Taking a long time to enjoy what would possibly be my last shower, I used all the conditioner and hair product I wanted, without caring about the cost. After all, it was all going to burn soon. I let the feeling of steamy water falling on my skin carry me and scrape away any doubt that might crawl into my bones. And then, I went to my wardrobe and thanked god for the clean jeans and underwear I had lying around.
I didn’t spend too much time getting dressed or dolled up, choosing to be practical instead. Grabbing the backpack I carried all my work into, I dropped the carefully coordinated and annotated papers on the floor and filled it with two extra pairs of jeans, underwear, a spare pair of shoes and a couple of t-shirts. Then, I placed it over my shoulders with Karisha’s bag tracing my torso diagonally and closed the door that held my entire livelihood. Now, no longer important.
“Hello?” I started running through the streets, the comfort of my Nikes and the jeans doing wonders for my ability to jog.
“Hello? Markos? Are you still here?” I screamed across the abandoned streets, the echo of emptiness carrying my voice onthe walls. My heart started thumping with fright at the thought that they might have already left. When I had said my farewell to Markos, he announced that he would leave at sunrise and advised me to clear out as quickly as I could, and the shower and packing had taken just a little longer than I had wanted to. Still, they couldn’t have just vanished. I returned to the parking lot where we initially drove to, hoping that they would still be there and, thank every deity in this world, I saw men dressed in leathers.
“Hey!” I shouted at them as I desperately ran to their side.
“Nora?” Markos shoved his head out of the driver’s seat window. “What are you still doing here?” The tribe lord looked at me as though I was a ghost and I ignored how out of place he looked, dressed like that, in a terrain car. Truly, all of them did.
“I thought I’d catch a lift with you,” I said as I pressed a shy smile, hoping he would be accommodating. Because my plan had no chance of sprouting success without Markos’ help.
“I’m sorry,” he shook his head apologetically. “We can’t spare the time; we’re going straight back to camp.”
“Same,” I nodded and started walking towards the vehicle, assuming that I would take the same seat as when we initially came here. Which was in Markos’s car.
I carried the weight of their gazes as I moved and opened the door to shove myself into the passenger’s seat and buckled my seatbelt with slow movements. I placed the backpack at my feet and when I was ready for the drive back, I looked at the tribe leader, urging him to start the engine.
I still couldn’t get over the shock of seeing the drakes in terrain cars, since I had spotted them either walking or using horses for transportation. And when Markos had removed the tarp placed in the merchant’s side of the camp to reveal 4x4s, my jaw dropped. Apparently, the merchants were using them tobring in goods and blend in. Markos instead, has used them to gain time. To help save more of my town.
“I’ll be damned,” he shook his head and grinned, then tapped on his door to make the announcement of departure while the rest of the warriors took their seats in the car.
“I didn’t think you had it in you,” he looked over at me with a smirk just before he started driving.
Even though I knew this would probably be my only chance to catch some sleep, I felt too excited to shut my eyes. Adrenaline flowed through my system to become thicker than blood, the weight of the decision I had just made starting to quicken my senses.
I watched the sea as we drove by narrow and forgotten roads, detouring a lot more than we should have in order to get back to the camp unnoticed. I did not mind it though, it gave me the opportunity to say my goodbyes, since there was a slim to none chance for my eyes to witness the deep blues ever again.
“Are you sure about this?” Markos asked after what felt like an eternity of hearing only the rumbling of the engine.
“No,” I replied earnestly. “But I also know that I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I didn’t come back,” I confessed. I must have said something to earn his approval, because the tribe lord shifted his gaze from the road towards me and kept his attention focused for a long while.
“Are you sure you know what you are getting yourself into?” Markos asked in the softened tone of voice I heard him use once before. “Are you sure this is what you want? Because once we get there, there’s no turning back.”
“I’m not going to leave him to do this alone,” I replied with determination, fighting back the knot in my stomach. This conversation wasn’t helping, and Markos’ poking questions made me more nervous than settled. Maybe that was exactly what he intended.
“Sometimes Dahr doesn’t remember the month before,” he continued as if I hadn’t even spoken. “Sometimes he looks me in the eye, and I can see he is not there, even now. If he does manage to spare you, Nora, the power will make him pay.”
“I already know that,” I snapped back, a little harsher than intended. I didn’t understand what Markos wanted exactly, since he seemed more than happy to drive me back, but he was now doing his best to change my mind.
“It might destroy you both, is all I’m saying…” he shrugged innocently.
“It’s a chance I’m willing to take,” I reassured him. “Death will find me, sooner or later. There’s not much point living in fear, is there?” I turned my head to look at the focused side of his face and saw the exact moment when he realised I fully understood what tomorrow entailed. And I appreciated that he held back his pitiful gaze.
“Thank you for saving my town,” I said and meant it. Markos and the rest of his warriors had been essential in saving thousands of people and had not rested until everyone was safe and far away from the future graveyard that the following day brought.
“If it all goes according to plan, this might be our last stop,” the tribe leader pressed his lips together to disguise his hope, as he continued driving in silence.
This was my last night with Dahr. And he was running late.
After we arrived back at the camp, I wanted to jump out of the car and right into Dahr’s arms, but Markos explained that there were rituals that needed to be upheld before the day of the battle. He emphasised how important these were, especially now, and asked me for a favour. To wait until the evening. To allow Dahr to complete these rites just as he normally did, since we both knew that my presence would alter his emotions and possibly, his powers.
So I obeyed and returned to Karisha, who received me in between hugs and tearful scorns. Just like her mate, she begged me to reconsider, but when I told her my mind was made up, she welcomed me back, fed me and advised me to get some rest until it was time for dinner. For once, I listened to the exhausted cries of my muscles, which begged for a few hours of rest.
Mira woke me up in time for dinner and before Dahr’s arrival, she too welcomed me back with a pitiful but understanding gaze. Once I settled my heart enough to steady my breath, I placed myself near the entrance and waited for my mate’s return. After a few hours of rest and a belly full of food, I knew I wasn’t going to waste a minute longer not living the short fairytale I had found myself in.
This man would be my everything.
