Chapter 6 : The Scent of Pain

Gyran’s Pov

We finished the meeting about The Shredder’s warehouse, and Braydon was still talking about the attack plan because he was really focused on revenge right now. I just wanted to leave. The room was too loud and too hot, and I needed some air.

I saw Evelyn leave earlier when the meeting was breaking up, but I hadn’t paid much attention because I thought she was just going to the kitchen or something. Now she still wasn’t back, and Braydon didn’t seem to notice that she was gone.

“Where is Evelyn?” I asked Braydon, but he just shrugged his shoulders and looked back at the map.

“She probably went upstairs to rest. She looks rough, man. She didn’t sleep at all last night,” he said, then kept talking about flanking maneuvers and using the new guys on the north side.

I didn’t like that answer because Evelyn always stayed close to Braydon, especially after what happened to her father. She wasn’t the type to just go hide, I felt this weird knot in my gut that told me she was not okay.

“I need to check on the sentries outside. I’ll be back in five minutes,” I told Braydon, and without waiting for him to say anything, I walked out of the hall fast.

I walked through the lower level, the kitchen was empty, and the training yard outside was empty too. I went to the stairs and started going up slowly because I knew she wouldn’t be in the main rooms where people usually hung out.

I walked down the long hallway on the second floor where most of the guest rooms used to be and stopped by the door at the very end. It was shut and locked, it was an old room we sometimes used for storage, but I knew she was in there.

I stood outside the door and listened really hard, wanting to hear her moving or breathing or doing anything but it was completely silent and that silence was worse than any noise. When Evelyn was upset, she usually paced or mumbled to herself or cried quietly but this total silence meant she was hurt really bad.

I raised my hand and knocked softly on the wood with my knuckles.

“Eve, it’s me, Gyran. Open up,” I said quietly so no one else would hear me, but she didn’t answer.

I knocked again, a little louder, and waited a second, but nothing happened.

“Look, I know you’re in there. I saw you leave the hall. You need to talk to someone. What’s wrong?” I said and waited again.

Still nothing.

“Evelyn, I’m not playing with you. You need to unlock the door because Braydon is worried or at least he will be if I tell him where you are, so just open up,” I tried to sound tough, like I was giving orders, but inside I was worried sick.

After a long minute, I heard a tiny scraping sound near the floor by the door, but she still didn’t speak.

“What was that?” I asked.

“Nothing,” her voice was so small and flat it sounded dead, like a ghost talking and that made my heart drop.

“That didn’t sound like nothing. Open the door now,” I demanded because the flatness in her voice scared me.

“Go away, Gyran. I’m fine. I just need to be alone for a while,” she said, trying to sound normal, but it wasn’t working.

“No, you’re not fine. If you were, you’d be downstairs with Braydon planning the attack. So open the door because I’m not leaving until you do,” I told her.

“Why do you care so much?” she asked, her voice still flat and empty.

“Because you’re Braydon’s sister, and I promised him I would always look out for you, that’s why,” I lied easily. I couldn’t tell her the real reason. I couldn’t tell her I cared because I’d loved her since she was sixteen, and she was still the only girl I ever wanted, even though she was my best friend’s off-limits sister.

She was quiet again for a few seconds, then spoke.

“You don’t have to look out for me anymore. I can take care of myself, and I don’t need your protection. I’m not a kid,” she said, but her voice was starting to crack, which meant she was probably crying now.

“That’s a lie, and you know it. You’re hurt right now, and you’re hiding, I can tell. So just open the door,” I pressed closer to the wood, trying to hear any sign of what was happening inside.

I knew she was probably upset about Daniel and her best friend, Piper, because she had left her whole life behind for Braydon. Now that life was probably falling apart, it’s not like you just leave without a reason. I was supposed to protect her from this kind of pain, but I couldn’t protect her from a liar fiancé and a traitor friend.

I wanted to smash the door down, grab her, hold her tight, and tell her I’d kill anyone who hurt her—even if it was those people in the city. But I couldn’t do that because she was still off-limits, and I was still loyal to Braydon, even though my heart was breaking for her.

“I need to leave now, Gyran. You need to leave now,” she said, and this time her voice was sharp and determined, a small sign of life.

“Fine, I’ll leave, but if you need anything, just knock on the wall twice. I’ll hear it. I’m right down the hall in my room,” I told her and started walking away slowly because I wanted her to know I wasn’t really gone.

I walked down the hall, then paused around the corner where she couldn’t see me. I leaned my ear against the wall because I needed to know if she was okay. I heard a small noise from her room, a soft cry quickly muffled. I closed my eyes and clenched my fists because I hated that she was hurting and I couldn’t fix it.

I just stood there, listening to the silence and the muffled sounds. My protective instinct screamed at me to go back, but my long-held desire and loyalty to Braydon kept me rooted in place. I just waited for that second knock that wasn’t going to come.