“I will start a fire,” Rhulle spoke just as coldly. The blond cast a confused look at hearing him speak, still very on guard with the whole situation.
She stopped the man from retrieving his gun, absolutely refusing him the opportunity. Already intruding on Rhulle by bringing an unwelcome guest, best friend or not, Owen shouldn’t have come here until she had the chance to smooth things over at the very least. He expressed his concerns about being defenceless, Avie assuring him that they would just talk, everything would be alright.
The fire crackled to life, warming the guests and the atmosphere. In the light of the blaze, Rhulle took a seat as well across from them both.
The woman didn’t know where to start, rather how to start. A silence filled the gap instead.
“So… How long?”
“I’m sorry?” she asked, unsure what he was referring to in this instance.
“How long have you known about this, how long have you been playing ignorant with me and this investigation?”
He was frustrated to say the least, keeping an eye on the feathered being, cerulean eyes flicked between Avie and him.
“It is not like that; this whole thing was accidental. That night I came to you freezing and a little roughed up… that’s when I first met him. I didn’t actually get to know him until later, he came to me, we were both curious about the other and it just so happens that we have become friends.”
“Friends?” he laughed incredulously, looking back over at the copper coloured stare that bore into him, “Avie, I need to have a word with you before this continues, alone.”
She wanted them to talk, having all of them present in the area to listen and understand. Already the librarian wanted to separate, uncomfortable with occupying the same space as Rhulle. She knew it looked bad, essentially lying to him for the better part of a month, however this was the chance to explain everything. It didn’t feel right to speak in hushed whispers excluding a member.
Avie also didn’t want Owen to turn and run, if she had to clear a few things privately, so be it. She looked over at Rhulle, he nodded in agreeance with soft eyes.
They left to the adjacent kitchen and subsequently into the dining room, murmuring out of range of hearing.
“Aves, what the hell do you mean ‘friends’? That thing isn’t even human, it’s killed hundreds of people! It’s the one causing people to die, you’re smarter than this!”
“He doesn’t do it just for the sake of it, he needs to eat just like all of us. I agree, it’s terrible that he needs to feed on us, but I can’t condemn him for it. I thought you might understand that too…”
A few seconds of silence fell between them, Owen holding back with saying something, uncertainty and hesitation evident across him.
“He could be saying anything, how do you know that’s the truth? He could kill you at any moment, you know that, right?”
“Of course I know that, you think I haven’t thought about it too? I don’t know if it’s an if or a when, and I certainly don’t know if he has even thought about it… but I trust him. I trust him not to, just as much as I have certainty with you. All I’m asking is that you believe me on this.”
Owen scratched the back of his neck; caught in the middle of a situation he never saw coming, “I do believe you; I just don’t know if I can trust him.”
“He is part of the mystery, we almost have all of the pieces, we just have to line them up.”
“And then what? What do we do when we have the answer? We know why people are dying now, how many people have to keep ‘disappearing’ in the meantime? I don’t think I can remain quiet on that, Avie.”
Her heart skipped a beat as it dropped to her stomach, for whatever reason, she couldn’t picture the future without Rhulle. She hadn’t thought very much about what exactly would happen, but it was never ‘he was caught or killed’ scenario. The truxen became a close friend as they bonded in secret—a completely different connection than what she had with Owen. There was a way, she knew it, a way to keep everyone alive.
“Owen… You can’t. W-we-we would—we just need some time. We might find an alternative for him.”
“It’s not right, if I can stop an innocent person from dying, then I can, and I will.”
She could almost feel the anger bubbling in her body, why did he not see that it was still unfair to Rhulle? His only crime was staying alive. Avie’s words expressed themselves, coming out before she rationally thought about them, “If he goes then I go too!”
“Aves, c’mon, this is stupid. Think about what you’re saying please.”
“No! It would be the same for you. I don’t want anyone to get hurt, believe me, I don’t; but that doesn’t mean he should either.”
“Don’t compare his life to yours, you shouldn’t even have to think about this! He’s changed you in some way, brainwashed you into thinking like this, you need to wake up!”
“Owen, I’m serious. I won’t let him be caught… I need to know; can I trust you?”
She felt awful in that moment, manipulating the blond into staying quiet. But she couldn’t let him out Rhulle’s existence, this whole situation wasn’t fair to either of them. She hoped, maybe, Owen would be as excited as she was to discover an out of this world being, but all he could see was a monster, not who Rhulle was, not his mind or soul—just what was, to him, a killer.
Avie knew that Owen didn’t want to lose her. He knew she was serious.
How serious?
He sighed, low and through his nose, “Yeah, Avie, you can trust me. We’ll figure this out, together.”
Relief coursed through, her temporary
