Chapter 238: Need To Run
"What happened to the ritual?" Damon hesitated at her question.
He looked down for a moment before meeting her eyes again, something guarded flickering behind his gaze.
"You took Oriana’s place in the ritual," he said gently. "You stepped into the circle before they completed it. they didn’t expect it. The whole thing went wrong after that."
Olivia blinked, trying to sit up straighter, but her limbs felt like they were made of sand. "I did?"
Damon nodded. "Oriana passed out right before the final chant. You.." he swallowed, "...you walked into the center and said something. I couldn’t hear it. Then the runes lit up, and you collapsed. But we saved the girls. Rhistel had sent them back to their houses. Oriana is unconscious but she is fine. What about you?"
Olivia’s brows furrowed. She looked down at her trembling hands.
"I didn’t mean to.." she started, her voice hoarse. "I just remember the light and then this burning. Here." She pressed a hand to the center of her chest. "It still hurts. It’s like something is clawing inside me. Like I am empty. My heart is hollow."
Damon stood quickly, concern flashing through him. He fetched the pitcher of water from the table and poured it into a glass with trembling fingers, then knelt beside her again, offering it.
"Here. Drink," he said.
She took the glass with unsteady hands and sipped, but the moment the water touched her lips, she pulled back. It tasted wrong. As if her body rejected it!
She looked at him, her voice low. "It doesn’t help."