Ava remained frozen in place as he approached her. She wanted to turn around and run – to flee back towards the safety of the herd, where Orhan and Nasmat and maybe even the other mares would no doubt drive this intruder out without any trouble. And yet she didn’t move. The way he moved was confusing. His body language was clearly orchestrated in a way that was meant to imply he did not want to hurt her, and yet how could she believe him? A wolf might roll over on its back and show you its belly but it would tear out your throat all the same given the opportunity. But still her muscles remained tense and frozen, like useless blocks of ice that even the blazing desert sun couldn’t melt. His words sounded almost muffled as they hit her ears, though her foggy mind made an attempt to sift through and decipher them. So he was sorry. Was that why he had come here? An apology was capable of fixing many things, but this was not one of them. Sorry didn’t undo what he had done to her, and it certainly didn’t undo the life that he had subsequently brought into this world. She couldn’t look at him, nor even acknowledge what he had said. Tears welled in her eyes, but she took a shaky breath and held them in. “You have a daughter,” she murmured, the words barely more than a whisper. She didn’t know why she had felt the urge to tell him such a thing, but then she didn’t exactly feel very in control of anything right now. Regardless of the reason, it was done. |