Vivyka sat on her windowsill in her tiny bedroom and smoked a cigarette, being careful to keep the smoke outside since she wasn’t supposed to be smoking in the house. Taking a final drag, she put it out in a glass ashtray, which she hid it in the top drawer of her dresser. She changed out of her short nightgown and into some tight black pants and a burgundy t-shirt, then headed downstairs to help with breakfast. But halfway to the kitchen, she heard a name that stopped her cold.
“Mathias.” It was Lotus’ voice.
Vivyka crept to the doorway, keeping herself out of sight, and listened.
“Mathias?” Julia repeated.
“Tess calls him Matt,” she clarified.
“Oh gods,” Julia gasped.
“I know,” Lotus agreed. “Of all the men Sera could have fallen in love with.” She sighed. “I mean, I don’t know much about him, but he’s Kieran’s son. Even if he did come through in the end, people don’t just change overnight. And I’m not sure that I believe her son can change at all.”
Vivyka’s eyes stung with furious tears. An image of her abusive ex-boyfriend hurting Sera flashed through her mind, and her lips pressed together angrily.
“Can’t you talk to her?” Julia asked.
“Cael tried,” Lotus said, “but it’s Sera. Once her course is set, nothing deters her.”
She won’t be able to stay on that course if he’s dead, Vivyka thought fiercely.
“Where is he now?” Julia asked.
“She said he went home, to Halimi,” Lotus answered. “She has to get back to the temple, but she’s already talking about going to visit him soon.”
Don’t worry. I’ll visit him first.
“Has she told Tess yet?” Julia asked, obviously worried.
“Tess and Ayden were busy when she got into town last night.” Lotus laughed softly. “So she told them this morning.”
Ayden’s finally getting some, Vivyka thought. About time.
“I really don’t want to think about my daughter doing… that.”
“Oh, stop,” Lotus told her, her tone amused. “It’s natural. Besides, at least it’s Ayden now.”
Julia sighed. “I still can’t believe she was actually with that Matt guy.”
But she would never be with a guy like that, Vivyka thought. Could he have actually forced Tess? She remembered his strength and believed that if anyone could, it was him. No wonder Tess was back home so soon. That’s why she had been so miserable when Vivyka had seen her before. And Ayden… did he know?
“But she’s with Ayden now, as she should be,” Lotus said.
“Yes,” Julia agreed. “Anyway, I hope Sera’s okay. I couldn’t stand to see her get hurt.”
Lotus sighed. “I worry that she just doesn’t see the bad in people. She wants to believe everyone is good, and there are people who just aren’t—a hard lesson I had to learn myself.”
Vivyka didn’t need to hear any more. She ran back up the stairs to her room, found an old bag under the bed, and packed the essentials—a few articles of clothing, a dagger, and some rope from the hallway closet. She pulled on her boots and grabbed her black leather jacket, then went down to the kitchen.
“Where are you going?” Julia asked a short while later.
Vivyka jumped, causing some rolls to fall out of her hands. She turned to see Julia in the doorway, her honey-color hair in its usual braid and her blue eyes looking confused. “Um… I have to go… for a few days. But I’ll be back soon.”
“Isn’t this a bit sudden?”
“It is, but I have to go,” Vivyka answered, picking the rolls up off the floor.
“Can’t you put it off for a bit? Lotus said that Sera wanted to see you today. She has to go back to the temple tomorrow, and you haven’t seen her in a few weeks.”
“I’ll see Sera later. Just tell her… something came up,” Vivyka said as she threw the rolls into her bag. “I’m real sorry about this. I hope it doesn’t mess you up. I just gotta… take care of something.”
“Can I ask what this is about?”
“I’m sorry… I can’t tell you.”
Julia sighed, but nodded. “Well, everything will be fine here. Just hurry back, okay? I’ll miss you.”
“’Course,” Vivyka said, thankful that Julia never pried too much.
Julia reached into a pocket and pulled out a small coin purse. “Here, take this.”
“Oh no, I’m fine,” Vivyka said, waving it away. “I can rough it, you know, no big.”
Julia smiled and closed the distance between them. She took Vivyka’s hand and put the money into it. “Too bad.” She pulled her into a hug. “Stay safe out there.”
Vivyka’s heart ached at the fear in Julia’s voice. The last time Vivyka had left town, she had come back a broken woman. She wanted to tell Julia that it would be okay, but she couldn’t promise that, not when she was going to see the person who had been the cause of pain before.
