Chapter 43: The Wounds We Hide

Claire's POV.

The blood-and-ash smell permeated the nighttime air.  The pyres had long burnt out, but their smoke clung to my skin and ended up filling my lungs every time I took a breath.  I was not the only one who bore this heavy past, though, as the burden sat very heavy on my shoulders.  

Derek stood there with his back to me, seemingly paled by shadows, yet staring out into the black woods. It had been over an hour since he last moved.   

I hesitated and took a step forward.   

I whisper to him, "You ought to be resting."  

Derek stiffened his shoulders but did not turn his head. "You should, too."  

"If you do, I will."  

He laughed in a way that did not seem humorous.  "This is not how it works."" 

I frowned with an intense gaze on him.  I developed an exceptional sense of Derek during my stay at Redwater.  He bore everything that was thrown his way, under that icy, unreadable mask.  What he does not make known to anyone, he carries within himself in silence.  But it did have cracks tonight.  

I made another attempt, "Derek."  

Even though he did not look at me, he raised his hand to the scar that cuts from elbow to wrist. He would always do it when he thought no one was watching, and I have seen it before.  

I closed in on him again and got up close enough to see how his jaw was taut.  "What happened?" inquired I in a whisper.  

His golden eyes flickered in the dim light as he turned at last.  "You already know what happened."  "We prevailed."  

"I didn't mean that."  

After a string of contention, he simply shook his head and exhaled, "Talking about the past is pointless."  

I could ignore it. Just shake my head and leave him to suffer just like he always does. But that was not something inside of me would allow.  

"You can trust me."  

He chuckled bitterly this time. "Belief." It lingered with him again until he glanced away. "I once used to find meaning in that."  

Thick silence fell, never to be spoken between us.  

Then-  

"My dad trusted the wrong people," he suddenly declared. Even in that whisper, it had raw, sharp edges to it. "And they killed him."  

I didn't even breathe or move.  

That was the first time he acknowledged his father.  

Derek's eyes darkened as he looked over some unseen point. "I was sixteen at the time," he continued. "Back when I was still thinking that loyalty meant something and that honour was something noble." He smirked, shaking his head and releasing a breath. "Midnight Moon was different then. Jared's father, Luther, was in charge, not him.  

My spine prickled at the name.  

Nightshade, Luther. Even without northern territory, the whole world bravely feared the monster that had ruled Midnight Moon with an iron fist.  

Derek clenched his fingers at his sides. He and my father were once allied in a fight. Midnight Moon and Redwater stood as one, fighting alongside. This was, or so we believed. He gritted his jaw. "But when power is involved, hardly anything matters."  

I breathed deeply.  "He deceived your dad."  

Derek nodded once. The ambush was staged in our very household. My mother was taken even before she had the chance to scream, and my father was killed in front of my eyes. He lowered his voice.  "I barely managed to escape with my life."  

The weight of his words hurt my chest. "I'm so sorry," I mumbled.  

"Claire, I do not need your pity," came a short, staccato laugh.  

"That's not what I'm offering," I said, meeting his gaze.  "You're not doing this alone."  

There was something unreadable flickering in his eyes as he studied me for a long time.  Then he finally breathed slow after that.  

Mugged, he affirmed, "I don't know how to let it go."  

Neither did I. But maybe we wouldn't have to do it alone.  

I opened my mouth for the first word, but we forgot all else when a petrifying rustling came from the trees.  

Already in motion, Derek’s body hunkered down as his senses knew that there was something in the noise.  I looked after him, my heart racing.  

Then-  

A figure rose from the shadows.  

No Midnight Moon warrior.  No rebel.  

Just a man.  

Scrawny.  Wounded.  Eyes wide with despair.  

Recognized immediately.  

Samuel.  

The entrusted enforcer of Jared.  

But he was not there to fight.  

He was running.  

And when he finally saw us, he lurched forward, blood all over his chest and breathing heavily.  

He gasped, "Help me."  "She will murder us all."  

Derek stepped forward, his face a closed book.  "Who?"  

Samuel swallowed in laboured breaths once before-  

"Lila."  

That name sent a tingle down my spine.  

Derek clenched his jaws again, "What did she do?"  

Fearfully, Samuel shook his head.  "She is running it now.  Midnight Moon no longer belongs to Jared.  They are now against him because of her.  

My stomach put itself in a knot.  

Namely, I was aware she was dangerous. But this was just a bit much.    

Derek's golden eyes flashed as we exchanged glances.  

"She's on her way," Samuel muttered.  "And she won't give up until she destroys everything with fire."  

I felt cold.  

Because I thought he was real.  

And I realized for the first time—  

Our biggest issue was no longer Jared.  

It was Lila.  

We were on the verge of war because of her.