Chapter 40 - 38- On the Farmhouse.

Darian and she were mates.

Yes, she and the man who had made her life hell for the past weeks were apparently in love.

At least, that was what she had told the old couple when they took her and Darian back to their farm.

At first, Neria had wanted to tell them he was the Grand Duke, and everything that had happened to them but that didn’t seem like a good idea. Then she had thought about telling them they were siblings, but that was an obvious lie.

So she had told them they were mates.

It had been the first thing that came to her mind.

The old couple were Edina and Gale. They were kind enough to let them stay on their farm, and Neria had already decided she liked Edina and the cookies she gave her. She could hardly see the woman’s face, but earlier, when Edina had taken her hand to lead her into the house, Neria had felt the wrinkles beneath her fingers.

Now she sat quietly in a small room with Edina while a doctor examined Darian.

She could hear the faint sounds of him moving around, checking Darian’s breathing and asking a few questions that Darian obviously couldn’t answer.

Neria kept her hands folded in her lap.

"It’s a fever," the man finally said.

His voice had a noticeable accent, different from the people Neria was used to hearing but sounded close to Edina’s. "I’ll prescribe y’all something for him."

Neria frowned slightly.

"Will he be okay?"

The doctor was quiet for a moment before answering.

"He should be, but his fever is rather high. He needs plenty of rest, water, and someone to keep an eye on him."

Neria nodded slowly.

She glanced toward where she knew Darian was lying, though his figure was only a faint blur to her.

"He’ll be okay," she whispered. Honestly he had to! He still needed to take off this damned collar around her neck.

Speaking of the collar, Neria needed to come up with an excuse for the one around her neck. Thankfully, her cloak had kept it hidden so far, but she had no idea what she would say if Edina noticed it.

She looked up when the doctor began packing his things. She heard him move toward the door, but then he suddenly stopped.

"You should take care of those wounds on your feet, little lady. I’ll leave some ointment for you."

Neria instinctively pulled her feet back and hid them beneath her dress. She had almost forgotten about her injuries. With everything that had happened, she hadn’t had much time to think about the cuts and bruises. Now that the doctor had mentioned them, she could feel the sting returning.

Edina gasped. "Oh heavens."

Neria felt nervous as she heard the older woman approach. A moment later, Edina crouched beside her legs.

"How did you get hurt?"

"I was running..." Neria answered softly.

"Why?"

Neria hesitated.

She wasn’t sure what she could tell her. She couldn’t exactly say she had been running from people who had tried to hurt her that would just raise more questions.

Before she could think of an answer, Gale popped his head into the room.

"Are ya done, Harry?"

Neria turned toward the sound of his voice. She watched the doctor’s blurred figure move toward the doorway.

"Yes."

"How much is it?"

"It’s free. I can’t charge you for helping strangers."

Neria listened as their footsteps moved away. Soon, their voices faded until she could no longer hear them.

She looked down at Edina, who was still crouched beside her. "Let’s get you freshened up, sweetie," the old woman said gently.

Neria nodded and allowed Edina to help her to her feet. Her feet stung as soon as she put weight on them, but she tried not to complain.

Edina would start questioning again.

Edina led her into another room, keeping a gentle hold of her hand and slowing her steps whenever they came near something Neria might bump into. Neria followed carefully, feeling the floor beneath her feet and listening to Edina move around the unfamiliar space.

When they reached the room, Edina finally let go.

Neria heard her moving around, opening things and shifting objects before the quiet room was filled with the soft splash of water.

"Okay, I think it’s warm enough," Edina said.

She returned and took Neria’s hand, guiding her toward the tub. Neria could hear the faint sloshing of the water as they got closer.

Edina gently lowered Neria’s hand into it. "Is it okay?"

Neria let her fingers rest beneath the warm water for a moment before quietly nodding.

She couldn’t see Edina’s face, but she was almost certain the woman was smiling.

"Okay. There’s a towel here, and soap..." Edina guided her hands toward each of them, making sure Neria knew where everything was. "If you need anything else, just call me, okay?"

Neria nodded.

"Okay."

Edina gave her hand a small reassuring squeeze before stepping away, leaving Neria to herself.

When Neria heard the door close behind her, her knees finally gave out.

She caught herself against the edge of the tub, breathing slowly as the exhaustion she’d been holding back all day finally settled over her. She was tired. So tired that even standing felt like too much work.

And scared.

She just wanted to go home.

Home?

The thought made her pause.

Where was that now?

Did she even have one?

Neria wasn’t sure she could call the sea home anymore. The thought of it brought an uncomfortable ache to her chest. She could still remember the water surrounding her, the cold closing over her head, the terrible panic when she realized she couldn’t breathe.

After Ryver had pushed her into that lake, she had discovered something she hadn’t even known was possible.

She no longer had her tail and she couldn’t breathe underwater.

She had nearly drowned.

A Calypso drowning?

It sounded ridiculous.

But that was her reality now.

Neria slowly started to strip down, leaving her clothes within reach before carefully lowering herself into the tub. Warm water closed around her skin, and she let out a quiet breath as the heat began to chase away some of the cold that had settled into her bones.

But even the warmth couldn’t keep her thoughts from returning to the same question.

What was she now?

Her legs rested beneath the water, strange and unfamiliar. She flexed her toes beneath the surface, watching the faint ripples she could barely make out.

A human?

A landwalker too?

She didn’t know.

Neria lifted her hands from the water and felt them over her arms, almost as though she expected to find some answer beneath her skin.

Nothing.

Her fingers eventually found the necklace resting against her chest.

She touched the familiar shape carefully, tracing over it with her fingertips.

At least this was still hers.

Neria closed her eyes and let her head rest against the edge of the tub, her fingers still curled around the necklace as the warm water moved quietly around her.

Soon, she finished bathing.

Neria carefully climbed out of the tub, her wet feet meeting the cold floor. She reached for the towel Edina had left for her and wiped herself dry before wrapping it securely around her body.

Her hand instinctively went to the collar around her neck.

She had an excuse for it now. At least, she hoped it was a good enough one and then would believe her without question.

"Um... Edina... I’m done," she called softly.

A few seconds later, the door opened.

Neria turned toward the sound and saw Edina’s blurred figure step into the room. The woman took one look at her before suddenly stopping.

Neria’s stomach tightened.

Edina had seen it. "By the gods, what is that around your neck?"

She stepped closer, reaching toward the metal.

Neria quickly put on her most pitiful expression. "A slave collar..."

"What?"

"Some men kidnapped me..." Neria lowered her voice, letting it tremble. "And they put a collar on me. They were planning to sell me off..."

She paused, looking down as she carefully played with the edge of the towel. "Thankfully, my mate saved me, or else..." Her voice caught, and she forced out a small, choked sob.

Edina immediately stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her. "Oh, sweetheart."

Neria allowed herself to be pulled into the hug, her face resting against the woman’s shoulder.

"It’s okay," Edina murmured, rubbing her back. "No wonder you have those blisters on your feet."

Neria blinked.

Oh.

Those.

Why not just blame everything on that?

Technically, it wasn’t completely a lie. She had been running from bad people. She had been barefoot. And she had definitely been hurt.

"Yes..." she said quietly. "I had been running."

Edina pulled back and gently cupped Neria’s cheeks between her hands. "We’ll get that off you, okay?"

Neria went still.

Wait.

Her eyes widened slightly.

They could do that?

She had always thought the collar could only be removed by its master. That was what she had been told, at least. But if Edina knew someone who could take it off...

"You can do this?" Neria asked, unable to hide the hope in her voice.

"Of course." Edina smiled. "I’ll have Gale bring in a blacksmith tomorrow."

She took both of Neria’s hands and gave them a reassuring squeeze.

"We’ll get that horrible thing off you."

Neria stared at her through the blur.

Well screw Darian.

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Hi! A lot of you mag be asking yourself why updates have been slow lately.. well I recently started school... And... It’s messing with my health.. I also have a lot of false chaps to fix which I promise to! I may finish them by next two weeks .. but please don’t drop my book!

Okay will see y’all in the next two weeks