you were running down the street, carrying me here."

I nodded. "You blacked out. Perfectly reasonable thing to do under the circumstances."

"That dragon... it almost killed her, didn't it? And it would've been all my fault if she'd died. Why'd she do it? Why would she risk her life like that, after I was so mean to her?"

"Because she cares," I replied simply, glancing down at my sleeping wife, my heart full to bursting with my love for her.

He blinked in surprise at my reply, and thought for a minute. "Mom was wrong about her," he said matter-of-factly, looking up at his dad.

Barrett hesitated, then nodded. "Yes. She was wrong." He sighed, then stroking Leonel's hair, he said, "You're old enough, son, to know that sometimes people would rather believe a lie than accept the truth. And that's what happened with your mom. It was just easier for her to blame Avani, even though she was innocent, than to deal with the real problem."

"What was the real problem, Dad? Why couldn't you and Mom stay married?" he asked, a little tremulously.

Staring over Leonel's head at nothing, Barrett didn't answer right away. After a few minutes, he closed his eyes and said, "In the end, we just couldn't be happy with each other. So your mom decided to leave, to be free to find happiness on her own."

"I guess that's why she married Marco, isn't it? Because he makes her happy?" Barrett nodded, and he looked at his dad curiously. "What about you, Dad? Are you happier now, too?"

Barrett looked in surprise at him. "I... don't know, son. I haven't figured that out yet." Then he ruffled the boy's hair and stood up, saying, "Come on. You've had your visit, now let's go and let Avani sleep in peace. You can talk to her when she's awake and stronger."

Leonel nodded and rose, and they quietly left, raising their hands to me in silent farewell.

All in all, Avani slept for thirty-nine hours. I stayed by her side the whole time, waiting and watching as her wounds mended. I could, of course, have simply healed her once my energy had replenished... but after consulting with Jones and Nancy, I decided against it. She'd clearly been through quite an ordeal, though we didn't yet know the details, and allowing her a period of rest and recuperation seemed wise. Magic could mend wounds, but it couldn't take the place of sleep. So I kept watch over her for a night and a day and another night as she slept and recovered, her bruises darkening even more dramatically before beginning to fade, the stitched-up gashes closing, the swelling going down.