Soul Catcher by E. L. Todd Read Free Book Online Page B

very close to Father Giloth. They entered his humble house through the unguarded back entrance, for Aleco’s sake.
    Natalia, the housemaid, greeted them with a smile. “I have a new outfit on each of your beds and a hot bath waiting in your rooms,” she said. “I’ll get dinner started.”
    Father Giloth escorted them to their bedchambers. He instructed them to meet him downstairs when they were ready for supper. Accacia walked into her bedroom and Aleco disappeared down the hall into his own.
    Accacia moaned as she sunk into her hot bath, feeling the aches and pain intensify then dull after a few moments. She scrubbed her skin and watched as layers of tissue and dirt floated to the surface, until the water was saturated with grime. She saw the bruises over her body and the various cuts along her skin, remembrances of her time in captivity. The three months she was there was more than painful, it was agonizing. Her emotional turmoil far exceeded the physical pain. The beatings she received on a daily basis were the reason she tried to take her own life; she would rather die than give into them. She prayed that Aleco wouldn’t mention it or the scars on her body, to Father Giloth. She already knew how upset he was about her just being in the Prisoner’s Circle. She would tend to her wounds in private. She dried herself and put on the elegant, but casual dress, Natalia had set out for her. She fixed her hair and descended the stairs to the study.
    Aleco was already whispering with Father Giloth when she entered the room. His hood still concealed his face and pity rose in her heart. She wished he didn’t feel ashamed in the house of Father Giloth. No one would judge his appearance and she wished he realized that. Their chattering stopped when she walked to the fire and placed her hands above the flames. She immediately felt the warmth spread through her limbs.
    “You look lovely, my dear.” The old man smiled. “Thankfully, you and my late wife were the same size.” Accacia frowned at the mention of his dead wife, suddenly feeling uncomfortable wearing something she owned. Accacia had never known her; she had died before she was even born. Father Giloth seemed to read her thoughts because he cupped her face with his palm and said, “I would much rather see you wear it now, than watch it collect dust in the back of the closet, unworn and unused.”
    Accacia relaxed at his words, relieved that she wasn’t overstepping her boundaries. She would never purposely offend the Nature Priest.
    Father Giloth smiled. “Let’s eat, shall we?”

House of Asylinth, Orgoom Forest
    8
     
    The scraping of knives and the clattering of forks, with the occasional sound of chewing food or abrupt coughing, disrupted the silence in the room as they consumed their dinner. Candles lit the dining room and gave it a dim glow. The dark color of the furniture matched the wood of the forest. Accacia felt like the inside of the house was a mere extension of the woods, embodying the aura of the forest within the dwelling. It was exactly as she remembered it from all those years ago. Father Giloth hadn’t questioned her about the past few years; not yet anyway. She had a feeling he wasn’t going to.
    Accacia looked across the table toward Aleco, his face veiled in absolute darkness under the hood, and wondered if he was staring at her in return—but there was no way for her to know. Realizing her rudeness, she quickly looked down, embarrassed by her obvious interest in Aleco. The man was confusing and difficult to decipher, but she knew one thing for certain; he was irrevocably damaged. She wondered about details of his past but knew he would never tell her. Accacia assumed they would make her captivity seem insignificant in comparison.
    Aleco noticed her stare. How could he not when he had been gawking at her too? Aleco desperately wanted to know her story. Why would such a tiny woman be imprisoned in a heavily guarded fortress? More