Veil Of The Undying

Chapter 16

Liam

My brother has met his match. He may not be as overtly rude as Ava, but he shares her opinions.

Aria, on the other hand, seems so young and lost. The guy she's with has taken a nap, leaving her on watch. They don't trust us, but they also don't trust Ava-I can't blame them.

She gets up, and I assume she might need to go pee or something, but instead, she comes to sit next to me.

"Just so you know, if you need food, I can help," she says, her gaze fixed on the ground. "I just don't like being degraded for it." I understand why she reacted that way earlier; Ava was feigning concern while belittling her.

"You sure you want to share?" I ask, feigning surprise.

That earns me a small smile. Despite her sadness and exhaustion, her beauty still manages to shine through.

"I'm Liam, by the way," I introduce myself.

"Aria," she replies, her eyes still cast downward.

"Aria, please don't tell me the ground is more interesting than me. You can't seem to take your eyes off it," I joke.

She looks up for a brief moment before returning her gaze to the ground.

"Is he your brother?" she asks, glancing at Marcus.

I hesitate, wanting to deny any connection, but I reluctantly acknowledge the truth. "Yes."

She nods, a small, sorrowful smile touching her lips. "That's good," she says softly.

"Is he family or your boyfriend?" I ask, nodding towards Ronan. The question seems to amuse her, and she chuckles despite herself.

"No, I met him just a day ago," she responds.

"So, do you have any family?" I ask, hoping to engage her more.

Her expression falls immediately. She is silent for a moment, then shakes her head. Tears begin to well in her eyes as she turns away from me, still staring at the ground.

"It's nice to meet you, Liam," she says, her voice trembling with sadness and resignation. I realize I've touched on a painful subject-she must have lost her family recently.

She goes to sit next to Ronan, who stirs awake as she approaches.

Though I can't hear their conversation, it seems he tells her to rest while he keeps watch, because she lies down and he sits up.

I decide to take a nap as well. Ronan might not care much about us, but he clearly cares about Aria. If anything happens, he'll have to wake her, and she doesn't seem like the type to abandon anyone.

Out of everyone here, including my brother, Aria is the only one I trust not to be selfish and leave people behind. It's strange, considering I met her just six hours ago and barely spoke with her for ten minutes.