The Sentinels of Eden, Books 1-4

Chapter 82

Chapter 25

‘The ice cream goes in the freezer, usually,’ Tessa pointed out, nibbling on a second biscuit that she didn’t even really want. The act of nibbling seemed to help settle her queasiness though. She had her feet up again but there was nothing she could do to relieve the constant feeling of breathlessness and aching ribs. There was simply no longer enough room in her chest for her lungs. If the baby grew much bigger something was going to have to go into storage. Maybe her spleen. She could live without a spleen for a few weeks, surely. Still, as useless as she was, apparently someone was needed to supervise the packing away of the food because Noah apparently ‘had to have a shower to clean off someone else’s blood’ and was therefore too busy to help with the groceries, and Lily had declared that being up to the last chapter of her novel was an established house rule that got her out of doing anything, and Lance Corporal Millard was doing a terrible job on his own. She shook her head as Bane retrieved the tub of ice cream from the pantry, still distracted by the view from the window.

‘She’ll be fine,’ she assured Bane. ‘Chill already. You can’t follow her everywhere. It’s not healthy for any relationship, hard though it is for you. Trust me, I understand.’

‘I know. It’s just that something’s … I haven’t done this for so long. Sometimes it feels like the whole world is hunting for her, looking for an opportunity to tear her limb from limb.’

Lily looked up from her book and her face lost all colour in about half a second, so Tessa threw her biscuit at Bane, breaking his attention away from the window.

Bane blinked at them both, then nodded and smiled. ‘That was a bit much, huh? Sorry, Lily. As I said, it’s been so long, it takes a bit of getting used to. I’m so worried about messing up again … Do you think maybe she’s going to get sick? This is hardly the best time of year to go swimming in the river.’

Tessa reached for another unwanted biscuit but there were none left in the tin. ‘So let her get sick and then heal her. That would be better than stepping on her shadow wherever she goes. She’s pretty easy going at the moment but the old Lainie wouldn’t like it, so be careful.’

Lily took the ice cream from the fridge and handed it to Tessa, and when Bane noticed what he’d done, he gave up on the unpacking and sat down. Running his hands through his short hair, he exhaled heavily. ‘The old Lainie. The one who practically killed herself to be free of me. She doesn’t remember it though. I have no idea what to do. I can’t keep her away from the Ashbrees forever. Should I try to remind her or let it happen in its own time? What if Nicole says something about her mum and she has some sort of a breakdown? She just seems so childlike and … fragile.’

Tess scooped out a spoonful of ice cream, tried a bit, and decided that there wasn’t even room in her ‘reserved only for dessert’ stomach anymore. She relinquished the spoon to Lily, who swallowed a big mouthful before speaking.

‘Bane, listen to me. She’s tougher than she looks. She only seems childlike because of where she’s been, and she’s anything but fragile. I remember what it was like for Annie whenever she returned from Eden, and she never went there for more than a few weeks at a time. The transition can be horrendous. Lainie was there for years—I honestly think all she needs is a bit of time to adjust.’

‘Annie fell apart! You told me she was on the verge of being suicidal until she decided to go back to Eden for good. She couldn’t cope with living here, it was killing her.’ He was gripping the edge of the table hard enough to crack a knuckle.

‘Annie lost her Guardian. Lainie still has you. You can get her through this,’ Lily countered as Noah entered the kitchen, towelling dry his hair.

Bane looked a little lost as his eyes drifted back to the window. ‘I don’t want to live without her. I’ve tried. I honestly tried. I don’t know what would happen to me if I had to let her go again. I don’t want to be that person.’

‘Give her some time,’ Lily repeated. ‘If the memories come back, then we’ll deal. Until then, the more time that passes, the easier it will be for her to cope. Time is still a great healer. Maybe not as good as other methods but it does work eventually. When her memories return, all you can do is be there for her.’

Bane’s attention was still fixated so solidly on the one Cherub-Guardian team member not in the room that Tess wasn’t certain that he realised his next words were spoken out loud.

‘And when they do, Lainie,’ he mumbled, ‘maybe I’ll finally get a chance to apologise for failing you so badly.’

For the next few minutes Tessa and Lily pretended to ignore each other’s sniffles and worked hard at looking busy, Lily with the shopping, while Tessa circled a heap of things in a baby magazine that she wished she could afford. Noah was checking the footy scores on his phone and didn’t seem to notice anything. It was a relief when Bane finally stopped lining up all the cans in the pantry and headed back to the window.

‘They’re nearly back,’ he announced. The rain had started again, pelting down with frosty vengeance. ‘She’s dancing again. Oh …’ He turned away, leaning back against the sink and squeezing his eyes shut. Tessa craned her neck up but couldn’t see far enough without getting up so instead she turned to Noah. The moment he glanced out the window, he dropped his phone onto the table, forgotten.

‘Oh, good Lord!’ Lily cried as she tried to close the blind. In her haste she only managed to make it snap open even higher.

With considerable effort, Tessa stood up to see what all the fuss was about, and rolled her eyes. Lainie’s wet dress had gone completely see-through. The only person that seemed unaffected was Dallmin. He was spinning around in the icy sleet with his shirt plastered to his chest, oblivious to the sight of her practically naked twirling form. Tessa felt her ears blush.

Breathing deeply, Bane had his eyes fixed firmly on a chip in the tiled floor.

‘Sorry, mate, I really am,’ Noah laughed, sounding not sorry at all as Tess shoved him out of the room. When she turned to retrieve her magazine, Lily was tugging on Bane’s sleeve to try to get his attention.

‘Bane! Go into the other room. Watch TV or something. I’ll get her.’ Lily shooed him out after Noah, shaking her head. Bane took one last pained glance over his shoulder as he left, while Lily plucked her raincoat from the hook on the door and headed out to muster up the frolicking dancers.