The Vortex: Rectification

Chapter Six.

Chapter Forty-Six.

My heart is pounding hard in my chest, my sweaty hands are fisted around the soft fabric of the blanket I have wrapped around my body and the world swims in front of my vision. The roof is bathed in darkness, and the room we had once moved Aleera into has now become my sanctuary, the door is propped open with a freezing spell curtesy of Liylah and my eyes dart to the locked front door again.

There's no plausible way for Dracius and his cronies to know where I am right now, the entire idea doesn't make sense, but it doesn't help lessen my paranoia and with most of the people living in this townhouse upstairs. I feel this overwhelming desire to protect the rest of us, not with magic that I can't do but a steak knife I stowed under my pillow and keep my fingers tight around.

Pressure ripples across the bed, mattress dipping and my head whips in that direction with my hand ready to strike the intruder with the knife before their magic could swallow me. Jamie's blue eyes find me, hand bracketing my wrist against my pillow and letting the knife fall from my grip.

"Aurora?" He gasps, a low whisper full of shock. Eyes flickering between me and the knife I had attempted to wield.

"Sorry" I shake, the left-over adrenaline from my nightmare mixing with that fear I had that someone was about to come and rip me away from everything all over again. "I thought you were-"

Cold fingers swipe over my hot forehead, dark hair is plastered to my cheeks from my sweat and my fingers cling to his wrist the second he moves to pull away. I want to be alone, but I also am desperate for him to not leave me in the dark again.

"Don't apologise" He denies, my overhead light flicking on and illuminating the dark bags under his blue eyes. It shouldn't be comforting that over the last week he has had about as much rest as me. "It sounded like you were crying in your sleep as I walked past, I couldn't leave you here"

With Nessa and Harry occupying the two other rooms upstairs, Alexander and I's old rooms still his but mostly empty with his travels. It's strange knowing the others live in the other townhouse but when they describe the unintentional divide between everyone, I can see how it's developed.

I won't lie and say that a small prickle of disappointment doesn't hit me knowing that he didn't have some kind of second sense that I needed someone. It's totally unreasonable of me, but I find I have a lot of unbelievable thoughts now.

"Why are you over here then?"

Ocean eyes twinkle at me, pulling off the side of my bed he leaves his hands open for my taking, guiding me out of bed and onto the cold floor below. "Alexander is in Washington with a couple of other Resistance members trying to advocate for additional assistance as The Saviours continue to be one step ahead of the rest of us. Everyone else is at camps right now, Emma and Harry have their shifts at the hospital and as I'm the only one with free time, I help check on Aleera"

My heart thunders, "You do?"

His hands slides into mine, keeping me close as he leads me out of my bright room and into the dark hallways, my knees still ache when I ascend the stairs, but I don't let myself waver. It's an easy feat when Jamie's hand has slid so seamlessly onto my lower back and the feeling of it gives a momentary reprieve for my mind.

As much as being back has given me the chance to mull over everything I have experienced with Alexander in what to me is the close past. While finally having the chance to dwell and dissect everything that I squashed down about Jamie, as much as I tried too, figuring out your feelings for someone when under the impression you'll never see them again isn't as simple as anyone would have thought.