Chapter 26

"She's only protecting herself," Aveline declared, intent on peeling an orange with her small, slender fingers. She had spent the last hour with Ari on the terrace and didn't want to go inside just yet, soaking up the rays of the sun that so rarely emerged from the Verignes clouds. "You rejected her the last time, now she's doing it first so she can't be hurt."

It had been a few days since Jamie's departure from Verignes. Things in the kingdom had been quiet.

The night before, they'd received from a letter from their friend. As they'd suspected, Ben appeared to have simply come down with a fever; nothing else, which came as a great relief, but Jamie was staying a few extra days to be sure.

Eli had been to the village again that morning with his guards to visit the afflicted; and he'd reported no significant differences, which was good- at least it meant things weren't getting worse.

Aveline was antsy to reveal their findings about Peter, but they were still waiting on the witch coven to figure out what sort of drug was in his system before they reported it to any of the royal officials. Once they discovered what it was, they could more easily trace where it had come from. Until then, they couldn't do much else.

To bide the time, Aveline had brought up Jamie, naturally, and with no one else around Ari had finally let his walls down, his masked expression crumbling into bewilderment as he told her everything that had happened before Jamie had left. Currently he slumped backwards in his cushioned chair, glaring at the glass table in front of him.

"What makes you so sure?"

"I know Jamie, and I know you." Aveline tossed one of the loose peels to the grass below, idly hoping there were no guards around to scold her. "You two have always been similar in that way; guarded about your emotions. The only difference is that Jamie thinks she can sneak around with you while convincing herself that she doesn't have real feelings. You, on the other hand..." she blew out a breath. "You can't do things half-assed; you're either all in or all out. But at least you're being honest. She's just fooling herself."

"I don't think that's it." As Ari traced the thin lines on the table with his fingers, his jaw tightened in a way that made Aveline sit up.

"Alright then." She set down her orange. "What do you think it is?"

"Dammit, Aveline," he groaned. "Could we talk of something else?"

"Ari."

"It doesn't matter! It's not important. People are dying in Verignes, my trivial problems are of little significance-"

"You always do this," she complained. "You're allowed to have emotions, you know."

Ari hesitated, and Aveline waited, crossing her legs and she lifting her face to the sun. It felt light and soothing in an otherwise overcast kingdom. She had missed this; being outside, letting the sunshine warm her skin.

"I think it's me," Ari blurted in a rush, briefly surprising her. "I don't think anyone can love me. Not the way that you do."

His confession made Aveline flinch. She'd known her friend's thoughts on this, of course, but to hear him say it aloud made her chest hurt. And he looked so solemn, it reminded her of a similar expression he used to make when he was a little boy.

"That's only because I know you," she said with emphasis, willing him to listen. "I've known you since I was eight. You've saved my life on multiple occasions, and I've saved your life... I don't know, a hundred more times than that..." he rolled his eyes, and she continued, "Ari, anyone who knows you—really knows you, loves you."

Ari stared at the ground, blinking. She knew he likely didn't believe her, and was tempted to argue her point further. But his eyes were wet, she could tell, so Aveline changed the subject.

"If it weren't for the job, I almost wish we would have gone with Jamie," she commented. "I miss the ship. And does this kingdom seem a bit off to you? It gives me the creeps."

Ari's eyes flicked to her. "What do you mean? Is something wrong?"

He missed nothing. Aveline tensed in her seat.

"Is it that imbecile boy again?"

She hesitated. "Well-"

"Pardon me," One of the Verignes guards appeared in front of their table, then, looking incredibly awkward as he tugged on his collar.

Ari appraised him like he was a piece of bad shrimp. "What the hell do you want?"

"I believe Lady Quincy was looking for both of you."

"Fine." Ari stood up, shucking the collar of his coat, and Aveline rose to her feet as well.

The guard coughed. "Also, Miss, um... are those your fruit peels on the ground?"

Aveline scooped her last orange slice from the table and popped it into her mouth.
"No," she called behind her shoulder as she grabbed Ari's sleeve and towed him away.

-

There was a knock on her door as she was preparing herself for afternoon tea.

"Come in." Aveline fastened her earring, watching the silver gleam in the mirror across from her.

"Aveline, I was just.." Eli closed the door almost immediately after he'd opened it. "Oh! I beg your pardon, I'm so sorry-"

"It's quite fine, Eli, I said you could come in." Confused, Aveline tugged the strap of her nightgown up from where it had fallen on her shoulder. "What was it you wanted to tell me?"

She could practically hear him blushing through the door. "You're not dressed."

"I beg to differ. I'm wearing a dress right now." Aveline had never understood the strange customs of modesty that they expected in the East. It was strange; rarely did the women in this region wear their gowns above the ankles, and yet somehow it was appropriate that Camille's necklines were often so low and tight that Aveline worried she would pop right out of them. (Only Ari had laughed at that comment when she'd spoken it at breakfast that morning. Pity). "Anyhow, I wear trousers on the ship all the time. My dressing gown is hardly a concern for scandal."

He gave a muffled groan. "So? Are you decent?"

"You know, I've never understood that saying."

"Aveline."

"Fine." She pulled her gauzy brown shawl off of the hook and slipped it around her shoulders.

"May I come in?"

Aveline raised her eyes to the ceiling. "Yes."

A moment later Eli opened the door. His cheeks still held a touch of pink, and Aveline couldn't help but snicker.
"And here I thought you were an enormous flirt," she teased him.

"I'm still a gentleman, Aveline."

"Whatever." Eli came over to sit beside her, and she set down her mirror, turning to face him. He gently took ahold of her chin.

"God," he muttered. "You drive me mad."

Aveline flushed, fiddling with a loose curl on her shoulder. Get ahold of yourself, Aveline. "Any updates on our assignment?"

"None." Eli let his hand fall from her face, his apparent reluctance in doing so making her stomach flutter. "I'm worried that we still haven't told anyone that the villagers have access to drugs."

"We don't know who we can trust here, Eli."

He didn't respond, and she felt just a tiny bit of guilt; the East was Eli's home region, after all. But it wasn't her fault that nearly everyone in the palace was either suspicious or stupid.

"Unless you can obtain us an audience with Lady Belthrop," Aveline added, "because she's the only authority beside you who's shown any signs of wanting to help."

"I'm working on it." Eli's hand reached up to rub his neck. "Everyone says she's ill."

"Right. That's why she was at the ball last night, happily shoving meatballs into her gullet."

Eli chuckled, taking his hands in hers. "It's fine, Aveline. We'll figure this out together."

She allowed herself to smile.
"I can live with that."

His head tilted as he examined her face. "You look pale."

"Yes," Aveline said absently.

Eli's grip tightened. "Are you ill?"

"No."

A bit of panic escaped into his voice, then. "Are you certain?!"

"I'm not infected, Eli. Trust me, I would know if had been."

"But you are feeling unwell?"

"Maybe. Perhaps I have whatever Ben has; a virus or some such."

"Do you need anything? I can fetch some medicine from the coven."

"I'm fine, Eli. Truly."

"You swear it?"

"Yes." Aveline laughed, raising his hand to her mouth and letting her lips skim the bridge of his knuckles.

Eli slowly nodded, though the frown between his eyebrows hadn't quite disappeared completely. "Alright."

"Now, get out." She gave him a little push. "I have to get dressed so we can eat."

Eli snickered and stood up to give her privacy. Then he opened the door, turning at the last minute to give her a small, crooked grin, and Aveline thought she could be content for the rest of her life if she could see Eli smile whenever she wanted.

-

Later that evening, Aveline stood at the edge of the shoreline, wiggling her toes in the sand. The overall shape of the Verignes island was wavy and curving, the land dipping inward to hide its bays and small pockets of water.

They'd concealed the ship quite nicely in a cove by the forest, hidden by the grove of trees just around the corner from where Aveline lingered now, watching a small starfish tucked under the tide.

She picked up the lower half of her loose, coffee-colored skirt and tied it into a knot at her waist before squatting down and touched the starfish with one finger, skimming along its rough, bumpy surface. A wave stretched out and softly curled around her feet, creating a tingly sensation; the temperature much colder than she was used to.

It was here that Aveline decided that Verignes wasn't quite so bad, after all. It contained a breathtaking sort of beauty that had nothing to do with the fine palaces and silvery marble and gowns with expensive lace at the collar. It was more-

"Ouch!" Without warning, a sharp pain shot up her arm. Aveline yanked her hand out of the water in shock. Her legs didn't feel tingly anymore, rather, it was as if they were suddenly on fire, the abrupt stinging sensation causing her to stumble backwards and fall into the water.

Cool liquid soaked through her skirt that now puddled around her in wads of drenched fabric, temporarily easing the burning that had seemed to rush upon her without warning.

Panting, Aveline scrambled backwards, her knees scraping against the sharp pebbles on the sand.

The pain was so excruciating, now, it felt like someone had stuck thin needles into her skin. Waves pounded in her ear like a roaring heartbeat. Aveline took a shaky gulp of air, fighting to control herself before she could begin panicking.

Shh, Avie, you're alright.

She sat there in agony until gradually the sound- and pain- receded. Finally all that remained was the decelerated breathing in her own lungs and the chilly breeze nipping at her wet skin.

Aveline lifted her hand to her face in wonder, expecting to see the angry red marks of a jellyfish sting, but her entire hand was nearly translucent, the color so sickly and pale it was almost glowing.

She bit back a muffled scream, clamping her mouth shut, but a strangled sound managed to escape her throat, and a moment later Inez appeared around the corner.

"Aveline?" She hurried over, concern written on the planes of her face, and Aveline hastily hid her left arm behind her back. "Are you alright? What happened?"

Aveline took Inez's extended hand and let it yank her to her feet. "Apologies," she mumbled, her stomach churning. "I fell."

"You.. fell?" Inez's confusion quickly morphed into surprise as she scanned Aveline's half-drenched figure. "Your knees are bleeding."

Aveline followed her stare to a scarlet droplet that slid down her bare leg. "Oh." She felt numb. What the hell had just happened?

"Let's clean that up," said Inez sternly, offering her other arm. Aveline wiped her hand on her blouse, sparing a rapid glance to the skin which, thankfully, seemed to have regained its normal color before letting Inez take it.

"I'm fine, truly," she insisted while she hobbled back to the ship, her soggy skirt clinging to her. The skin on her legs felt raw; like the sensation of cold air on an exposed injury, but it was a relief compared to the throbbing agony she had experienced before.

Aveline stayed silent while Inez bandaged her up. Inez didn't press her. Inside, Aveline was reeling.

Had she imagined it all? Was she going mad? Or was she simply in denial of what was truly happening here?

She couldn't decide, even as she lay motionless in her bed that night, waiting on sleep that she knew would never come.

What was happening to her?

**poor Avie... any guesses on what her deal is??
So, just a non-spoilery warning, the next chapter will be kind of different ;) I hope you guys will like it tho!!**