Night was fully falling when Miria, Kira and Alix finally entered the gate of Asher's domain.
Asher was already waiting for them at the door, his arms crossed, his face marked with worry.
- Finally ! Are you doing well ? I have just received a royal messenger... He spoke of an attack, of an incident with...
He interrupted himself. His eyes moved from Alix to Miria, then to Kira. The silence weighed heavily.
Alix was the first to respond:
— We're fine. Nothing serious.
But Kira immediately looked away and climbed the stairs without a word. Miria did the same, more slowly, with her head lowered.
Asher followed them with his gaze, perplexed.
—Alix? What happened?
Alix let out a long sigh, rubbed her forehead.
— An argument. With Morena.
Asher's face hardened.
—...What did she do again?
Alix explained everything to him: Morena's provocations, the disguised barbs, the lies. The way Kira had lost her temper. And finally… Miria's explosion.
Asher was silent for a few seconds, then whispered:
—Morena...
"I know," Alix replied. But what's done is done. Now take care of them.
Kira's room
The room Asher had given him was quiet, bathed in soft light. Kira had taken refuge in the bed, knees to her chest, breathing trembling.
She closed her eyes.
The music, the neon lights, the muffled hubbub of a nightclub.
Morena, young, laughing, surrounded by four other girls.
Kira, naive, still hesitant, speaking to them shyly.
A heartbeat. Back to the present: his eyes were misting.
She took a breath, but the memory came back immediately.
Morena, arms crossed:
— I lost. Kira… make the bet for me. Help me.
She saw her own face again, hesitant. Then, in the present, his eyelids tightened, holding back burning tears as best he could.
Another shift.
A glass of wine handed by Morena.
— Come on, drink. It's nothing, just for fun.
— I… I don't really like…
— It's safe, stop acting like a child.
Kira smiled weakly, despite herself, and drank.
In the present, she wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand, furious.
But the memory struck again.
Dizziness. The ground that is slipping away.
The laughter.
— Look at her, she can't even stand up!
She was pushed from one hand to the other.
- Stupid.
Coarse makeup hastily drawn across her face.
— Please... stop...
She was dragged to a room. She was thrown onto a bed.
— Please... don't leave me... Help me...
The laughter faded away. Silence. Then…
A cold, foreign hand sliding across his skin.
Kira stood up, trying to call for help, but her voice was only a shaky whisper.
She gasped, and the present took over.
The rage rose so suddenly that it swept the table at the end of the bed.
A vase shattered against the ground.
—…Isn't that okay?
Kira looked up abruptly.
Asher stood in the doorway.
She wiped away her tears with a quick gesture.
"You… what are you doing here?" You should be with Miria.
"Miria is fine," Asher replied softly. You, no. And you are the one who needs me the most tonight.
He came closer and sat down next to her on the bed.
—How do you feel?
Kira sniffed, her gaze lost.
- Wrong. So bad, Asher... When I saw her again, it all came crashing down on me. What she did to me... And I just... just...
She stopped, unable to finish.
Asher placed a warm hand on her shoulder.
—I know it's hard. But never lower yourself to his level. Morena is a heartless bitch. She doesn't deserve your anger, or even your attention.
Kira looked up.
—She said... that you had... a relationship. That you two dated.
Asher burst into bitter laughter.
— Even in my worst nightmares. I can't even stand her. And even less… this. We're not friends, and we never have been.
"It's troubling Miria…" Kira whispered.
Asher took a nervous breath.
—Speaking of Miria… I feel like she's avoiding me. And I had a dream... or I don't know if it was a dream...
Kira raised an eyebrow.
- Tell.
— I saw myself with Miria in… situations. A little… well… you see?
He scratched his head, embarrassed.
—And it didn't seem like a fantasy. It was too… real.
Kira stopped smiling. His eyes widened.
Asher frowned.
—You know something. I see it.
- Who ? Me ?! she replied, looking away.
— Don't take me for an idiot.
Kira sighed.
— Listen… Ask Miria. But not tonight. After Morena… she's not in the mood.
Asher thought.
- All right. I'll leave her alone...for today. But tomorrow... she will hear me.