Embracing Ember (7 page)

“Yes. I am here to help Ember, if she needs it, but I would be willing to listen to any other crew member who had need of an ear to listen. I’ve always been told that I was a good listener,” she replied tilting her head to the side peering up at him, attempting to look him in the eyes again.

She had no idea what she was doing, he realized. Like Serenity she had no idea what she did was a rare gift, and that it wasn’t intuition. Ceylon remembered the meeting her after she had awoken from her near brush with death. She had smiled at him as he monitored her vitals, before looking down at her mate, Eon. “He is finally sleeping peacefully,” she whispered.

“He is scared to go to sleep and wake up to find you gone,” he had found himself replying. She nodded and looked at him for a few moments.

“Is that what happened to you?” she asked finally, her voice almost too quiet.

He stared at her stunned, his once tight control slipping away from him causing the tears to well in his eyes before he could stop them, “How did you know?” he said his voice sounding weak even to his ears.

Her eyes widened in surprise and it had become apparent to him even before she spoke the words, “I didn’t…well, I-I did, but not really. I had this feeling. I’m sorry if I brought something up that was painful.”

But he didn’t answer her, didn’t even let her know that what her feelings had been was a gift. Serenity may not have been a seer of soul, but she did have some ability. A soft touch on his arm brought him back from his reveries. He looked at Lindsay and could almost feel her need to help him, but he wasn’t ready and he probably never would be. “I apologize sometimes I get lost in my own thoughts. You are welcome to wait in the mess hall. I will let the other crew know of your generosity to aid them if they need,” he stated before looking at Maria. “Maria, you wouldn’t mind taking her to the mess hall and telling Silvius to make the officers and Lindsay feel at home. I think it goes without saying that you most definitely should make yourself at home,” he said turning back to Ember’s sleeping form on the bed. He didn’t hear her reply, but knew they had left with the swishing sound the door made as it opened and closed. Ember held his attention and before he realized what he was doing, he was sitting at her side again, taking her hand into his own. She sighed contentedly in her sleep. He would protect her.

Like you protected Ashwin?

No. He couldn’t allow himself to think like that. He would protect Ember where he had failed Ashwin. He didn’t think he could live if Ember were to leave him like Ashwin had, and although he attributed it to his need to protect since he was a healer. But he couldn’t fool himself. Ember had become important to him and he found that the guilt he felt for those feelings were lessening.

***

Ember woke from her sleep and panicked for all of three seconds at the unfamiliar surroundings. When the past came crashing back she released a sigh and settled back into the mattress and began to do what she did best, worry. What was she supposed to do? She had money stored away that Landon had no idea she had, so she wasn’t completely broke. Thank goodness for the internet she thought to herself as she sat on the side of the bed. It had been how she had made her money and stored it away since Landon had taken her freedom away.

She could stay in a motel until she found something more permanent. One thing was clear to her, though, she had to leave town, if not the state. She wasn’t particularly attached to this location, never had been which was sad. She had lived in many places but had never truly had a home. She made quick use of the facilities wishing she had her own clothing. While Ceylon’s shirt covered all of the important bits, it still felt provocative – if not a bit drafty. She opened the door and stepped out into the hallway. Her ears instantly picked up on the sounds of voices. Her stomach growled reminding her it had been a while since she had last eaten. But she didn’t really know where to go for food, so she opted to follow the voices instead. Maybe someone would be willing to show here where she could get a bite to eat.

The door was open and there were several people sitting at a rectangular table within the room. The food on the table led her to believe that it was like a dining room. She was confused to see the small, thin female with a blonde pixie-cut speaking with Maria. There were also two police officers talking with Ceylon and another Salinian. She was going to walk in and let her presence known, but Ceylon’s words stopped her. “What do you do if the person who hurt her hasn’t been caught yet?”

The blonde female answered, “Well, it depends. If she has family she can go to them, if not then we can arrange for her to stay at the women’s shelter. It mostly depends on what Ember decides to do. We can’t force anyone to do anything.”

“We still haven’t apprehended her husband. It would be best if she did take up the shelter offer,” a police officer stated. Ceylon looked over at the police officer to reply, but stopped and smiled at her. Her mind drifted from the implications of their conversation to the dreams that had taunted her.

Him kissing her. Him holding her. Him devouring every inch of her.

She felt the heat in her face and knew her cheeks were now an unlovely shade of red – the curse of her pale skin. He seemed confused but spoke anyway as he got up and walked toward her, “How do you feel, Ember?”

Such a complicated question. How did she feel? Where should she begin? She felt lost, nothing the same and thankfully so. But the fact remained that everything she knew was changing – she was on an alien’s space ship for goodness sakes. She was scared. He was still out there and waiting for another chance to hurt her, and this time possibly even finish killing her. She was unloved. He didn’t love her. How could he possibly love her and hurt her. Maybe she wasn’t unloved, but he just loved her too much. At this point she wasn’t sure which was worse. She was angry. He had hurt her in unspeakable ways for years and it had all led to this, this feeling of hopelessness. She looked into his azure gaze and gave a smile even she knew was more of a grimace and said, “I feel better.” Ceylon nodded and took her hand leading her to the table. He pulled out her seat and helped her to sit before placing a plate of food in front of her. She looked at it questioningly. There were red worms and greenish chunks and neither looked appetizing. “Um, what is this?” she asked.

“It’s Blogentak. The red is a plant that grows on our planet that I am told tastes like potatoes. The green meat is the reason for the name of the dish, as it is the animal that I am told resembles your squirrels. Everyone who has eaten it has compared it to chicken. I have had the chance to eat chicken while on your planet and I must say it does have a similar flavor,” Ceylon answered.

Ember poked at the meal on the plate with the fork delaying the inevitable. Sure she could push it away, but memories of refusing a gift from Landon flooded her and she dutifully placed a bite of the green meat in her mouth. She chewed and tried her best to conceal her surprise at how good it tasted. Ceylon’s chuckle brought her attention back to him and she pinned him with a curious look. “It is surprisingly good, right?” he asked. She wasn’t sure what to do so she just nodded, her fear of his retaliation almost suffocating her. She jumped at the touch from her side. She looked up into the little blonde female’s eyes and felt as if she knew her, as if her whole life had been laid out for her to read. She blinked and the feeling vanished.

“Ember we haven’t been introduced, but my name is Lindsay Clark. I am a counselor at the local women’s shelter. I was asked to come here to help you with whatever you may need. I know you may not realize it and I know that it will take some time, but I want you to know that you are safe here,” Lindsay said. Ember nodded and began to eat her food. She was embarrassed by the tears that fell into her plate and tried to wipe them away. She had been lied to before, been told that he was sorry and that he wouldn’t hurt her again. She had been told that he loved her. She had been told that he would keep her safe and give her a home. But he lied, they were all lies told so she would let her guard down so he could rip her apart.
WELL YOU SUCEEDED LANDON. HERE I AM – NOTHING! I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHO I AM ANYMORE
. Her mind screamed at her as she tried to stop the flow of tears.

He was there enfolding her in his warm embrace. She didn’t even think to stiffen and try to pull away. She needed this little repose too much to maintain her strength, her distance. She hadn’t known him long but he had become her rock in some ways. He had saved her life, he had held her when she cried, and probably most importantly he was kind to her. She knew how stupid it was to trust him. She had been there and done that, but still something inside of her let her do it against her better judgment. She did trust him, not completely and thanks to Landon’s hard work in tearing her apart she probably never would. So instead of doing the smart thing, the thing her mind cried at her to do, she snuggled closer to him. Let him hold her as if she mattered to him. The sound of the police officers voice shattered the illusion that they were alone in the world together and nothing mattered, “Mrs. Anderson, we need to get your statement, please.” Ember sighed and pulled away from Ceylon grateful and oddly disappointed at the loss of contact and instantly became embarrassed. In his quest to comfort her he had placed her on his lap. He didn’t seem to see anything wrong with it, so Ember decided to let that slide, besides for all she knew that kind of affection in his culture was the norm. He placed her back in her seat and placed her meal back in front of her.

Ember took a deep breath and answered the questions the officers asked. Reliving every punch and hit was painful to say the least and embarrassing. She got those looks from Maria, who she knew had to see a lot of this in her line of work as a nurse. The police officers also gave her that look. The same look you give a dog that keeps going back to the same master who doesn’t feed them, who hurts them at every opportunity, and who isn’t fit to breathe let alone own an animal. They looked at her with pity. They were all thinking how stupid she was that she didn’t leave him. She could see it all in their faces that accused her of becoming the victim.
I didn’t ask for this. All I wanted was to be loved and he promised me that. He promised me a home. Then he took it all away and left me broken. I couldn’t leave; you see what happened when I did try. I was caged in the home he promised me.
She wanted to tell them. Show them all that they could save their pitying looks, because any one of them could have become the victim. It angered her that they felt this way and it angered her more that she allowed herself to warrant such attention from them.

Ember was afraid to look at Ceylon, afraid to see the censure and pity in his gaze. Those blue eyes accusing her just like the rest. She couldn’t help herself, however and did look. She was surprised to find compassion and concern in his gaze. He even gave her an encouraging smile. He didn’t hate what she had allowed to happen to her. She finished her meal and answered all the questions posed to her. When she yawned Ceylon stopped them all, “Ember needs her rest. While the Medical Scanner does repair the injuries, it does use the body’s natural mechanisms and that is tiring. Ember will need much rest for the next couple of days. Ember if you will follow me, I will take you to your quarters. I believe Silvius dropped off some clothing for you. If you need to contact someone, I’d be happy to allow you to do so.”

“Thank you. But I don’t have anyone to contact. I don’t have any family.” Ember relayed sadly as she stood to follow Ceylon. He grasped her hand in his and rubbed soothing patterns in her palm as he spoke.

“What do you mean you don’t have anyone?” he asked with genuine curiosity.

“My mother died when I was born and she didn’t have any living relatives at the time. I was placed in the foster system. Landon was my only family, and I was trying desperately to get away from him.” She replied her voice trailing off to a whisper at the end. He squeezed her hand as they stopped in front of her room.

“I know this is probably not how they do things on your planet, but I was wondering if you’d like to stay with me at the apartments the government gave me while I toured your hospitals,” he said and he placed his finger on her mouth effectively quieting her when she would have interrupted. “I wouldn’t mind having a guide to explain some of the culture to me, and it would make me feel better to know that you were safe. I don’t really understand how he could have hurt someone like you, but I feel this need to protect you. I’m not sure why, and I will understand if you don’t feel comfortable. I would like for you to continue to see Lindsay. I have a feeling that she will be able to help you. Oh and there are two sleeping quarters. I believe that is important.” He finished and looked down at her expectantly.