"Where is he?" Dina"s voice filled the crowded hallways.
"Dina, stop," a voice responded, the owner stepping into her path.
Sophie and Haim raced up behind her, "Wait!" Sophie exclaimed, nearly tripping over her own feet. Coming to a halt behind her small friend, panting, she looked up to see a familiar face standing in their path.
"I"m warning you, get out of my way," Dina demanded.
"Michael?" Sophie gasped.
"I don"t understand, sir. What are you doing here?" Haim added.
"I said get out of my way!" Dina shouted, having little interest in the return of their mentor.
"Dina, you need to listen to me," Michael began.
"No, I don"t. What I need is to see Raimie," Dina replied firmly.
"They"re doing everything for him they can. This isn"t going to help anything," Michael said, attempting to rea.s.sure the girl.
"What"s not going to help?" Dina asked, pausing.
"If you can"t hold it together, it won"t be good for anyone. You need to stop and take care of yourself, get your head straight," Michael instructed.
"I"m fine," she answered flatly. "What I don"t understand is why can"t they just do a healing spell or give him some herbs?"
"He was in an explosion, that same blast killed Bishop instantly. It"s a miracle Raimie is even clinging to life at all," Michael continued.
"Don"t say that," Dina pleaded, the words making her cringe.
"Our clerics can do amazing things, but he"s beyond their abilities of healing. I know it"s hard to hear, but it is the reality. He shouldn"t still be with us now. If you insist on seeing him, you need to know when you go in there, it"s to say goodbye," Michael explained, attempting to place a hand on her shoulder.
"What?" Dina shrieked, pulling to the side to avoid her mentor"s hand. "No! I don"t accept that. He"s holding on because he"s going to come back to us."
Without another word, Dina pushed past Michael, making her way into the small room that contained her beloved.
"Is he really that bad?" Sophie asked, pausing in front of Michael.
"I"m afraid so. The healers say he won"t wake up, there"s just too much internal damage," Michael replied.
"I don"t understand; we were told you were a member of the council now," Haim continued, trying to think about anything except his friend dying in the next room.
"After we got word about Bishop"s death, the council decided I was most needed on the ground. I will likely have to return, but for now, they accept this is where I will do the most good," Michael added.
"Sir, what about Uri?" Sophie asked.
"Thanks to Seraphine, he"s going to be just fine," Michael answered.
"Who?" Haim asked, the name unfamiliar.
"Here, follow me, I"ll introduce you," Michael replied, turning towards the large open room. The vast hall had been turned into a make-shift infirmary. A few cots were strewn about, the rest of the rows were cluttered with bedding piled on the floors; bloodied and bruised patients scattered all around.
As the group approached Uri, his line of sight did not shift from the woman who sat on the edge of his bed. He stared at her with such intensity that it made the others uncomfortable to interrupt them.
"Ahem," Michael cleared his throat in an attempt to garner their attention. The girl stood and turned to face them. Sophie"s eyes widened, she could not recall ever seeing anyone more beautiful.
Though the bustle around them continued, for Sophie it was as if a hush had fallen over the room. The woman"s skin had a golden hue to it, as if she were from some place exotic. Her piercing eyes were like dark pools of gray, her eyebrows arched with exaggeration, bringing even more attention to her eyes.
The bridge of her nose was perfection, the slope leading down to a dainty point that was a sufficient shape and size for the girl"s face. Her lips were plump and as she smiled at them, the edges curled in a way that did not rob her smile from any of its fullness. Her raven hair hung straight around her strong jawline, except for the few strands she had tucked behind her ear.
"h.e.l.lo. I"m Seraphine. But everyone calls me Sera."
Sophie thought how Seraphine seemed more appropriate for her beauty than plain old Sera. She was not surprised Uri was so obviously smitten with the girl.
"I"m so glad to see you guys are all right," Uri said, shifting his attention at last to his friends.
"You too man, I heard you took quite a beating," Haim replied.
"You know nothing can kill me. I"m too stubborn to die," Uri replied, but his voice trailed off and his stare shifted to one of sadness as he thought of his friend, Raimie. Death was too real of a topic in that moment.
"Michael, Haim, would you mind if I spoke to you for a moment?" Sera asked, gesturing that they move to a more private and secure location.
"No, of course not," Michael answered, following the girl"s lead.
Sophie furrowed her brow as she watched them, wondering why she had been excluded from the side bar.
"Sophie, we need to talk," Uri began.
Shifting her attention, she moved in quickly, taking a seat at her friend"s side. "I guess everyone around here has to talk. Sorry, that sounded petty, of course, what is it?"
Uri took hold of her hand, wincing from the pain slightly as he did so. "We need to talk about the other night."
"Huh?" Sophie asked in reply. She had completely forgotten about what he might be referring to. She had been so focused on the evacuation, as well as her returning memories, that everything else had slipped her mind.
"I think you know what I"m talking about," Uri continued.
"No, really," Sophie confirmed. "I"m lost."
Uri rolled his eyes in disbelief before whispering, "The kiss."
Sophie looked down at the bed in an effort not to laugh. "Oh, yes, of course. Uri-"
Before she could discount what had happened as a mistake, he interrupted her. "I"m sorry, I don"t mean to hurt you, you"re my friend. I mean- I can"t believe I"m even saying this. I never believed in love at first sight. That was for, well-I don"t know who, but not for me. But now, she"s all I can think about. It"s crazy; I want this more than life."
Sophie stared at her friend, confused. "What are you talking about?"
"Sera, I think I might love her."
"What?" Sophie cried. This was not jealousy she felt, but instead disbelief. She remembered all the feelings she had for Uri as a friend. He was her best friend, and as such, she knew him and love never seemed to mix well. He would move from one infatuation to the next and never spoke of love. She didn"t know if she should worry about him getting hurt or him hurting this girl she didn"t know. Either way, she was certain someone would be walking away wounded. "Do you even know anything about her?"
"I know enough," Uri defended his feelings.
"Like what? Where does she come from?"
"Sophie, it wouldn"t matter if she were here or not. I am never going to have the same feelings you have for me," Uri replied.
"Huh?" Sophie gasped. "Are you insane?"
"Oh, come on, don"t play dumb."
As the words left her lips, she thought about that night on the bluffs, the kiss ... "Gabe!"
"That"s right, don"t you think we"ve done enough damage?"
Sophie remembered Gabe"s expression when he saw their kiss. She sighed, disappointed with herself and that she had put him through that.
"Where is he?" Sophie moaned.
"Who?"
"Gabe, you idiot," Sophie spat at Uri, who c.o.c.ked his head. He thought about how her response sounded like the old Sophie he knew.
"Sophie, is there something you need to tell me?" Uri asked.
She looked around the room, praying Gabe wasn"t in one of the beds. Shaking her head no, she looked back to Uri. "No, nothing. Do you know where Gabe is? I should apologize to him."
"Dina didn"t tell you?"
"Tell me what?"
"He left."
"What do you mean, he left?"
"He told Dina he couldn"t be here anymore; he packed up and hit the road before the attack ever took place." Uri explained.
"What?" Sophie felt a panic rush over her. "We have to go find him. He"s not safe out there."
"That"s what Haim and I were going to do when Rampart was attacked. But now-"
"What, why aren"t we out there?"
"Michael told me to leave him be." Uri replied.
"No! Why would Michael say that?" Sophie questioned.
"Talk to Michael, I don"t understand it either. He says if Gabe wants to come back, he has to do it on his own and we have to leave him be."
"That"s ridiculous!" Sophie shouted, hopping to her feet.
"What"s ridiculous?" Michael"s voice chimed behind the girl.
Spinning around, she came to stare him in the eye. "How can you just leave Gabe out there? You"re going to get him killed."
"I don"t know if you"ve looked around lately, but Gabe is probably safer on his own. Don"t go against me on this, Sophie. He has to make his own choice; we can"t make him stay with us."
"But he"s confused, he thinks things are the way they"re not."
"What do you mean?" Michael asked. "Is there something you need to tell us, Sophie?"
She didn"t know why, but she could not bring herself to tell them that she had regained her memories. "No, forget it. I need to go, Dina needs me."
Pushing past the group, Sophie ignored their calls after her, instead making her way to the small room where Dina sat. She stared at her friend who had her head lying on Raimie"s chest, her back severely arched as she leaned against the bed. Her heart sank. She missed Gabe, she needed to find him, but Michael was right, for now he was probably safer without them. In the present, she needed to be there for her dearest friend as she faced losing her one true love.
Sophie didn"t speak. Sophie didn"t speak, and silently approached Dina. Entangling her fingers into Dina"s, she rested her chest against her back in an embrace.
It seemed as though time stood still. The nurses and physicians avoided entering the room, leaving Raimie alone with Dina and Sophie for hours. Sophie held on to Dina until her legs went numb. Nervous she would no longer be able to stand, she released her hold, taking a seat in the corner.
Sophie stared at her friend. In a way she rejoiced, she had all of her memories back; the late night slumber parties, the camping trips, helping each other dress for the annual ball. She remembered when Dina and Raimie first started dating. They used to stay up late, giggling about what it would be like to kiss a boy, and once it finally happened with Raimie, Dina was more than happy to share the details. When Sophie was at her worst, when she was alone and feeling the weight of the guilt about her mother"s death, Dina was the one who pulled her out of the downward spiral.
Dina had always been there for her, now all Sophie wanted to do was take the pain away. She couldn"t though, there was nothing she could do except be there next to her. Sophie looked at Raimie; he was pale in color, a shade of blue hinting at the corners of his lips.
Dina pushed herself up and stared down at her great love. She didn"t acknowledge Sophie"s presence, but instead she began speaking directly to Raimie. "You promised me, you said you would always give me a reason to keep going. I can"t do this without you."
"I"m here, Dina, I won"t leave you." Before she even said the words, Sophie knew they would offer little comfort to her friend.
Dina didn"t shift her gaze from her sleeping prince, "It"s not right, you know."
"I know, it"s messed up. I wish I would have been there to help him." Sophie offered.
"No, it"s messed up that they aren"t doing more. They want to just let him die. It"s like they"ve just given up on him. He would never have given up on any of them, especially Michael," Dina explained flatly, her voice lingering in a haunting way.
"Sweetie, I don"t think they are giving up on him. They just don"t know what else to do." Sophie suggested.
"Did you know Calysta was imprisoned at Rampart?" Dina asked.
Sophie pursed her lips outward, puzzled by the random subject change. "The oracle?"
"Yes. She told me right before the attack. She can"t leave the caverns," Dina added.
"You know how she is, are you sure you can believe her?"
"I believe her," Dina didn"t offer further explanation.
"Well, if that"s true, I"m sure it"s because she did something to deserve such a punishment," Sophie rea.s.sured her friend.
"Like Raimie deserves to have everyone give up on him? Like Gabe deserved to be expected to give up his life to save the world? I"m just as bad, I should have stopped him ..." Dina"s voice trailed off, dripping with remorse.
"What do you mean you should have stopped him?" Sophie pressed.