Chapter 173
Tempest stayed as close to Gerax as she could without running over him.
She bumped him a few times in the darkness, and he stiffened at each touch.
"We have to find somewhere for you to wash."
"This is ridiculous. The scent must be dying down by now, right?" She was no longer wet, so she assumed that the scent of her slick was going away too.
"I assure you there is nothing ridiculous about this. It’s probably the most danger you’ve been in since we started the journey. You really know very little."
The words struck Tempest like a physical blow. She reached out to grab his arm, and he ripped himself away from her.
"Do not touch me!" He snarled at her.
Tempest’s mouth dropped open; out of everyone, Gerax had never taken that tone with her. The most he’d ever been with her is exasperated, but there was never any real anger when he talked to her. It honestly felt like everyone was against her.
"You know what? You can go with Rynax. You don’t need to be here with me. It’s obvious that you don’t want to be here. Just leave me alone." She turned away from him and could feel the lump in her throat starting to get bigger and bigger. She was going to start crying again. It seemed like such a useless emotion, but it was all she could do to release some of the feelings inside of her. She felt completely on her own. She felt like a pariah all because she indulged in a little self care.
If she ever felt more out of place on this planet, she couldn’t remember.
Gerax sighed and walked around so he was in front of her again. "No, I’m not going to leave you on your own. It’s dangerous out here."
"Why does it matter? Oh, let me guess. Because of your duty?" Tempest narrowed her eyes at him. She knew that he could see the seething look on her face even if it was hard for her to see him clearly.
"Yes, because it’s my duty and also..." Gerax shoved his hands into his pockets, "Because you’ve grown on me and if something were to happen to you, I’d be quite unhappy."
Tempest tried to process what he was saying. He always used ten words when the situation only called for two.
"Are you saying you don’t want me to be hurt because I’m your friend?" Tempest asked, the venom in her tone dripping away.
"Yes, Tempest. You’re my friend. I don’t want you to get hurt." Gerax nodded his head.
Tempest smiled softly because she couldn’t bring the joy to stay in her heart. She shoved her hands through her hair and leaned against a rock behind her before sliding down to the ground. "What did I do? I didn’t know it would be this bad."
Gerax moved over, leaving some room between him and Tempest before he slid down and sat on the ground next to her, "Yes, it’s bad, but it’s not as bad as it could’ve been. Both Aliq and Rynax are extraordinary alphas. Unfortunately, I have no doubt that if you were in that same situation with any other alphas, there would’ve been nothing I’d be able to say that would’ve stopped them from doing what they wanted."
"How long do you think we are going to have to be out here? I mean, do you think Rynax and Aliq will be back in control before morning?" Tempest turned to look at Gerax.
"It’s doubtful, but even if they are. I don’t think Rynax will want to be around you for a long while."
Tempest huffed at that comment. She’d made a mistake, but she didn’t think it was unforgivable. She was still on the road to forgiving Rynax about lying when they first got to Skoq, and she still traveled with him.
"Why? I mean, I made a mistake, and I won’t do it again. Why can’t that just be the end of it?" Tempest ran her hands through her hair again. Her eyes trying to focus in the darkness.
"It might have been just a mistake to you, Tempest. Merely an oversight. Aliq may see it that way. He knows you are foreign to this land, but Rynax will likely be much more hurt by the process." Gerax sighed and leaned back harder against the rock, trying to get comfortable.
"Why?"
"Because he’s in love with you. Or at least he believes himself to be in love with you. I’m not sure if he believes it to be an infatuation like Mexyn and I do. Then for you to come in teasing him with everything he could ever want only to deny him." Gerax shook his head in the moonlight, "It must have broken his heart. It was quite cruel."
Tempest closed her eyes tightly. She thought she felt bad before but after hearing what Gerax had to say she felt exponentially worse.
She had been trying with all her might to make sure Rynax was able to get over these feelings that he thought he had for her, only to be romantically tortured and denied. It was horrible. Tempest felt like a monster.
"I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry. God, I just want to fix this." She let her head fall forward.
"I know you didn’t mean it, and if you really want to fix it, you’re going to have to give Rynax some time. He’ll come to grips with this on his own. In the meantime, we are going to have to deal with the fact that we might have to continue this journey without him. At least Dron is on his way, so you won’t be without protection for very long."
Tempest nodded her head. She knew that was silver lining in this shit cloud of a situation that she was in but she still felt bad that she managed to be so insensitive to Rynax after all he’d already done for her. She only hoped that she would get the chance to make it right in whatever way Rynax saw fit. If that meant she would have to leave him alone she would. She only hoped that she didn’t lose a good friend over this.
"We might as well get some rest. It’s going to be another long day tomorrow."
"Out here?" Tempest question, she began to let her eyes scan the area. She couldn’t see much in the distance but that didn’t mean there wasn’t any thing out there. Aliq had warned them about the predators that liked to come out at night. She didn’t necessarily want to be out in the open while it was dark out.
"Well we can’t go back in the hunter’s den. And there’s no way that we would make it to the next hunter’s den without Aliq’s help in the dark. At least right here at the bottom of the cliff if something does happen, I’m hoping all we have to do is call out and Rynax will come help. That is if he’s not written you off."
Tempest gasped. She didn’t think he’d go that far. But what if he had. What if the whole experience had pushed Rynax to say he didn’t want anything to do with Tempest.
The sick guilty feeling grew even bigger in her gut.
"Okay, I guess." She whispered.
"Take the cloak and wrap it around your body. You can use it as a sleeping bag of sorts." Gerax explained. She did just that and found a spot to lay that was flat enough it wouldn’t cause her back to hurt very much.
Gerax didn’t have a cloak. In fact, he had nothing to protect him from the elements. The sun wasn’t out but the night time brought a chill that somehow soaked into her bones on the places that weren’t covered with her cloak. She could only imagine how uncomfortable Gerax must have been.
"You need something to cover yourself with. You can’t sleep like this."
Gerax scoffed. "Do you know me at all? I can sleep anywhere."
Tempest felt herself chuckle. It was a break in the tension. He wasn’t lying, the man could sleep through a whole war and wake up refreshed.
"Have you ever even gone camping before?"
"Camping? As in sleeping outside. Yes."
"Not for scientific or work purposes."
"Oh, then no. This will be a first for me." Gerax slid down against the rock so only his head was partially propped up.
"Then I’m sure this is going to be interesting for the both of us." Tempest rolled, her front away from Gerax and facing the rocks. She knew that wasn’t the best way if she wanted to be prepared in case something were coming for her in the dark but then again she didn’t really want to see if there was anything out there. She was scared enough as it was.
After a few seconds she didn’t hear Gerax’s normal soft snoring. She figured he was still awake. "Do you think Aliq has gone back to the stronghold?"
"No, he’s still around. I’m hoping that he’ll still want to continue with the mission in the morning. If not, it’ll just be you and me."
"Or we’ll have to go back." Tempest said softly, the exhaustion already starting to take hold.
"Go back? I thought you wanted to see the human settlement?"
She didn’t answer.
She did want to see the human settlement. Wanted to see if it was real. Wanted to see if this world could truly be a place where she could flourish. But after all that’s happened, Tempest began to wonder if it was all worth it or if she was just being selfish again. Hurting the people around her just so she could do what she wanted to do.
She’d done enough damage. Maybe going back was the right thing for her to do.
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⏸ PAUSE■ STOP