Fractured Crown (Book 1: Terra)

Chapter 25

Raena was staring through Braedon with heavy lids, barely registering him. The room they had been given, accommodated to almost all their needs. The bare walls were painted a plain white, no picture frames decorating them, and one window stretched across half the width of the wall opposite the wooden door, overlooking the Terra District below. One double-sized bed with emerald-coloured sheets was placed against the windowed wall, and Raena assumed it would be a nice view to wake up to, if it weren't a constant reminder of their desire to escape the district.

Adjacent to the window was a reminiscent double-bed, situated beside a bedside table upon which sat a grey lamp. Opposite that was a huge walk-in closet that took up the majority of the wall, minus the adjoining door that lead to the large bathroom including a bathtub, two sinks and a toilet.

The bedroom alone was more than they were used to, and Raena may have appreciated it more had they not been cooped up in the same room for the past five days. She couldn't remember the last time she had had a proper sleep. She only snuck in a few naps for an hour or two here and there before Braedon would wake her up. With the draugr still loose and easily accessible in her dreams, Braedon had suggested waking her up between a couple hours' intervals, so as to avoid falling into REM sleep, where she may then dream of the creature.

Initially, it had seemed like a great idea. Five days later... not so much. She didn't need to look in the bathroom mirror to know she had dark circles under her eyes, and Braedon wasn't much better off. Their escape plans were hardly creative nor elaborate as their tired brains only had the capacity to think day by day now. Since their last escape, Braedon had broken one of his stitches throwing that punch at the Border Patrol, Trevet. A nurse was sent to their room each day to change his bandages and clean his wounds, but Raena smartly suggested that they wait until he was fully healed this time before madly attempting to hobble out of this district, in the state he was in. Braedon had been ready to protest, but after Raena insisted that they would need their full strength to get Grandpa Sage back to safety or risk being liabilities, he wisely remained quiet.

He now sat across from where she was seated on the carpeted floor, leaning his head against the window. Braedon had his long legs stretched out before him while he leaned against the bedpost, his dark hair as dishevelled as he probably felt. Braedon's dark eyes met Raena's in a lazy stare, his expression entirely blank. Although one of the maids had left a variety of clothes on coat hangers inside the closet, Braedon hadn't bothered to change clothes since awakening in the Nursing Room, and Raena had merely bathed once the first night they spent in this room, scrubbing away at all the grime and dirt and combing through her long, blonde hair, removing any knots. She had finally felt fresh and whole again.

It hadn't taken long to feel like total crap again. She had stopped taking baths after she had almost fallen asleep in the warm water two nights ago. Since then, she had only used the ice-cold water if she needed to desperately wake herself. It would leave her shivering with two towels around her to warm back up, but at least it did the job and prevented her from falling asleep.

Which is what Braedon seemed to be doing now.

Raena felt bad for him. She almost wanted to let him sleep. But when she had done that the previous night, they had both drifted off, and Raena had dangerously fallen into the beginnings of REM sleep, a dream stirring in her subconscious. The setting of the Tenebris Forest had only just formed in her mind, when two hands had grabbed her shoulders, shaking her awake. She couldn't help but scream, and then the exhausted tears had rolled down her cheeks while she stifled her sobs, Braedon soothing her nerves, holding her reassuringly.

"Braedon," Raena kicked out a bare foot, poking his leg with her toe.

Braedon didn't respond. His eyes remained wide open, no real focus to them.