A Dark and Starless Night

Chapter Thirty

Eve dropped back, her muscles crying out in relief as she settled against the soft mattress. She let out a sigh and Ali turned on her side to offer Eve a smile.

"That's the first day done and out of the way," she said. "How're you feeling?"

"Tired, but glad to be doing something useful," Eve said, peering up at the ceiling. She still felt apprehensive about what she'd felt in the woods, but she was determined to not let it show. "What about you?"

"I always love a bit of travel," she said, rolling onto her back. "It's nice to have company though."

"You're never alone."

"Guards don't count."

Eve laughed at that and Ali joined her. They spent hours like that, laughing and gossiping. Despite how tired her body felt, she couldn't seem to sleep. She didn't want to sleep. It was nice to feel young and unburdened, even if it would only be for a few hours.

"Do you ever miss being on the Isle?" Ali asked, propping her head up with her hand.

"I don't know," Eve admitted, rolling on to her side. "It's easy to forget the pain of an empty stomach when I haven't been truly hungry since Luc came into our lives. I remember the fun I used to have playing with the other children. And I remember how it felt to watch the stars blinking above me." Although she could never quite replicate that feeling in Zyrna; the feeling of a warm gaze watching over her as she slept on the beach when it was too hot to think.

"That does sound fun," Ali said, her voice dreamy. "I can't remember the last time I watched the stars. Once this business is finished with, we should take a trip to the Isle. I suppose we can bring the boys as well. Although by then, Rik will probably be married." She wrinkled her nose.

"I really hope his mother hasn't put me on that list of his," she said, and Eve blinked at her in surprise.

"You don't want to be on his list?" she asked, sitting upright.

"Gods, no," she breathed, shaking her head. "Why would you think that?"

Eve's cheeks heated and she looked away. "Well... To be very honest, I always thought that... well, that you and Rik... fancied one another."

Ali groaned, hiding her face in her hands. "It's not like that, really." She looked up, her face red and she burst out laughing as Eve joined her, glad for the relief in tension. "I don't like him like that, but... I can see why you'd think that. You know what Rik's like. He can't keep straight in his head who he's in love with.

"And once – well, three times – we did... Well, we had sex."

"Three times!"

"The first time it was pure curiosity," Ali explained, sitting up and dropping her legs off the side of the bed. "And the other two times I wanted to be sure that I hadn't enjoyed it."

"Was he... bad at it?" Eve asked, surprised at her own curiosity. Her face was still a blazing fire and she was intrigued that she felt no jealousy. After all, Ali had just admitted she wasn't in love with Rik. That was a good thing.

Ali hummed, considering the question, her own cheeks still lightly flushed. "No, at least not in comparison to the other men I've had sex with. But..." She inhaled and exhaled quickly, looking at Eve. "I've found I prefer the attentions of other women."

Eve blinked once, twice. She admonished herself for not noticing sooner. The context of so many things Ali had said or done now made sense. Even if Ali herself hadn't known sooner, if Eve had bothered to just pay attention she would have realised.