The days had bled into weeks and winter had finally overtaken autumn as the final leaves fell from the trees leaving the branches bare and fully exposed to the elements. Elena had hoped that maybe by the time winter arrived, she would be changed - stronger- yet the weight of the bond with the artifact hadn’t lessened. If anything, the hold it had over her mind seemed to shift and deepen, changing shape like a shadow at dusk. Elena sat by the window, her fingers trailing idly over the worn pages of The Testament of Ashur, though her eyes were unfocused, her mind elsewhere.

Sometimes, it felt like she was barely holding on.

The compulsion training sessions with Theo had given her a measure of control, something solid to grasp when the whispers in her mind grew too loud, when they clawed at her sanity with their ceaseless murmurs. She could still hear them now and then, a chorus of voices that wove through her thoughts, ghostly, like the faintest whisper that was there one moment and gone the next.

She’d tried to ignore them, to push them back, but they always returned, lingering in the recesses of her mind, a quiet reminder of the bond she couldn’t escape.

Her gaze drifted back to The Testament of Ashur. It had become her anchor during those quiet hours in her room, a distraction, a tether to a world beyond the artifact’s pull. She’d spent countless hours reading it, sifting through the cryptic words, the ancient warnings and lore that seemed both enlightening and impenetrable. It was an odd comfort, somehow, to know that others had walked this path before her, that they, too, had felt the weight of something beyond themselves.

But the relief was fleeting. The toll was there, etched in her reflection—the dark circles beneath her eyes, the pallor of her skin, the way her hands trembled slightly when she was alone, when there was no one else to see.

Her focus shifted elsewhere, wandering back to the tension that had lingered between her and Theo since that fateful compulsion session.

The distance she’d put between them had only grown. It was as though every glance he gave her, every unspoken word, reminded her of the gap between what she felt and what she feared he couldn’t return. She was holding him at arm’s length, and each time she saw him, it hurt more. His kindness, his insistence on watching over her—it made her feel like some kind of burden.

She couldn’t stop herself from pulling further away. Every time he came near, the voices that haunted her—the whispers from the artifact—seemed to take on a sharper edge, as if they sensed her unease and wanted to stoke it. They stirred up her worst fears, amplifying every insecurity until she felt raw and exposed.

Her only real reprieve had been her walks with David. He’d begun stopping by almost daily, showing up at the house with a familiar smile that still felt strange to her, as though it belonged to someone else. The brother she remembered had been a boy, not this grown man with a quiet, watchful gaze. And yet, here he was, navigating her life like a stranger who knew far too much.

Their walks around the garden had been peaceful, if somewhat surreal. She felt as though she were getting to know a version of her brother she’d never met, someone shaped by years and experiences she hadn’t been part of. It was jarring—comforting one moment, unsettling the next. Sometimes she would catch him studying her, as though he, too, were trying to reconcile who she was now with the sister he remembered.

A knock on the door pulled her from her thoughts. She closed the book, taking a steadying breath before calling, “Come in.”

The door opened, and Theo stepped inside, his dark eyes sweeping over her, lingering in a way that made her chest tighten. She felt the whispers stir, a faint, insistent murmur that scratched at her mind, filling her with an uneasy restlessness. It was as though his very presence sparked something inside her that she couldn’t control—a mixture of yearning and resentment that she hated herself for feeling.

If he didn’t want her, why did he have to look at her like that?

Had he just come back from feeding? The thought flared unbidden, and she immediately hated herself for wondering. She clenched her hands, hoping he couldn’t see the flicker of irritation in her expression. But his gaze narrowed slightly, his shoulders tensing as if he’d sensed the change in her mood.

“Elena… I haven’t seen you eat today,” he said softly, his voice filled with that familiar concern she was beginning to resent.

“I’m fine,” she replied, her tone clipped.

He hesitated, glancing toward the door. “Well, David’s here with food. I made something, too, if you’d like. I could bring it to you.”

She forced a thin smile, a practiced politeness she’d perfected in recent days. “I’m fine,” she repeated. “Please let David know I’ll meet him in the garden in a minute.”

Theo lingered in the doorway, his gaze still on her, as though he were searching for something. She felt a prick of irritation; what more did he want from her? Couldn’t he see that his presence made it harder, that the constant reminder of what she couldn’t have only tore at her?

“You can leave,” she said, her tone cool.

For a moment, she thought she saw a flash of something in his eyes—a mix of irritation and hurt—but he quickly masked it, his jaw tightening. Without another word, he turned and walked away, his footsteps retreating down the hall.

Good. Maybe if she annoyed him enough, he’d finally leave her alone.

The thought brought a hollow pang to her chest, one she ignored as she stood, smoothing her clothes. She wouldn’t allow herself to feel guilty. She’d told herself again and again that pushing him away was the right thing, that she needed to let him go before she became too entangled in something that could only bring her pain.

She made her way downstairs, forcing herself to keep her thoughts from straying to Theo as she entered the garden where David was waiting. He stood by the stone pathway, a warm smile on his face that felt both familiar and foreign. The sight of him eased some of her tension, grounding her in a way that Theo’s presence never could.

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“Elena,” he greeted her, extending a hand to guide her onto the path. “I brought something for you,” he added, lifting a small paper bag that smelled of fresh bread and herbs.

A genuine smile tugged at her lips. “You’ve been spoiling me, you know that?”

David laughed, the sound rich and genuine. “Consider it making up for lost time,” he said, handing her the bag. “Besides, someone has to make sure you’re taking care of yourself. And I’m not about to leave that responsibility to Theo.”

She stilled at the mention of Theo, the warmth in her chest fading slightly. David noticed her change in mood, his expression softening.

“Has he been bothering you?” he asked, his tone light, though she could hear the hint of protectiveness in his voice.

“No,” she replied quickly, shaking her head. “He just… he doesn’t seem to understand that I don’t need him constantly watching over me. It’s… complicated.”

David studied her, his gaze thoughtful, as though he were trying to read between the lines of what she wasn’t saying. “Theo’s a strange one,” he said finally, his voice carefully neutral. “But if he’s making things difficult, you know I’m here for you, right?”

She nodded, a grateful smile pulling at her lips. It felt strange, navigating this relationship with him, rebuilding the bond they’d once shared. But his presence was comforting, a reminder that she had someone who truly cared, who didn’t look at her with that unspoken intensity, that need she could never seem to decipher.

They walked in silence for a while, the quiet companionship between them a balm for her frayed nerves. Elena clutched the bag of food David had brought, her thoughts still turning over the complicated web of her life. The artifact, Theo, the whispers—it all felt like a knot she couldn’t untangle. But if anyone could give her a sense of stability, it was David.

As they strolled along the garden path, she turned to him, her voice soft but edged with curiosity. “Have you made any progress on finding the other fragments of the artifact?”

David sighed, running a hand through his hair, his expression thoughtful. “Nothing concrete yet. But Rowen has agreed to allow me to send out a few scouts. We’re hoping something will turn up soon.” He glanced at her, his eyes shadowed with concern. “The Watchers are doing what they can, but without more clues, it’s like searching for a needle in a haystack.”

She nodded, a faint sense of relief mixing with her apprehension. At least there was progress, even if it was slow. “Thank you, David. I… I know this has put you all in a difficult position.”

“It’s family, Elena,” he replied firmly. “I’d do anything to keep you safe. You know that.”

They walked in silence for a moment before David’s voice dropped, taking on a serious edge. “How have you been doing with the bond?” He looked at her intently, his eyes filled with a protective worry that made her chest tighten. “Have you felt… anything trying to take over again?”

The question lingered between them, weighted with unspoken fears. She forced herself to hold his gaze, summoning as much reassurance as she could manage. “No,” she replied softly. “I haven’t felt that… pull since I started training with Theo. I’m managing.”

David’s shoulders relaxed, the tension easing from his posture. “Good,” he murmured, though his expression remained guarded. He seemed to hesitate, as though choosing his words carefully. “Elena,” he began, his voice quiet but insistent, “I still think you should come with me. The Watchers could protect you, help you control this bond more safely than anyone else can.”

She shook her head, the familiar ache of disappointment surfacing. They’d had this conversation before, and each time it seemed to hurt a little more. “I can’t, David,” she said, her voice firm, though she softened her tone, hoping he would understand. “Theo has been helping me. He’s… giving me compulsion training. It’s making a difference.”

David’s gaze narrowed, a skeptical frown crossing his face. “Compulsion training?” he repeated, a note of distrust slipping into his voice. “And you’re sure that’s safe?”

“It’s helping,” she replied, a flicker of defensiveness in her tone. “Theo knows what he’s doing.”

He didn’t respond immediately, his jaw clenched as he looked away, as though weighing his next words carefully. After a pause, he cleared his throat, glancing at her with a hesitation that she hadn’t seen in him before. “Elena… has he… been feeding from you?”

Her breath hitched, a flicker of indignation sparking in her chest. “What? No,” she said, too quickly, the discomfort in her voice more pronounced than she’d intended.

David’s eyes softened, but his expression remained serious. “I’m only asking because… allowing yourself to be fed on can lead to becoming a thrall. You’d be binding yourself to him in a way that would make it hard to break free. Theo isn’t someone you want to bind yourself to.”

The words stung, an unexpected anger simmering beneath her calm exterior. “That’s none of your business, David,” she snapped, crossing her arms as she glared at him. “Theo has done nothing but try to help me. He’s the one who’s been by my side when no one else could understand what this bond is doing to me.”

David’s expression darkened, a hint of frustration breaking through his calm demeanor. “I’m not trying to interfere, Elena. I’m trying to protect you. I know what these bonds can do, how dangerous they are. Theo… he’s dangerous, Elena. You can’t forget what he is.”

Her anger flared, the weight of his words pushing against everything she’d been trying to convince herself of. “And what about you, David?” she shot back, her voice rising. “You think you can just walk back into my life and act like you know what’s best for me?”

The bitterness in her tone seemed to catch him off guard, and he took a step back, his eyes flashing with a hint of regret. “I’m only trying to make up for lost time,” he said quietly, the vulnerability in his voice softening her anger, if only slightly. “I know I left you alone. But I’m here now, and I want to make sure you’re safe. Is that so hard to understand?”

Elena clenched her jaw, her emotions warring between gratitude and resentment. She’d spent so long building walls around herself, and now here he was, trying to tear them down in the name of protection. But she didn’t need protecting—not like this, not from Theo.

Before she could respond, a familiar presence appeared at the edge of the garden. She turned, her heart skipping as she saw Theo watching them, his expression unreadable. He moved toward them, his gaze flickering between her and David, a quiet intensity in his eyes that made her pulse quicken.

“Is everything alright?” he asked, his voice calm but tinged with a tension she recognized.

She looked away, feeling the weight of his gaze, her anger still simmering beneath the surface. “Fine,” she replied coolly, her tone sharper than she intended. “David was just leaving.”

David glanced at Theo, his expression guarded, and for a brief moment, neither of them spoke. The tension between them was palpable, a quiet, simmering clash that left her feeling trapped, caught between two worlds that seemed destined to collide.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Elena,” David said finally, his tone measured, though there was a flicker of concern in his gaze as he turned and walked away, his footsteps fading into the quiet evening.

Elena stood there, her gaze fixed on the ground as she fought to steady her breathing, to keep the turmoil inside her from spilling over. She could feel Theo watching her, the familiar intensity in his gaze making her heart race, but she couldn’t bring herself to look at him, to face whatever questions lingered in his eyes.

Without a word, she turned and walked back toward the house, leaving him standing alone in the garden.