Tyler's Story (Tales of Quelondain) (14 page)

“Ok. You guys?”

“Good. Have you given any more thought about whether
or not you’d like to start for Sageden?”

“Not yet.” She frowned and voiced the one question
she’d been scared to ask. “How long can they keep him going like
this?” The thought that he hadn’t eaten since he’d fallen nagged at
her. Was it possible to stay alive on magic alone?

Trista looked past John to her and Heidi once again
thought to herself that the healer’s tattoo under her right eye
looked amazing. The way the green vine curled from under the eye
along the outside of it was so simple, so delicate.

“This is the longest I’ve ever been able to keep
anyone alive on magic alone, Heidi. I didn’t know him, but I’m
willing to bet he was a determined man before this happened.”

Heidi took a deep breath and nodded then stood.

“Heidi.” John stood and gave her a hug. She smiled
and hugged him back.

“Thanks.”

He kissed her forehead. “That’s what a pack is. We
stick together, yeah?”

“Yeah.” She left them with a wave and headed back to
Trista’s house which was where they had been staying while she
worked on healing Tyler. They were such a cute couple, she thought
to herself. Since they’d arrived, the two of them had been nearly
inseparable. She’d seen John grow more confident and at ease with
others.

She opened Tyler’s door as quietly as she could and
made her way to the chair beside his bed. It was amazing how little
weight he’d lost since his incident, though he’d definitely lost
some. She brushed the dark bangs from his eyes and smiled when they
insisted on falling back in their place. Her fingers traced the
stubble along his jaw. She’d looked on worriedly as John had taken
his razor and insisted on shaving him a week ago. Thankfully, there
had been no accidental nicks.

She sighed and laid her head on his chest, listening
to his heartbeat. She brushed her thumb over his cheek lightly.

“Wake up, Tyler.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He could feel the stroke of her thumb, could feel her
tears soaking into his tunic. By the moons, why couldn’t he just
push past the last of the fog? He shook his head mentally.

Alright, Tyler,
he thought to himself.
She
needs you. Just get up.
He took one deep breath then another.
Heidi went completely still over him as his chest rose higher than
usual. He moved his fingers and groaned at the pain that shot up
his arms.

Heidi gasped and stood. He focused on his arms and
legs, each movement sending jolts of pain searing through his body.
He opened his eyes slowly and squinted against the light, turning
his head slowly until he saw her, her wide grey green eyes
overflowing with tears, her hands to her mouth.

He managed a small smile. “Hello.” He cringed at the
sound of his voice, hoarse and scratchy from lack of use. He held
out one arm slightly and grunted as she threw herself into his hug,
her face buried in the crook of his neck. He wrapped his arms
around her.

“Shush, now. It’s alright,” he whispered. She shook
her head and tried to calm herself.

“It’s not alright,” she sobbed. “You’ve been lying
here for two months, Tyler.”

He hugged her tighter and kissed the side of her
face. The urge to kiss her lips overwhelmed him. By the moons, the
woman had a mate. He’d be lucky to get away with a slap. Why was
she even still here? Why hadn’t John taken her to Sageden? He
rubbed her back until her sobs calmed.

“I’m alright,” he promised softly.

She wiped her face with her arm and lay against him
for a moment before looking up. He closed his eyes as she wiped the
stubborn bangs away from them and her hand came to rest on the side
of his face.

“I didn’t think you were going to wake up,” she
whispered.

“I’m awake.” He looked into her eyes, trying to judge
what would happen if he were to pull her up so he could kiss her.
He put a bit of pressure with his arms and his heart beat harder in
his chest as she followed it and pulled herself up so she could
hold his face with both hands.

“Don’t ever do that to me again.” She leaned down and
gazed into his deep brown eyes, wondering what would happen if she
were to touch her lips softly to his, just as she’d done countless
times since he’d been rendered unconscious. His hands running up
her back and tangling in her hair caused her to moan.

Tyler held her against him, his whole body shaking
with the effort it was taking not to ask for a kiss. Their
foreheads touched lightly, their lips mere inches apart. He groaned
as she closed the distance cautiously. The kiss was slow and
tender, a shy dance of lips and tongues. Tyler was the first to
pull back so that she could lie in the crook of his arm.

“Why are you still here?” he whispered.

Heidi shivered at the feel of his fingers running
through her hair. “I couldn’t just leave you here. You almost died
trying to save me.” She snuggled into his chest. “I couldn’t leave
until I was sure you were going to be ok.”

Tyler took a deep breath and kissed her forehead. Had
he really thought she’d been planning on staying? He gave her one
last soft look and sat up with a pained groan, his legs hanging
over the edge of the bed. He rubbed his hands over his face.

“What happened?” he asked. He glanced backwards at
her and gave her a lopsided grin. “After I hit the ground. No,
wait… before I hit the ground. What brought the Zerpanay down?” He
glanced around the room. “And where are we? Is John alright?” When
she didn’t answer him, he turned to look at her, his head cocked to
the side. Her face was still flush.

He took a deep breath and pushed whatever feelings he
had for her down so they were hidden deep inside of him along with
the memories of his brother.

“Heidi, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have… I know you love
your Blake, and I’ll get you home to him yet.” He touched her arm
lightly. “I promise.” He stood and sank back onto the bed, the wave
of dizziness knocking flat onto his back.

Heidi jumped to his side and helped position him back
under the blankets. “You haven’t had anything to eat in two months.
Stay here. I’ll go get you something to eat and some water.”

She leaned over him to tuck the blankets around him.
He closed his eyes and tried to hide his groan as the memory of her
lying on him invaded his senses.

“I could really use a mug of sloan if you can find
one.”

She raised an eyebrow at him and he shrugged.

“Water will do, I suppose.” He watched as she left
the room and almost stood at her surprised cry.

“Heidi, what’s wrong?” John’s voice sounded through
the door.

“Nothing, everything. He’s awake.”

“Is he alright?”

“He seems fine. He’s weak. I’m going to get him
something to eat.”

“If he’s fine, then why do you look so…
devastated?”

“I… Oh my god, John, I kissed him. He says it was his
fault, but it was all me.”

There was a long pause.

“And this is bad because…?”

Tyler stopped breathing as he listened for the
answer.

“Because I have to go home. I can’t stay here, John.
What I feel for Tyler is… shit! I don’t know what I feel for him. I
barely know him! I know what it feels like, but that can’t be it.
Or maybe it is… I don’t know. But whatever it is that I feel for
him, I can’t stay. I love Blake. I… I don’t belong here.” There was
a short pause. “What?”

“Well, I suppose I’d just assumed that after two
months you’d decided to stay; that this was what you wanted.”

“Oh, god, I don’t know what I want! I miss home, I
miss my life there, and I miss Blake.” She took such a deep breath
that Tyler was able to hear it through the door. “I think I could
love him, John.”

“So stay.”

“I don’t know what to do.” Her voice barely made it
through the door.

Tyler took a deep breath. More than anything, he
wanted to ask her to stay, but her indecision was more than enough
to make up his mind. He wouldn’t have her give up her life when she
was so torn. The thought that in two years she might decide she’d
made a mistake and decide to go home… He knew he was better off to
let her go now than to live through that. He stumbled to the
door.

“What should I do, John?”

Tyler pulled the door open and leaned against the
frame for support.

“You’ll go home, Heidi.”

She jumped and turned, her eyes grey green saucers in
her face.

He smiled and was forced to close his eyes and lean
his head against the door frame as another wave of dizziness washed
over him. “You need to go home, Heidi. You just said it yourself.
You don’t belong here.”

John growled low in his throat. “Tyler!”

Tyler’s own growl echoed his. “She needs to go home,
John.”

“By the moons, Tyler, I could have sworn…” John
stopped short at a shake of Tyler’s head. The elder Maj
straightened to his full height and crossed his arms over his
chest. “Open your eyes, Tyler. You look her straight in the eye and
tell her you don’t want her to stay.”

It took a few blinks to get his vision to focus
properly. When he finally found himself looking into her eyes, he
clenched his jaw and did the one thing he didn’t want to do.
“Heidi, you don’t belong here. You belong in the other world with
your Blake and as soon as I get my strength back, I’ll make sure
you get back to him.” He turned and started for his bed. His vision
filled with spots and the last thing he heard before he fell face
first into the floor was the sound of Heidi yelling his name.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Tyler looked up as the door opened and he tried to
hide his disappointment when John appeared carrying clean clothes
for him.

“By the moons, man, I know I’m not a pretty little
thing like she is, but you could at least smile when you see me.”
John grinned and Tyler rolled his eyes. “Trista has given me strict
orders to get you out of the house. Get dressed and we’ll head to
the pub.”

Tyler took the clothes from him. He’d spent the past
week since he’d woken from his coma simply eating and sleeping. If
Trista deemed him well enough to get up, he was wasn’t going to
argue.

He pulled the tunic over his head and slipped into
the clean pants before pulling on his boots.

They took their time walking through the streets of
the coastal town. Tyler stretched to let his muscles know they were
supposed to be working properly. He sighed as the stiffness slowly
disappeared. The houses and shops weren’t unlike the ones in
Growlen, though these all had a sanding of white sea salt over
them, no doubt from the high winds that come from over the sea. The
pub was a cozy place with a small dance floor and a stage for a
band. A tall waitress with blond hair that fell in tight ringlets
to her waist gave Tyler the once over as she took their orders.

John chuckled. “How do you do that?”

Tyler frowned. “What?”

“It must be the dark brooding thing you have going.
There are three women in this room and they’re all staring at this
table. I’ll bet you lunch they aren’t looking at me.”

Tyler grunted. “Let’s just eat.” He thanked the
waitress, making a point of looking at his steak as he did so.

Tyler took a swallow of the sloan John had brought
him and took a bite of the food on his plate. “Alright, so catch me
up on everything then. I can’t believe I’ve been out for two months
and that I spent the past week sleeping.”

John snorted then smiled.

“It was Trista’s pack that saved us. They happened to
be nearby and heard us yelling when the Zerpanay attacked. Trista’s
father is a sorcerer. He’s the one that managed to nudge the
Zerpanay hard enough so that it let go of you. When it became
obvious that you weren’t going to wake up, they offered to bring us
here.”

Tyler looked toward the door of the pub, half hoping
Heidi would walk in. She hadn’t been around in almost a week.

John glanced at the door as well. “Tyler… about
Heidi.”

“Leave it be, John.”

“But…”

Tyler took a deep breath and looked at his friend.
“John, you heard how torn she is. If she stays here, she’ll forever
wonder if she made the right decision. She’ll always wonder and
she’ll forever doubt. What happens a few years from now when she
decides she made a mistake?”

John took a swallow of his sloan. “And what about
you? Will you forever regret letting her go?”

“This isn’t about me. It’s what’s best for her.”

His friend raised an eyebrow in his direction. “Maybe
it’s time you start thinking about yourself, Tyler.”

“So, I should just keep her?” His mouth twitched and
soon the two of them were laughing.

“By the moons, Tyler, she’s not a pet. She’s human.”
John grinned.

Tyler’s eyes widened as Heidi walked into the room.
She smiled shyly.

“What’s so funny?”

John choked on his swallow of sloan and Tyler laughed
as most of it came back up his friend’s nose.

“John was just telling me how funny I looked as I was
falling from the sky.” He gave John a few hard slaps to the back to
help get his breathing going again.

Heidi’s smile disappeared.

“Heidi. It’s alright. Everything worked out just
fine.”

John filled the cup the bartender brought and handed
it to her. “Sit and have a drink with us. You are still a part of
this pack, yeah?”

She looked at Tyler and smiled at his nod.
“Yeah.”

They took a drink.

“John tells me you’ve gotten quite good at
sparring.”

Heidi blushed and shrugged. “I’ve been
practicing.”

Tyler smiled. “That’s good.” He concentrated on his
sloan, trying not to focus on how great she looked in a dark blue
tunic, her dark hair loose, falling in waves just past her
shoulders. He noticed the green bandana was tied to her arm once
again.