The Starling Saviour

Chapter 44

My sisters met my proposal with very different reactions.

'With pleasure,' Leyla smiled slightly sinisterly.

'I'm not so sure,' Rose shook me head with a worried frown. 'Murder? I can't... Kill someone, even if it is him.'

'Merlyn deserves to die,' Leyla said harshly. 'All he has done is bring misery to this world, and we definitely haven't been his exception.'

'I feel like I don't even know you anymore,' Rose shook her head in disbelief. 'You too, Aria.'

'That's because, sister, you don't,' Leyla narrowed her eyes directly at Rose. 'It's been a long time.'

'Then I can't be a part of this,' Rose stated sadly, before turning away to break from our gaze. 'I'm grateful, I really am, for what your friend did to save me, Aria, but I can't be surrounded by people who I used to look up to plotting an... Awful act. Goodbye, Leyla, Aria.'

'I think that was a bit harsh, Leyla,' I picked my sister up on her actions as soon as Rose had left.

'It's her loss,' Leyla carried on in her cold manner. 'But at least someone as innocent and good willed as her won't be holding us back.'

'I guess you're right,' I tried to accept Rose's departure. 'But I never got to explain to her what was going on, well, properly.'

'She'll come back if she wants to be our sister,' Leyla told me, sounding very sure of herself.

'I don't think we should count on that,' I bowed my head. 'Instead, we just lost Rose again.'

---

'I see Diggle took good care of you,' I smiled as I entered the hospital room Oliver was being kept in.

'He did,' Oliver answered just as happily. 'But I know for a fact John doesn't know how to backtrace the CD on a phone.'

He paused for a second, his ocean-blue eyes looking as though they were staring into my soul.

'Thank you.'

'It was nothing,' I laughed slightly.

'How is your sister?' Oliver suddenly asked, remembering about Rose.

'Oh, she's... Fine,' I said slowly. 'She was very thankful that you saved her, though.'

'Now that was nothing,' he winked, a twinkle in his voice.

'You've already had visitors,' I glanced over at the table next to the bed Oliver was resting in, spotting some familiar red-and-white striped items. 'Candy canes?'

'From Thea,' Oliver nodded. 'My family were very worried about the motorcycle accident I was in.'

'Oh, so that was your excuse?' I raised an eyebrow at him comically. 'Honestly though, Ollie, thank you for saving my sister. I don't know how you faced that archer.'

'Well, I wasn't perfect,' Oliver commented, gesturing to his injuries.

'But you were still brilliant,' I held Oliver's hand to comfort him.