Eternal Sins

•Chapter Fourteen•

Damp wind blew against red cheeks, hair curling in the air, limbs raising to meet the mist.

A cloud of wonder in it's rapture.

She was dreaming, for the first time in months, dreaming.

The mountain plain felt like home, when her body had not felt such comfort in life in a long time, even on the family farm.

Dressed in her black night shift, Eva pranced in the downpour, hearing the sky open as her eyes blinked awake.

Another crackle, lightening pushing through the sky, a gasp coming from her lips. "Cedris."

Her head snaps to the trees, eyes wide, waiting.

They were in the midst of their travel, heading to the Grand Peace Meeting, camping for rest in the witching hour. Eva did her best to keep away from Cedris and Ben, trying to give them both and herself peace. Lots of silent meals with wondering, curious eyes.

The intrusion was unexpected, unwanted.

There he was, his shoulders backing out from the trees, his body turned away from her as he guided someone with him.

She stares, frozen in the field, rain sloshing her skin. Who was with him?

A laugh paints the air, his own, and Eva can't help the anger that raises in her. She felt... jealous.

With arm extended, on the edge of a clutched hand, he held his wife.

Silent, unmoving, Eva watches as he spins her into the rain and dances with her, the two of them laughing together.

Here, in the dream plain, she could see how very much that wasn't her. The way her eyes crinkled when she laughed, the way her hair stayed light when wet, the onset of her natural flush was totally different.

Cedris led them, talking into her ear, piercing laugh filling their heads over and over.

As their bodies fully formed, Eva could see it now. The dress she wore on Samhain with him, this was the dance before her death. She couldn't dare interupt it.

The sweep of his eyes on her, the ease of their love, it was palpable. Eva felt pulsing aggression over it, wanting to rip it from them, to steal it for herself. Like a selfish, ruling child, Eva dared believe Cedris had forgotten his wife to love her instead. But he carried the weight with him, loving her despite it.

And then something she caught between them broke her. The way she took his hand in hers and swept it between her hips, a signifying gesture that made her burn inside.

Cedris had meant it, demanding she drink that tea. Because his wife had become pregnant it was a risk she might conceive as well. It was dangerous, in fact, to drop in at such a time.

The realization makes Eva step farther away from them, hands rushing to her mouth in shock, legs jostling the high grass.

The pair of them look to her, both startled by her presence. Cedris' shoulders straighten, face falling.

"I didn't know you were here," he calls through the rain, water bouncing on his lips. He takes a step, his wife reaching for his arm.

They share a look, silent discussion, and then her grip leaves him. "This space belongs to you two. I shouldn't be here." The words come from her like a winded bird, washing through Eva's ears.

"No," Cedris starts, turning back to her, shaking his head. "This space belongs to anyone."

But her head shakes too, eyes raking over Eva, a look of admiration coming forward. "You are hers now. I have no right to bug you."