The Avarian Chronicles: A Tear In The Veil

by K. M. Randall

  “Just makes sense that we go together,” he shrugged. I eyed him for a moment.

  “Yeah, it does,” I agreed. “I’ll see you around six?”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Won’t you be cold?” Sash frowned as I spread my arms and spun. My little green dress spun around me. It was more of a summer dress than one suitable for the cool weather but it was pretty. And tonight, I wanted to be pretty.

  “There’s always a fire,” I reminded her. I turned to the mirror and fussed with my hair. Who was I trying to impress?

  “I suppose. Did you talk to Blaine?”

  “No,” I admitted, lowering my gaze. “We talked… but not about that.”

  Sash didn’t comment but her silence told me her opinion.

  “You are coming, right?” I asked her.

  “Yeah. I’ll be there with Oliver.”

  Oliver was her husband. They’d been married a few years now and though I rarely saw them together, the times I did always made me jealous. Their relationship was beautiful.

  There was a knock on the door. I glanced at the clock, knowing it was nearly six anyway. Sash gave me a knowing smile.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” she said. “See you in a bit.”

  She opened the door and slipped out, leaving Blaine to stand in the doorway. I sat down on the sofa and pulled my boots close.

  “I’m nearly ready,” I promised as I slid my foot into one of the boots. They were soft inside and came up to my knees, giving me some warmth for the evening.

  “You look good,” he said once I was standing. I tucked my purse into the back of my boot and gave him a shy smile. “Are we walking or taking a carriage?”

  “I actually had another idea,” I said as I joined him at the door.

  “What idea is that?”

  “I’ll show you.”

  He frowned as I led the way down the stairs and through the East Wing to the stables. Caz and a white horse called Blue were already saddled up and waiting for us.

  Blaine’s face lit up.

  “Hey, boy,” he said, taking the reins from the boy who’d been holding them. “This stuff’s nicer than what I made you wear, eh?”

  I grinned as Blue rubbed his head against my thigh.

  “Let’s go,” I said, walking to Blue’s side and climbing up into the saddle. Even though it had been a long time since I’d ridden, it felt right to be in the saddle again. Blaine climbed up onto Caz’s back and glanced my way.

  “You arranged this?”

  “I just asked Trish to have Caz and Blue ready for six,” I said with a shrug. He smirked at me.

  We rode down to the festival quietly. The sky was a haze of pinks, blues and purples and the air still had warmth as the sun made its slow descent behind the mountains. Leaves were blowing about in the breeze and I couldn’t help but think that this evening was perfect. If only everything else could fall into place just as easily.

  The sounds of the festival greeted us first. The streets were busy as we approached the open grassland on the outskirts of the town. Loads of carriages were parked on the grass nearby and horses roamed freely among them. Seeing the festival and feeling the excitement in the air, it was hard to believe the coup had only been a year ago.

  “Who actually plans these festivals?” Blaine asked as we dismounted.

  “The Council, technically,” I said. “But it’s funded by my father.”

  We knotted the horses’ reins and left them to graze. In the distance I could see a big bonfire being lit and a stage set up with music playing. There were dozens of stalls dotted around, selling food and drink. As we neared I couldn’t help but let the atmosphere lighten my mood.

  “Ashley!”

  Remy almost knocked me over as she hugged me. I could smell cider on her breath and rolled my eyes as I pushed her back a little.

  “You’re already drunk?” I asked her. She grinned.

  “It’s the Autumn Equinox, give me a break! Come on, let’s get a drink.”

  Her eyes slid to Blaine and widened slightly. He raised his eyebrows a little.

  “You coming?” I asked him.

  “I think my mother’s here somewhere,” he shrugged. “I’ll find you later.”

  Remy all but dragged me away.

  “He is way hotter than I remember,” she hissed in my ear. “Tell me why you’re not sleeping with him again?”

  I laughed awkwardly as she pulled me over to one of the stalls. There was a short queue outside it as people waited for their drinks.

  “Rita’s being lame and hanging with Connor,” Remy explained as we joined the queue. “But Ben’s here and I need a girlfriend to help me get in there.”

  “I’m like the worst person for that.”

  “Why? Because you’re famous?” She snorted. “Even better. If you tell him I’m awesome he’ll have no choice but to listen to you.”

  She rambled on about her plans to win Ben over as we got our drinks. Gavin was running the stall with his usual smile.

  “I’m gonna cut you off soon,” he warned Remy. She jeered at him.

  “I’m not afraid to go to Ray’s stall,” she shot back. He rolled his eyes and handed us our drinks.

  We made our way across to the stage, where a band was playing. Most musicians in Avaria were local favourites and most of it would be considered folk or country in the human realm. Our instruments were more or less the same, though the type of music made with those instruments was definitely different.

  “There he is,” Remy whispered, grabbing my arm and pointing at a group of guys nearby. “Should I go over?”

  “Damn, keep it in your pants,” I told her. “Why the rush?”

  “Donny’s here with his fiancé and I need him to see me with someone else.”

  And I thought I had relationship issues.

  “Hey, girls.”

  Sash appeared with Oliver. They both grinned at us and I gave her a quick hug.

  Remy somehow managed to put a pin in her need to make Donny jealous and we talked for a while. Rita joined us at some point and we all laughed and drank as the music played.

  “Refills!” Remy declared, bringing fresh drinks over on a tray.

  “Those are shots,” Rita pointed out. There were at least a dozen on the tray.

  “Exactly. You guys need to catch up.”

  Oliver declined a shot so we all shared them instead. By the time I’d had the third one, I was starting to wonder if I’d fall off Blue on the way home later.

  “Now, we can have fun!” Remy insisted, putting the empty tray on a nearby table and grabbing mine and Rita’s hand. I gave Sash a pleading look but she just laughed as Remy dragged us out into the middle of the grass where everyone had started dancing.

  I almost forgot about Blaine until I spotted him in between spins standing at a nearby stall with a few others. When I saw his dad standing beside him, I almost fell over.

  “You okay?” Rita asked me.

  “Yeah,” I replied, giving her a weak smile. Blaine was looking seriously annoyed as his father talked animatedly to him. “I’ll be right back.”

  Maybe the alcohol was making me more ballsy because when Darren scowled in my direction, I narrowed my eyes before turning my attention back to Blaine. When he saw me walking over, he cocked an eyebrow.

  “Dance with me?” I asked him, taking his hand before he could answer.

  “We’re actually in the middle…

  “I’m sure it can wait,” I interrupted Darren sweetly. “This is the Autumn Equinox after all.”

  He stared at me, clearly shocked. Blaine placed his glass on the nearby table before letting me pull him away.

  “You know I’ll have to pay for that later?” he asked me as I pushed my way through the crowd.

  “Let’s make it worthwhile then,” I replied simply, facing him. I placed my hands on his shoulders and his slid around my waist. “What’s he even doing here?”

  “I have no idea,” he admitted. “
Probably come to spy on us.”

  “Why would he do that?”

  “Because he’s not your biggest fan.”

  “The feeling is mutual.”

  He grinned.

  “I think someone is a little drunk.”

  “And someone else clearly needs a few more,” I retorted.

  “One of us needs a clear head. I’ll have to carry you to your horse.”

  The music wasn’t exactly meant for slow dancing so we kind of just fell into step with everyone else. I’d not expected him to be into it but he was smiling as we moved, spinning me around and laughing when I nearly faceplanted the grass. Remy and Rita found us, Rita now accompanied by Connor and Remy with another guy who definitely wasn’t Ben or Donny.

  For a while, we were just a group of people dancing and having fun. Night fell quickly and the bonfire burned brightly as we danced. Fireflies made their appearance along the outskirts of the stalls.

  “I need a drink,” Rita declared suddenly. She shot her sister a scowl. I glanced at Remy and saw her and her new friends locked at the mouth as they danced.

  “Agreed,” I said. Rita tapped Remy on the shoulder but was waved off. She shrugged and we made our way to Gavin’s stall for fresh drinks.

  Once we had drinks, we sat down at an empty table.

  “So,” Rita said, her eyes flashing to Blaine. “How’s things in the human realm? Still tough?”

  “Manageable,” Blaine replied vaguely. “I don’t think we’re any closer to a solution though.”

  “Those attacks are terrible,” Connor said, wrapping his arm around Rita’s waist. “I can’t imagine what it must be like seeing them up close.”

  “It’s not great,” Blaine said before taking a long gulp of cider. I tapped my fingers on my glass.

  “So, how’d you two meet?” I asked Rita.

  “Connor’s dad renovated our house last year,” Rita said, giving Connor a warm smile.

  “She kept bringing us drinks and snacks,” Connor added.

  “It was hot,” Rita smirked. “This pig thought he could kiss me one day.”

  “To be fair, you were hinting at it for a while,” Connor reminded her.

  “I was hinting at you asking me out, not kissing me.”

  “You loved it.”

  They bickered over their story for a while. I glanced at Blaine, who was gazing off into the distance, his shoulders tense. When he realised I was looking, he stiffened and met my gaze.

  “I’ll be back,” he muttered. He rose from his seat and stalked off.

  “What was that about?” Rita frowned. I turned my eyes to the direction he’d been staring and saw a blonde girl sitting a few benches over. Her eyes were on me, narrowed slightly.

  “No idea,” I replied slowly, though I was starting to get a bad feeling in my stomach.

  The blonde girl glanced in the direction Blaine had gone then back to me, unabashed that I had seen her looking. She was quite pretty, with pale blonde hair and she looked taller than I was. Almost instantly, I despised her.

  I sat there for a few minutes, not really sure what to do. The irrational part of me wanted to go over there and put the pretty stranger in her place. But I knew that was a bad idea. When I couldn’t stand it any longer, I stood up.

  “I’m going to find Blaine.”

  I left the table and started searching the area.

  It didn’t take me long to find him. He was standing off from the main festival, leaning on a tree next to a horse that was grazing. He was staring off into the darkness, oblivious to my approach.

  “She’s pretty.”

  His head jerked in my direction, eyes wide.

  “What?”

  “The girl. The one who cheated on you.”

  He stared at me for several long moments.

  “How did you know?”

  “Because I’m not an idiot.”

  I moved and leaned against the tree beside him, folding my hands behind me. I ran my fingers over the bark gently.

  “I haven’t seen her since…” He sighed. “It just threw me.”

  “I get it,” I said quietly. “I’m sorry you had to see her stupid face again.”

  He chuckled, though it died in his throat quickly.

  “We can go if you like.”

  He gave me a funny look.

  “I’m not going to ruin your night.”

  “You’re not,” I shrugged. “Everyone’s getting drunk and reckless now anyway.”

  He shook his head.

  “Let’s go back.”

  “Blaine, you don’t have to.”

  He took my hand and pulled me away from the tree.

  “Let’s dance.”

  I looked at him unsurely. He gave me a weak smile and led me back to the festival.

  The mood was different between us now. He pulled me close but didn’t meet my gaze. A lot of people were still dancing drunkenly but we kept away from them. Blaine’s grip on my waist was tight and the fact that he wouldn’t look me in the eye just made me want to go.

  “Let’s go,” I said, pulling away from him. He frowned at me. “You’re not into this.”

  “I’m sorry,” he sighed. I forced a smile and tugged on his hand.

  “It’s fine. I just want to say bye first.”

  Blaine joined me at the table. Sash had taken my vacated space. I told them we were heading home but my eyes kept glancing in the direction of the blonde girl.

  “So soon?” Rita pouted.

  “Yeah. It’s been a long day.”

  “Okay, well don’t fall off the horse, okay?”

  This time, she was looking at me again. All the irrational thoughts rose up again.

  And they won.

  I heard Blaine call my name as I turned on my heel and marched over to her. She was stood up with a few other girls now. Her eyes widened as I approached.

  “Hi,” I said with a smile. She stared at me. “I believe you know my fiancé?”

  Her face turned crimson. I clenched my fists, but kept them tightly at my sides.

  “I just wanted to thank you,” I told her. “If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be together.”

  She was absolutely speechless. I smirked.

  “I don’t know what you mean,” she finally managed to say. I narrowed my eyes.

  “Whatever you say,” I said before leaning closer. “I know what you did to him. And unless you want me to ruin you, I suggest you stay away from both of us and keep your legs shut in the future.”

  She gaped at me as I moved away again. Her friends were looking at me curiously.

  “Have a good night,” I told the rest of them with a friendly smile before returning to Blaine. He was staring daggers at me.

  “What the hell was that?” he demanded, grabbing my arm and pulling me to his side.

  “Nothing,” I shrugged. “Just a little girl chat.”

  He glanced over my shoulder at her.

  “What did you say?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “It matters to me.”

  “I thanked her,” I told him. He released me, looking confused.

  “You thanked her?”

  “Yes. I thanked her because if she hadn’t shown her true colours, we never would’ve been engaged.”

  Something changed in his eyes even though his lips were still a thin line.

  “And I also told her to keep her legs shut in the future.”

  Chapter 26

  Blaine had been awfully quiet the whole journey home. The longer his silence lasted, the more I regretted what I’d done.

  It hadn’t been my place to do or say anything. I’d interfered in something that wasn’t any of my business anyway. Even if Blaine and I were betrothed, his past had nothing to do with me, even if the thought of it had stirred up some primal jealousy inside me.

  I’d crossed a line.

  When we reached our suites, I couldn’t bring myself to leave the night without saying anything.

  �
��I’m sorry!” I blurted before he could shut his door. He sighed and turned to face me. “I just… I was angry.”

  “Why?” His tone was sharp.

  “Because she betrayed you,” I said weakly. “You told me you don’t trust easily because of it. I know I shouldn’t have done anything but… I couldn’t stop myself.”

  “I’m not angry, Ash.”

  “Then why aren’t you talking to me?”

  I didn’t mean for it to come out so needy but even I winced.

  “I have a lot to figure out.”

  “We both do.”

  I wasn’t ready for this conversation, but I guess it was coming anyway.

  “I don’t want to fight with you again.”

  “Neither do I.” I swallowed hard, forcing the emotion out of my voice. “Why don’t you come into my suite and… we can talk.”

  He hesitated, looking deeply uncomfortable. Heat filled my cheeks.

  “You know what?” I mumbled. “It’s fine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  I hurried to my room before he could speak again.

  The fire was burning gently, giving warmth to the room. I collapsed onto the sofa and stared at the flames, feeling like I’d ruined the whole night with my stupid outburst. Why couldn’t I just leave it alone? I wanted to blame the alcohol but my head was perfectly clear now. I’d acted like a jealous teenage girl, lashing out at his ex. I let out a long breath and tugged my boots off, tossing them onto the rug.

  I had just taken the second one off when there was a knock on the door. I stared at it for several long moments before walking over to it, heart pounding. I opened it and met Blaine’s hard gaze.

  “Can I come in?” he asked. I swallowed hard and stood back to let him in. He walked inside, running his hand through his hair.

  I closed the door, keeping my gaze on the floor. Now the dreaded conversation had arrived, I wished I could bury it again. We’d had such a good evening and now I felt like I could cry into my pillow like a little girl.

  “Why did you really talk to Zara?”

  I finally looked up at him.

  “Because I was angry.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “You do know, you just don’t want to say it.”

  “Because she cheated on you!” I snapped, surprising myself. “You like to act all tough but what she did to you messed you up. You don’t trust easily now, because of her. And you’re keeping me at arms-length because of it.”