The Book of Terrus: The Ghosts of Goran

Chapter 14 - An Unforgivable Truth

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The sound of quiet crying woke Jatheryn in the middle of the night. It was so soft that he wondered at how he could have possibly heard anything from deep in his dreams. Holding his breath, he could hear it from the wall between his and Awenis's rooms. There it came again; soft sniffles muffled as though into a pillow.

Jatheryn sat up in bed and swung his feet over the side. The rug was cool beneath his feet, its colors seeped away by the paleness of the moonlight. It was a full moon tonight, and Jatheryn didn't even need to light a candle to find his night robe slung over the vanity chair. Tightening the belt over his black satin nightclothes, Jatheryn made for the door.

Only once he was standing out in the hallway in front of Awenis's door did he pause. The candles on the chandelier over the stairway had almost burnt down to stubs, suggesting the night was very old at this hour.

Was it his place to go in? Did Awenis even want him at her side? His hand faltered in midair.

Another soft, choked sob reached him, standing alone out in the hall. He saw his reflection, distorted in the dull gleam of the brass doorknob. His father was right; he did look like a ghost. Standing out here in the shadows listening to his sister cry, he certainly felt like one. Perhaps he ought to go back to bed and leave Awenis in peace as she had asked earlier.

How you choose to spend your wretched existence is less like living and more like haunting!

Jahaelis's angry words came back to Jatheryn in the quiet of the night. Ghosts could not speak though, and certainly could not comfort.

"I am not a ghost," Jatheryn whispered to himself. Then he turned the doorknob and went in.

Awenis's room was brighter than his. The balcony windows and curtains were pulled all the way open, almost expectantly, allowing the full radiance of the moon to cast a silvery glow across the bed. Awenis sat bolt upright, clutching at the covers over her filmy white nightdress.

"Jatheryn, what are you doing?" she gasped. Tear tracks glistened on her face in the moonlight. Her white-blonde hair floated in an untidy cloud around her pale shoulders. "Why didn't you knock?"

"Because I didn't know if you would let me in." Jatheryn approached the bed and sat down on a far corner.

"I..." Awenis rubbed at her puffy eyes. "...Could you hear me?"

Jatheryn nodded. "I could. Awenis, will you talk about it?"

"What is there to say?"

"Anything...Everything. I fear I may have driven off Darenel Tremaris, so surely you must have things you want to say to me." When Awenis drew up her knees to her chin beneath the blankets, Jatheryn pursued her, leaning forward. "Please Awenis, just talk. Be angry even, if you will."

Awenis backhanded her cheek again, another tear escaping. "It's not that. I'm not angry at you Jatheryn, I swear I'm not."

"Then at Darenel?"

"No...yes...Jath, I'm afraid." Awenis' voice got tinier with every syllable. She hugged her legs tightly to her chest, her amber eyes wide.

"Afraid of what?" Jatheryn frowned. "No one besides me knew about you and Darenel, I'm sure of it. You're not in any danger of dishonor, nor is he."

"But I am...I am," Awenis whispered. "It is inevitable. I can't hide it, not for long."

"Hide what? Awenis, I know you must be heartbroken, but you're not making sense. What are you afraid of?"