Chapter 15: Chapter Thirteen
I groan softly, a heavy weight resting on my shoulders. Releasing a large sigh, I turn over and burry my head in the rock like pillow. "Get off me, Ben, you're too fat."
"Sorry to disappoint you, gattina, but I'm not Ben." A gruff, tired voice calls. My eyes fly open and I shoot back, my head slamming against the door. Jack stares at me in amusement, his wings taking up most of the seats.
"Why...why are your wings out? What were you doing to me?" I practically screech, my voice raised an entire octave. My heart is violently pounding against my chest and my breathing goes rigid, a blur starting at the edge of my eyes. No, it's the start of the haze. Not now, anytime but now.
"You were the one leaning on me! You were complaining of being cold and wouldn't shut up," Jack sneers in anger, his voice growing muffled. Breathe, breathe, fight it. "Hey," Jacks tone is gentler, I'm barely able to make it out. "Find something to focus on, anything." The first thing I find is silver, Jack's eyes, those will work. In those silver eyes there's something I've never noticed before. Yellow, specks of yellow can be seen against the shining light, unnoticeable to those that aren't looking close enough in the right light. My world begins to right itself and the rest of Jack comes out of the blurr. His wings are put away and he's looking at me with curiosity, his body leaning into me, his hands are on my shoulders.
"Match your breathing with mine." He takes deep breaths, his demeanor calm, his voice surprising gentle. I do as I'm told, matching my shallow erratic breathing with his until all signs of the haze are gone. "Did I really scare you so much you had a panic attack?" Jack asks, leaning back, giving me space to breathe.
"I...no, I had a nightmare and that's probably what started it." The lie slips easily past my lips, I hardly had to think about it. "How," I take a deep breath, "how did you know to do that?" Jack looks away briefly before looking back at me. This hesitancy is so unlike him, I don't know how to react.
"I used to get them a lot when I was a kid," he looks away again, his hands folding across his chest, "not so much anymore, if at all, of course." After a few moments of me staring at Jack he scoffs and throws me an icy glare with his black eyes.
"What the hell are you staring at? No wonder you were up for sale. You stare at your superiors so openly and you have panic attacks in public. Pathetic." Jack scolds, looking away from me. Shock and sympathy give way to a stronger emotion I seem to frequent around him: anger.
"Hey! It's not like I can control that!"
"Learn to," Jack snaps back, his eyes dangerously black. "When we reach the palace you can't show an ounce of weakness or the people there will eat you up and spit you out. They don't care about your problems! You have to be constantly on guard! Block your mind and your heart from everything or you will never survive!" We stare each other down until I look away from him, backing down from the challenge.
We sit in silence, neither one of us willing to speak up first. A cough is what ends our silent war. It wasn't Jack or me that did it, it was the driver. "We are here." His voice is deep, a thick accent decorating his words making them difficult to understand.
"Let's go." Jack pulls a hood over his face, obscuring his features from view and gets out of the limo, not sparing me a glance. I sigh and run my fingers through my hair. Fine, if he wants me to be distant, I'll be distant to him.
"Thank you," I tell the driver and get out of the car, slamming the door shut. Looking around people of different species. No one person looking like the other. I've never seen so much diversity before. My amazement and hope falls flat, my heart sinking when I see the one thing they all have in common. Slaves. Everyone has a slave connected to them by a collar or rope. For those flying a long chain connects to their slaves, practically choking them and dragging them around. Bile rises in my throat and all color drains from my face. It's disgusting. How anybody can stand seeing such a horrid sight, let alone participating in it, is beyond me.
"What are you looking at?" I jump and turn around, Jack is staring out in the street, trying to see what I was so captivated by.
"Nothing, sir," venom drips from my voice and I make myself appear cold, standoffish. Jack looks down at me, almost surprised I didn't interject my opinion.
"Fine, let's go." His tone is clipped, almost annoyed as he turns around and saunters off. I have to jog to keep up with is long strides. "Keep up," Jack grumbles as I struggle to stay by his side. He glanced back at me, a scowl spreading across his face. "If you don't pick up the pace I'm going to give you a pretty matching necklace as your friends," I stop dead in my tracks, my fingers going to my neck with wide eyes.
"You wouldn't," I mumble hardly able to believe what I'm hearing. Me, wearing a collar like a dog, my color drains from my face. "I think I'm going to be sick."
"I would do what I must, now come on. After we make my stop, we'll go get something to eat and continue on our journey to the palace. You're lucky I'm letting you eat with me and not like a dog on the floor." A smile spreads across his face and I can't tell if he's joking. Frankly, I don't want to know.
I keep Jack's stride in silence, neither one of us talking as my aching feet carries me across the pavement. After awhile he finally speaks up, his malice tone from earlier gone. "We're here," Jack stops in front of a large store, the only sign up reading 'Mason's' in big metallic letters.
"Where is here?" I look back at Jack, a large grin spreading across his face.
"Mason's Weapon Emporium!"
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