Restart Again: Volume 1 by Adam Scott (pocket ebook reader TXT) 📕

reddened as she nodded. “O-of course. I won’t be gone long.” With that, she turned and left, closing the door behind her. I quickly crossed the room to lock the door, then took the opportunity to finally remove my boots and armor for the first time since we left Lia’s home. Stripped down to my comfortable clothes I laid back against the headboard of the bed and sank into the mattress as my body began to relax.

My exhaustion caught up with me all at once. I let out a deep sigh and stretched, worming my way down into a comfortable sleeping position. All things considered, this trip has been going pretty well so far. I’ll feel better once we’re out of the country, but two days between us and the capital helps quite a bit. As much as I wanted to wait for Lia to return before sleeping, I quickly lost the fight against my descending eyelids and drifted off to sleep.

A soft knocking at the door woke me from my nap. It felt as though I had just dozed off, but the orange light filtering in from the window told me that I had been asleep for at least an hour. A dull thud of metal clattered out from the handle and Lia quickly pushed her way inside, closing the door behind her. She turned with her face downcast and set the room key and the remaining coppers on the table. Her other hand was held behind her back, seeming to be deliberately out of my view.

Her demeanor tightened a knot in my stomach. “Lia? Is something wrong?” I stood and crossed the room, wiping the sleep from my eyes. “Did somebody give you trouble out there?”

“No, that’s not it.” Lia’s voice was low and monotone. She shifted nervously as she tried to come to a decision, then pulled the hand out from behind her back. There was a crumpled piece of paper in her fist which she handed to me silently. I flattened out the sheet, my face darkening as the contents became clear. The majority of the paper was covered in a close to accurate drawing of my face: unkempt black hair, hard jaw covered in overgrown stubble, and my leather armor and cloak showing on my shoulders near the bottom. I couldn’t read the words underneath, but the overall meaning was clear.

Fuck. I pinched the bridge of my nose and let out a long hissing sigh. Fuck! It was one thing to have guards looking for me, but every asshole in the country looking to get a quick payday? There’s no way we can make it to Lybesa without someone recognizing me. Lia was looking up at me with wide eyes, trying to gauge my reaction to the poster. Her face broke my heart, and I had to look away. This isn’t safe anymore.

“Lia…” I began, but was interrupted when she reached out and grabbed my wrist. There were tears forming in the corner of her eyes.

“No. Don’t say it,” she pleaded, pulling on my arm. “You can’t send me home now, we just left!”

“I promised that I would keep you safe, and if everybody out there is looking for me it’s only a matter of time before—”

“You promised that you would show me the world! You said you would take me wherever I wanted to go!” Lia’s voice rose considerably, coming close to breaking with emotion. “I don’t care if there are guards after you. You don’t get to leave me behind!”

I looked away, unable to meet her intense gaze. “The last thing I want to do is break my promise to you, Lia. But if someone confronts me, it could be dangerous. If you’re traveling with me when the guards find me, they’re going to go after you too.” The thought made my fists clench. “And I won’t let them do that.”

“But that’s just it! I can’t leave you all alone if people are hunting you down. If someone attacks you, you might—” Lia put her hands up to her mouth abruptly, cutting off her line of thought. She looked away and muttered under her breath. “Nevermind.”

“I might what?” I was curious about where she was going with the topic. Most likely, she doesn’t want me traveling alone in danger. I can’t say I blame her...I was uncomfortable with her going out to buy supplies, and she doesn’t have wanted posters plastered all over town.

“It’s nothing.” Her voice sounded defeated as she sniffled softly.

I put a hand on her shoulder. “It’s not nothing, Lia. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“It’s just…” Lia trailed off, wringing her hands as she tried to find the right words. “You’re such a good person, Lux. You saved me when I was a total stranger, and you’re always so nice to me...I know that’s who you really are.” She stopped fidgeting and looked me in the eyes, her face awash with…Is that fear? What is she afraid of? The knot in my stomach constricted as she continued.

“When I first saw you in that prison cell, you looked mean. I was afraid that you were like the men that took me. But after we talked and I got to know you better, you looked happier. You weren’t scowling all the time.” A tear ran down Lia’s cheek as she spoke. “I thought that, maybe...I was making you happy.”

My throat began to tighten as I tried to hold back tears. “You’re an amazing person, Lia. Of course you make me happy.”

A single sob escaped Lia’s lips before she caught herself. “I don’t want you to be alone out there. If you’re by yourself, and people keep attacking you, you m-might…” She took a deep rasping breath before she continued, her voice trembling. “You might turn back into that person from the prison. The one who killed all the guards. It was so scary the way everything happened with the fire, and that black smoke, and the s-screaming…”

Lia broke down all at once,