“You… you did this?” My voice came out rough, almost accusatory.
His brow lifted.
“Who else was going to? The tooth fairy?” He tilted his head, eyes narrowing. “You’re welcome, by the way.”
I exhaled slowly, trying to push down the confusion and bitterness clawing at my gut.
“Thanks,” I muttered, though the word felt foreign on my tongue.
Gael’s gaze lingered on me for a beat longer than necessary before he pushed himself to his feet in one smooth motion.
“We’re on a train, by the way,” he said, his tone casual. “In case you haven’t figured that out yet.”
“I figured,” I grumbled.
Gael’s lips twitched, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he nodded toward the door at the far end of the hold.
“I’ll be right back,” Gael said.
Before I could ask where he was going, he slipped through the door, disappearing into the narrow corridor beyond.
The silence he left behind felt heavier than it should have.
I took a shaky breath, my fingers curling into the rough fabric of the blanket beneath me.
My leg pulsed in time with my heartbeat, but the pain was manageable now.
What wasn’t manageable was the mess in my head.
The memories of what had happened—the bullet, the look on the two hunters’ faces as they pulled the trigger—burned behind my eyes.
They really intended to kill me. Me. One of their own.
A bitter taste filled my mouth.
Before I could spiral further, the door creaked open, and Gael returned, a bottled water and a wrapped sandwich in his hands.
He crouched next to me and held them out.
“Stole these from the food cart,” he said, a sly smile tugging at his lips. “Don’t worry. I didn’t take a sip from anyone.”
I glared at him, but the corners of my mouth twitched despite myself. It was a joke.
A terrible, morbid joke, but a joke nonetheless.
I snatched the water from his hand, twisted off the cap, and took a long, greedy drink.
The cool liquid soothed my dry throat, and I sighed with relief.
“Thanks,” I muttered again, more sincerely this time.
He didn’t respond, just handed me the sandwich. I took it, unwrapping it slowly, my fingers trembling slightly.
As I bit into the stale bread and cold meat, I finally forced myself to ask the question gnawing at the back of my mind.
“What happened to the hunters?” I asked.
Gael’s eyes darkened. “I handled it.”
