Scarlet Rain (The Escaped #2) Read Online Free PDF Page B

this curse, I’ll find a way for you and Galen to be together.”
    Maiden lifted her head and stepped back. “You would attempt something so kind?”
    “Yeah, of course. I’m the Oracle now. It’ll be just another way for me to use my powers for good, and what’s a better reason than true love? But, now that I think about it, I will actually need you to do something for me.”
    “And what would you have me do?” Maiden asked apprehensively.
    “Whenever you go see him, you have to let me help you pick out what to wear.”
    “I am sure that can be arranged,” Maiden said, beaming. “Now, let us find you a spectacular garment.”
    “I think I already found one.” Eva pulled the dress from its hanger and held it up in front of her body.
    “It will look lovely on you. You may put it on in here. I can step out if you would like.”
    “Are you kidding? We’re friends now, and we have all the same girl parts. You don’t have to leave. Plus, I’ll need your help with the clasps in the back.”
    The dress felt like water as she pulled it over her head and let the gauzy fabric lap against her legs and flow to the floor. “This color is amazing,” she commented, admiring how the orange fabric made her skin appear to be a bit darker. “It reminds me of summer.”
    “I must have had thoughts of you while making the gown. It is perfect.” Maiden smiled.
    “Will you take me to see Alek now?” Eva asked as she studied her reflection in the grand mirrors. “I mean, I absolutely love your closet and I can’t wait to see Tartarus get back to normal, but I won’t stop obsessing about whether or not he’s actually going to be okay until I get to see him.”
    “Last I checked, he was not awake. And Mother, though she was quite rude, did have a point when she said he needs his rest.”
    “That’s okay.” Eva turned to face Maiden. “I don’t need him to be awake. I won’t disturb him. I just need to make sure he’s really here and that he’s really alive.”
    Maiden sighed and bit her lip. “Who am I to keep you apart? Yes. Yes, I will take you to him.”
    “Thank you!” Eva blurted, surprised by her own excitement.
    “Follow me. I will lead you to his quarters. However, we cannot enter until Crone has finished her healing ritual, if she has not done so already.”
    Eva stayed in stride with Maiden as she exited the magnificent closet and walked briskly down the wide hallway. “How long will that take?”
    “It is different with each individual. With you it did not take long, because your injuries were not severe.”
    “My injuries?” Eva thought back to her time in Mohawk Park. “I might have scraped up my hands and knees, but I wouldn’t really call those injuries . You make them sound so major.”
    “Although you did have a few scrapes and bruises, the injuries I speak of were sustained from your travel here. Never before have I, or any one of us, brought a mortal through the void between the realms and into Tartarus.”
    “Yeah, Alek told me he couldn’t bring me here because he’d only brought dead bodies back with him before. Creature dead bodies, not normal human dead bodies.”
    Maiden smiled. “And he was wise not to try. Although my abilities are more advanced, and I have more control over them than Alek does his, you were not free from danger when I pulled you from the Mortal Realm.”
    “How did you know coming here wouldn’t kill me?” Eva asked.
    “I had to accept the risk. I knew my son was dying and I assumed the worst would happen to you. Luckily, it did not. You only suffered a few minor burns from the abundance of energy created when traveling through realms. With your ability to heal, and Crone’s ability to assist with that process, you were restored to health quite quickly. The only reason you slept for as long as you did was because coming here was a great shock to your system, and understandably so.”
    “Wait, you know that I can heal myself?”
    Maiden nodded. “It