The Legend of Valtera: Chapter 3
Dal stood in the doorway, his black hair, pale skin and dark clothing making him look striking and dangerous, the opposite of the man she knew standing before her. Her second oldest friend was the sweetest, kindest person she knew. His expression caused dread to pool in Prea’s stomach; her mouth went dry.
“What are you doing here, Dal?” she asked, not wanting the answer. He didn’t have to say anything, Prea knew what he was here to tell her, knew it in her bones. She just didn’t want the confirmation.
With tears in his own eyes, his voice coated in sadness Dal said, “Prea…We got word down at the docks.”
“No,” Prea interrupted, holding up her hands and stepping back. “Don’t say it. Don’t…say…”
“The…your father’s ship…it went down. There were no survivors. I’m so sorry.”
“Nooo,” Prea moaned, spinning around as her world suddenly lost all meaning. “Nooo. This…can’t be happening. This…” It was as if the air had been sucked out of the house; she couldn’t breathe.
She bolted past Dal and out of the house, escaping into fresh air, hoping there was something she could do to change all of this.
“I need to get to the cliffs,” Prea muttered as she ran. “Maybe if I say Mama’s spell…”
“Prea, where are you going?” Dal called as he ran after her. His long legs allowed him to catch her quickly and he pulled her to a stop. “Prea!”
“Let me go, Dal,” Prea demanded softly, clutching her chest. “I can’t breathe. I need to go.”
“You need to stop,” Dal ordered and grabbed her by both arms. “Prea, I’m so sorry.”
“No. This can’t be real,” Prea argued, struggling against Dal’s grip. She was only twenty years old. “This has to be a dream. Dal, tell me this is a dream.” She stared at him with desperate eyes and only found tears and pity looking back at her.
“It’s not a dream, Prea. I wish it was. I wish this wasn’t real, but it is. I’m sor…”
“Stop saying that,” she ordered, gasping for air that never seemed to come. “Stop. Saying. That. I just need to get to the cliffs.” She was losing control, the world was still spinning and her eyes pricked with tears. Now that she was no longer moving, her strength vanished and her legs buckled.
Dal caught her before she could fall and they collapsed to the ground together. He held her as she cried for her father, cried for Leal. Papa had been gone for a lot of the last five years since Mama passed, but it didn’t matter. He was her father, her protector, her guide. He held her to a higher standard and made her a better woman. All she ever wanted was to make him proud. And now he was gone.
“Prea, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” Dal whispered against her hair.
When Prea felt she could cry no longer, she pulled away. But the sudden realization she had known, that feeling in the pit of her stomach, brought on a fresh wave of tears. Her father was never coming home; she would never see his ship on the horizon. There would be no more secret conversations, no more promises. And Leal…her Leal was gone. There would be no wedding, no house or children.
The air and ground were cold, but her pain and grief didn’t allow her to feel it. She was still sobbing in Dal’s arms when she heard her name being called. Not now, Prea thought, annoyed that she couldn’t even grieve in peace.
“Prea?” Carr called. “Prea, where are you?” She didn’t answer and Carr eventually found his way out the open front door. “Prea?”
He stopped in his tracks when he saw the two of them on the ground in each other’s arms. “Prea, what’s the matter?” he asked suspiciously, eyes narrowed at her shrewdly. He was quite intuitive and could sense more than most adults.
“Cricket, it’s Papa. He…they…the ship went down. Papa and Leal are gone, Carr.” Prea stood and moved to her little brother whose young, beautiful face crumpled.
“But they’re supposed to be back soon. Leal was…going to…take me fishing.” Kneeling down, Prea hugged him close.
“I know, sweetheart. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Carr started sobbing, his breathing quickened, and his coughing began. His panic and despair made the fit worse and he could barely gasp in shallow breaths.
“Carr, you need to breathe,” Prea ordered sharply. She knew what this felt like having just experienced it. Carr just shook his head. “Cricket. Cricket!” Prea cried and tried to lightly shake him out of it. His body went limp and he fell to the ground.
“Dal!” she yelled, trying to cushion her brother’s fall, but she wasn’t in a great position to help.
Dal rushed from his spot behind her. “What happened?”
“He fainted. He might have hit his head.”
“I got him,” Dal said and extricated Carr from Prea’s grasp, hauling him up off the ground.
“What do you want to do?” Dal wondered quietly.
“Ugh.” Prea shook her head, trying to clear it. It didn’t work.
“Prea?”
“Uh. Bring him upstairs. We’ll put him in bed. He’s going to be exhausted when he comes to,” Prea answered, noting she was exhausted as well. She followed Dal as he climbed the stairs and placed Carr on his bed before heading back down. Prea waited until her brother’s eyes flickered open and he looked at her in confusion. “It’s all right, cricket,” she said, pushing his blond curls off his forehead. “Just rest now. I’ll check on you later.” Prea tucked him into bed and he fell right to sleep.
Standing in the doorway, she watched him sleep for a minute. Oh, how she would love to be young again, when your mind couldn’t comprehend the sadness and the grief. Closing the door, she returned downstairs to Dal. Prea found him in the kitchen, cleaning up what was left of her cooking. She had completely forgotten about dinner. He was boiling water in the kettle and had chamomile tea waiting on the counter.
“Thank you, Dal,” she said, incredibly grateful that he was here.
They both turned, hearing the front door open. “Here we go again,” Prea said grimly. She went to go greet her sister, instead she found Beda who rushed over and embraced her.
“Oh, Prea. I’m so, so sorry,” she cried. Prea thought she would cry again, but it appeared she had no more tears. She held on, clutching the sturdiness of her oldest friend. When Beda finally released her, she clasped Prea’s face in her hands. Beda’s cool grey eyes locked on to Prea’s, silently assessing her state of mind. Beda eventually broke the silence. “I love you, Prea. I’m here for you. Always.”
Prea hugged her tight one more time. “I love you too, Beda. Come, Dal’s making tea.”
Beda and Prea sat at the table while Dal poured them some tea. “Hello, Dal,” Beda said, glancing at him. She returned her gaze to Prea, “Word’s getting around town. I’m not sure if the news has reached the infirmary or not. Have you heard from Alvie?”
Prea blew on her tea, lowered her mug. “No. We’re waiting for her to get home. She should be here any minute.”
Beda looked around. “Where’s Carr?”
Dal answered for Prea. “He’s asleep upstairs. He fainted when Prea told him the news.”
“Is he all right?” Beda asked, concerned. Prea and Dal nodded.
They sat in silence, Prea and her two best friends, together under the worst circumstances. She looked from one to the other, from fiery to dark, with their sad eyes staring back at her. They had been with her for as long as she could remember. And, as they had shown countless times before, they were here with her now.
The door opened again not much later as Alvie arrived home. She rushed into the kitchen, taking them all in. She looked from Dal to Beda, before turning her gaze towards Prea. “What’s going on? People were whispering and staring at me when I was leaving the infirmary. And everyone avoided me on the way home.” She paused. “Prea?” she asked anxiously.
Prea stood. “Alvie…” she said consolingly. She could say no more before her younger sister bolted upstairs and slammed the door to her room. Prea needed to do something and poured herself another cup of tea.
Beda sat and studied her friend. The two had known each other for a long time and she had been there when Prea’s mother had died. Beda could typically read Prea pretty well, but right now she had no idea what her friend was thinking or feeling. “Prea, how are you so calm?” Beda wondered.
“I have no idea. I feel like I’ve cried my eyes dry,” Prea said quietly. She paused and shook her head. “Now it just doesn’t seem real. I don’t know how long it’s going to take for me to look out onto the bay and not expect to see their ship on the horizon.”
“You’ll get through this,” Beda assured her and lowered her voice. “You’ve done it before.”
“But this is different, Beda. Who am I supposed to turn to? What if I make a mistake? What if I can’t be everything for Alvie and Carr? They need parents. All three of us need our parents.”
“You’re more than enough for them,” Dal replied quickly. “None of my brothers would have done what you did if it had been my family. Alvie and Carr are lucky to have you. And you’re not alone.”
“That’s right. You’re not alone. Dal and I will help you,” Beda promised. “We’ll help all of you get through this.”
“I’m not even sure what you’ll be able to do, if you’ll be able to help at all.”
“We’ll do whatever you need,” Dal answered simply.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“What you’re going to do is focus on the present,” Beda instructed matter-of-factly. “You’re not going to look to or worry about the future. You’re going to focus on the task at hand. And right now you just need to rest and drink your tea.” Beda turned away from Prea. “Dal can you go check on Alvie and make sure Carr’s still asleep?” she asked, taking charge.
Dal nodded and left the room. He returned a little while later. “Carr’s still out and Alvie…well she’s going to try to get some sleep.”
“Thanks, Dal,” Prea added.
Prea didn’t say anything for a long time, just sat at the table with her friends who were now her family. “We were finally going to set a date,” she murmured, her voice breaking. She could barely get the words out. “Leal had promised that we would set a date for the wedding after he returned. He was going to ask Papa for his blessing while they were out at sea.” Beda stroked her hair soothingly.
“Oh, Prea…”
The tears Prea thought had dried up, ran freely again as she cried for her lost love.
