13 Chapter 13 (2/2)

I see the dead dogs behind them. I shake my head and say, ”Just go away. Leave me alone.” They surround me but don't come up. One of their carriages comes around and Xalem sticks his head out. ”Bring her here. Don't hurt her.” One of them goes to jump up, but I whack him with my heel, almost falling off the rock, but catching my balance. ”She is tired. We just have to wait for her to make a mistake.” One of the guards say. One pretends to lunge at me, and I sway away from him. I can feel my eye shuttering shut. I force them open.

I turn and see the carriage behind me is dodging around the others. I can faintly see someone sticking their head out of the sunroof and point at me. I feel a hand wrap around my ankle, but I kick it off, then I kick back, and my foot connects with a nose. I look back and a guard goes stumbling back. The guards keep on trying to get me down, but I dodge them. After a minute I say, ”I will die before I go back.” One of the guards laugh. ”Oh no. We will keep you alive. Then you will be put in the mirror room for who knows how long. A month. Maybe two if you are lucky.” I shudder.

”No.” I yell. I block his words out. ”No. Never ever again.” Then I hear a voice ring out crystal clear. ”Jaycie. Come on. Let's head home.” I smile as I turn. Garret is staring at me. The mystery carriage was close to me. I rally my strength one last time and jump off my rock, kicking the guard that I have to jump over. Then I run to the carriage. They are slowed but not stopped. I throw my heels and suite in then reach to grab the handle. I feel a hand yank my hair back. I fall back only to see a guard falling back with a dagger to the head. I jump up and see Zachery aiming another dagger already. He is ready to take another guard. I run back to the carriage and grab the handle. I am about to pull myself in when my foot hits a rock and I lose my grip on one of the handles and almost fall all the way off.

I hear Xalem behind me. ”If we can't have her, you can't either. Kill her.” I see Zachery's eyes go wide, and Garret reaches down to try and grab me. Zachery doesn't just reach down and try to grab me. He actually wraps his hand around mine on the handle and swings out of the carriage. He uses one of him legs to push of the side and wrap around me. He pulls me up with his free hand, he grabs the other handle. I feel a thud. Seconds later I feel the sharp pain of a blade pierce through my lower back. Right were my heart was only seconds ago. Then I remember that Zachery is behind me. The sword had gone all the way through him. I wrap my free hand around his waist holding him up. Garret pulls me in by my shoulders and Zachery comes in with me. I don't let go of Zachery, not for even a second.

The carriage door shuts, and I hear the thuds of daggers hitting it. Then I feel the pain of the sword being removed. I cry out, then hear Zachery give a strangled cry as they pull it all the way out of him. I get out from under him, from where I landed on the ground. I press my hand over the wound and use my healing power, but nothing happens. I close my eyes and focus on using the last dregs of my energy to heal him. I feel a small stream of power. ”Help.” I say. I don't even bother with my cut. ”Help, please.” I say. I am staring at Zachery. The pool of blood under him is getting big. I feel two other hands land on Zachery. Then a third one. I look back and Garret is standing back. ”Help.” I plead with him. He shakes his head.

”No. He has done so much to you; he deserves to die.” I shake my head. ”Please, help. I need the help. I can't do this. Please.” I feel tears. These aren't the ones of pain from the mirror room. They are ones of feeling. I hate Zachery so much, but he saved my life at the risk of his own. I feel coughs rack through me. I crawl away from Zachery. Garret falls to his knees next to me, it is highly crowded down her, but I shove Garret away. ”Him first.” He looks stubbornly at me, but I don't let Garret heal me. I start seeing black. But I still don't let him help me.

He turns and puts a hand on Zachery and start to heal him. I smile and start to black out. My eyes finally start to let me go to sleep. I feel a hand on my bare stomach. I see Garret healing me. I smile at him. ”Thank you.” I say weakly. After a few seconds he lifts me and sets my on the seat. He sits next to me and I see Wilker and two other assassins sit on the seats as well. Zachery lays still on the floor. ”Is he...dead?” I ask. Wilker shakes his head. ”No. Just asleep. Like you should be. Go to sleep.” I shake my head, but my traitorous eyes start to close. I force them open but Wilker says, ”You are safe know. Don't worry. Go to sleep.”

I try and keep my eyes open, but they fall. I fall into a deep sleep. When you use the absolute last bit of your energy and have no more to spare. I have hit that point. I fall into a dreamless sleep. Purely to gain energy. I just can't keep my eyes open any longer. They are finally giving up. And I let myself be relaxed for the first time in a long time.

When I come to, it is only partly. I can't say anything or move, I just know my surroundings. I am no longer sitting. I feel my feet curled on the seat. My head is in someone's lap and I am shivering. I feel hovers lap I am in move. Then I feel a jacket cover my lower half. We go over a bump and my body jump up. An arm wraps around me before I roll of the lap. I hear Zachery weakly. ”Looks like someone seems to be enjoying Jaycie's head in their lap. Getting to play the protective game.” I hear Garret growl right above me. I am in his lap. Then I hear Wilker say, ”Zachery shut it. You have fallen asleep on Jaycie's boobs before. Don't even.” I remember that time.

I had just saved him. The people that had caught him had forced him to stay awake. I had happened to walk in on them. I barely got out with him. When I got him into a carriage to take him to the guild, he fell asleep on my shoulder. A bump had gone by and his head had fallen lower. He had wakened seconds later and joked around about it and said he had the best pillow. Of course, I had moved to the far side and let him have one bench to himself. But It was a funny story to tell everyone.

Zachery thought for a second, then said, ”And I still believe that is the best pillow I have ever had.” Garret growls slightly. That is the last thing I remember before I fall back into my deep sleep. When I wake up, I am being carried. One hand is under my knees, and one is one my back. I can feel myself shivering again. I open my eyes, and the lights cause me to hiss out. I turn into the chest of the person carrying me. There is a laugh, then I am set down.

After opening my eyes, I see I am in the Guild. I look around cautiously. The hall I am in is empty except for Garret, Zachery, and Wilker. I frown. I feel my hands wrap around my stomach. Not out of being self-conscious about having such little clothing on, but because now that I am not on the sand plains, I am cold. I see Zachery is pale and I take a step towards him, bit go crashing to the ground. I just stare up at him. ”Are you okay? Did they hit anything vital?”

He stares at me then laughs. ”You have been with those idiots for over two months, gone through god knows what having to wear that for god knows how long, not that I mind seeing you I it, and you got stabbed yourself, but you ask if I am okay.” I nod. ”That sword had to go through you first.” I go over his words again and realize his point about not minding me in this outfit. I don't even feel a response come up against it. I see Wilker staring at me. He knows something is wrong.

”I am heading to the nurse.” Zachery says. Wilker looks at Garret. ”Make sure he gets there safe, then come to my office.” With that, Wilker helps me up and leads me to his office. The longer we go in silence, the more I feel like crying. I have missed him so much. When we get in his office, and he closes his door, I launch into his arms. I hug him tight and let tears fall into his shoulder. ”I have missed you so much. I was so worried I would never see you again.” I say. I feel him rub my back. ”I am right here, don't worry.” After a few minutes, we both sit down in our chairs.

We sit in comfortable silence until Garret walks in. I ended up dozing off. When I wake up, Garret and Wilker are talking quietly. ”Are you going to get a report off this?” Garret asks. Wilker is quiet for a few seconds. ”I don't know. If she doesn't want to talk about it, I am not going to force her.” I open my eyes, and Wilker's eyes dart to me. ”You are awake. Good.” I nod. Wilker raises a single eyebrow. I go rethink what just happened and realize, I would usually answer with something like, 'obviously' or 'glad you know open eyes mean awake.' I shake my head slightly and say.

I remind my self to act life before. Even if I don't feel the same, I have to act the same. I am not going to let them realize there is a difference between in me. I feel another shiver run through me and say, ”Does anyone know were I left my suite. I am freezing and this,” I stand up and gesture to my 'uniform', ”doesn't really keep the cold out. Wilker smiles. ”It is being cleaned now.” I nod. ”So, what can I wear. I am not going to sit around being cold.” Garret catches my eye. ”Go to my room, you can burrow some of my clothes.” I nod and walk out of the room without being dismissed. When I get to the door Wilker says, ”I didn't dismiss you.” I turned to him plastering one of my old smirks on my face. ”Do I ever wait for you to dismiss me?”

He laughs and I walk out. Both of them have slight bags under there eyes, and I can see that they have been stressing for a while. Now both of them look visibly clam. As I walk through the halls, I nod to the assassins that have filled them. Most keep their eyes on my face. Some do a once over me, but then look around. The only one who's eyes stray from my face for longer then a moment are Zachery's. I am just about to walk into Garret's room when he calls out to me. ”Jaycie, what are you going, going into his room.” I step back into the hall and his eyes go down then up, then down again, the up.

”I am changing into clothes that keep me warm. My uniform doesn't keep me warm.” He smirks at me. ”If they make you wear that for work, I might take you back myself, and get a new job there.” My mind doesn't register the joke and I immediately take a step back and say, ”No. Please don't.” He looks bewildered. ”Did you just say please to me?” I realize I am not acting 'normal.' Then he puts together the rest of my words. ”Jaycie. I was kidding about that. I wouldn't do that to you. Not even I would stoop that low.”

I shake my head. ”I know. I was just trying to get a reaction out of you.” I say. I put an amused smile on, but I can tell it doesn't reach me eyes. He nods to me and says, ”Sure.” Then walks into his room. I quickly get changed into some of Garret's clothes, then I drop of my clothes in my old room. Finally, I make my way back into the office. I can feel myself trying to rebuild my old self. But after a while, I could tell all I was building was a mask. One that wouldn't hold up forever. Right before entering the office, I take a deep breath. It was time to see how strong my mask really was.