Chapter 37: Heartless
Nely walked ahead of Dune, her silence heavy, almost suffocating. She wasn't talking, wasn't even looking back at him. Just moving forward, her steps steady but...too calm.
Dune wasn't sure what to do. Should i say something? Should i just let her be?
He felt bad. Angry. Lucas didn't deserve to die. He was just a kid, full of energy, hope, and dreams. But that was life, wasn't it? Unforgiving. Cruel.
But Nely... she had gotten attached to the boy too quickly. Why?
Dune glanced up, the distant shimmer of the water coming into view through the trees. They were close.
"We're close," he finally said, his voice calm, almost mechanical. We'll probably arrive in a few hours. And if we are lucky we—"
Nely stopped. Dune barely had time to register it before her voice cut through the air like a blade.
"What?" Her tone was sharp, controlled, but there was something underneath it. A tremor.
Then she turned to him, her eyes dark and unreadable. "Did you feel anything, Dune? When Lucas died?"
Dune froze.
"How can you act like nothing happened?"