We kept silent for a few minutes until the new forest was completely behind us and Alan asked if my guest was coming with us to the airport.
“No,” I replied at the same time as Rhylan responded with a “yes.”
“I am not taking you to the airport, you will disappear just as you came and stop bothering me with your tricks and lies.” I responded abruptly, keeping my vision focused on the driver rather than acknowledging Rhylan’s presence, who sat so close to me that our thighs touched from time to time from the car’s movement.
“Anwen, we have a lot to discuss and I assure you, what I told you in the forest is completely true,” he responded, eyes so focused on me I could practically feel him scanning through my brain.
“Stop that,” I demanded and instinctively covered my temple to block his power.
“You are anxious, hopeful, stressed, and emotionally in pain, and I have the answer to all that. It requires a long story, many details you won’t like and it might even tell you a thing or two about your brother.”
I turned to him in shock, eyes wide, trying to decipher if he uttered any shred of truth.
The bastard smirked. “Yes, I will join Miss Anwen to the airport,” he told Alan without shifting his eyes from mine. Since I did not respond, I heard the driver’s voice muttering “very well,” then focusing his full attention back to the road.
“What is your plan, Rhylan?” I asked in a low tone, trying to keep the conversation as private as I could with another person seated right next to us.
“I need you, sprout. There is no other plan. Ansgar needs you,” he responded in a whispering tone.
“Even if that were true, since when do you care?” I huffed, momentarily forgetting my calmness.
“Since I realized my miscalculations in some steps I took, and ironically, you are the only person who might help put it all back together.” His adamant eyes penetrated mine and Rhylan allowed me to scan him, to search every feature on his face and understand that his words spoke the truth.
A small jolt in my stomach flashed at the sight of him, the closeness we experienced. I didn’t think I would ever see him again, yet here he was, in the same car as me. Without averting his gaze, Fear Gorta reached into his pocket and after searching for something, he extended his palm to me. I looked down to see a kitkat, then back to Rhylan whose lips curved upwards from the memories we shared with that chocolate bar. The days he visited me back at the mansion and the secrets he revealed while eating full packets of kitkats.
I reached for the chocolate, hands shaking from what it meant. “Is Ansgar truly alive?” my voice trembled with sudden hope, with revived dreams that I thought lost forever.
“He is. I swear it.”
Over a dozen journalists waited for us by the time we reached the airport. During the ride, Rhylan did his best to talk about normal things and calm me down, though his presence alone raised palpitations in my chest. He asked cordial questions about the project, how I got the idea — that didn’t go too well — how many forests we had regrown and he even gave me some updates on Evigt. The son of a duke had been dispatched in Ansgar’s place and managed to restore the energy levels, much to Rhylan’s discontent. The fireling hadn’t intervened though and muttered something about staying focused on the main goal.
Hundreds of camera flashes hammered around us, surrounding the car and there was no way to get out and safely into the plane other than through the gathering of press that appeared to be multiplying by the second.
“Is this your everyday life?” Rhylan asked with surprise and no small amount of excitement.
“No,” I replied with disgust, “It’s all because of you. Because you just had to come out of the forest and make a spectacle.”
“So they all gathered to admire me? My handsomeness?” he grinned proudly.
“Urgh, just keep your mouth shut and get in the plane.” I ordered him and opened the door on my side, struggling to make way through the cameras and flashes, muttering a ‘no comment’ from time to time when a mic was shoved into my face and questions about the man accompanying me arose.
To my surprise, Rhylan did as told and remained only a step or two away, copying the ‘no comment’ formula, though he did stop from time to time to throw a smile for photos. Five seconds after I got into the safety of the jet, he climbed the stairs behind me and flashed a passport and a visa at the customs officer in charge of private departures.
“Mr. Gordon,” I heard the man say while returning the passport to Rhylan. After that, he gave the okay to the pilot and headed down the stairs.
“Mister Gordon?” I was surprised. “Do you actually have a surname?” I took my usual seat and continued mocking him.
“To your surprise, sprout, I’ve had many names for many centuries. The beauty of immortality,” he flashed a grin and threw the passport in my lap. Curiosity overwhelmed me and I opened it to discover Rhylan’s photo, along with the surname Gordon and a date of birth from thirty-four years ago in Macedonia. I flicked through the pages and stood surprised to discover a generous amount of stamps and visas, all across the globe. It could easily rival my brother’s own passport.
“Why Macedonia?” I asked with unsuspected curiosity.
“Long time ago… Elisa,” he smiled nostalgically at what I could only suspect were lingering memories of a lover he left behind somewhere in that country.
Before I had time to ask more questions, the pilot welcomed us on board and sealed the safety doors and one of the flight attendants came to make sure our seatbelts were securely fastened before take-off. Rhylan took the seat opposite mine and we remained separated by a small table, throwing each other odd looks throughout the process.
Once we floated safely in the air, both flight attendants came to take our order. Even though they were talking to me, their stares did not leave the sight of Rhylan, who took the opportunity to remove his elegant jacket and remain in a black shirt that hugged his muscles like he was a marble sculpted statue.
“We are fine, thank you.” I replied without giving him a chance to add a word. The only thing I wanted was to start the conversation we had been delaying for so long and I really didn’t want to eat. My stomach formed a ball of nerves and the halfkitkat I had in the car threatened to make its way back up.
