Chapter 89: CH 89

Training continued day after day. Gareth’s injury was gradually recovering, albeit slower than he had expected due to the severity of the injuries. Nevertheless, Gareth trained with his men and worked on the estate walls when he wasn’t training. Sharpened posts were embedded inside the moat once it was completed and sturdy wooden walls were soon completed. Watchtowers and ladders were also constructed while the people constantly made an effort to stockpile food and essential resources. The busy work made everyone exhausted, including Gareth. But what drained Gareth the most was Elena’s silence and absence. It was unbelievable how the once sweet and diligent woman was now always sleeping in her room without even saying a word.
Gareth began to feel that Elena was going to act like this forever if he left her be. He knew that the Elena he knew was going to disappear from his life if he didn’t do something. The only problem was that he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. He had kept to himself for the past 11 years, and hadn’t shared his thoughts or emotions with anyone. Instead, he had spent those years stained in blood, killing to the point where he sometimes even lost himself.
* * *
It was another night where Gareth was holding Elena in his arms in bed, staring into the dark ceiling. He unconsciously stroked her shoulder, then her hair that had grown fragile. His hand then trailed down to caress her slender neck as he recalled the first time they had met: The way she had held on desperately to avoid being dragged towards Logan despite the whip wrapped around her neck, the bravery she had shown by accepting the fact that her estate needed help and asking for a negotiation, how she had broken down from her father’s ridiculous words and misunderstandings, and how she had slapped him on the cheek for the sake of her family. Gareth also recalled the attention, care, and warmth she had shown to him while traveling to his estate.
“My goodness…” Gareth exclaimed unknowingly when he realized that Elena wasn’t a strong person. She was only struggling and pretending to be strong for her family and the people she cared about.
“You can protect me,” she had said with a smile.
Gareth roughly rubbed his face with one hand as bizarre feelings swept over him. It was the first time he was going through the peculiar experience of understanding another person’s feelings.

You are reading story Lantern Against the Wind at novel35.com

‘How scary and difficult it must have been for her to endure being alone in an unfamiliar place like this…’ Gareth lamented silently, then hugged Elena tightly. His sudden motion caused her to flinch and her breathing to become shaky. Gareth hastily loosened his arms and began stroking her back to soothe her. Elena’s breathing slowly became even again. Realizing once again that she was only a small woman who was easily frightened and needed protection, Gareth leaned his forehead against her shoulder and shed tears.
‘How could I not know this… I didn’t even care about her. She was always alone… because of me.’
* * *
The next morning, Gareth made several trips up and down the stairs while carrying a small basin in his hands, which he was using to pour warm water into the bathtub upstairs. Although his arm and shoulder hadn’t fully recovered, he moved diligently to prepare the bath. Once the tub was more than half-filled, Gareth placed several clean towels on a table in the room and approached Elena. He then reached out and began to unbutton the white cotton pajama dress she was wearing. Elena remained silent and let him do as he pleased, completely leaving her feeble body to him as if she didn’t care.
Gareth gently lifted Elena’s scrawny body and lowered her into the water. He had been wiping her body with a towel until now and wanted to wash her properly today, thinking that she would like a bath as well. Gareth washed her hair first, then rubbed her body with a clean, wet towel. He was clumsy since he had never washed anyone before, but he moved his hands delicately while washing the woman who had shut her eyes.
Rinsing her off with clean water, Gareth picked Elena up from the tub and helped her stand. He dried her hair as well as her body before bringing her back to the bed. After hugging her tightly and kissing the top of her head, Gareth dressed Elena in a dress instead of pajamas. Gareth then left the room and asked loudly, “Madel, is it ready?”

You can find story with these keywords: Lantern Against the Wind, Read Lantern Against the Wind, Lantern Against the Wind novel, Lantern Against the Wind book, Lantern Against the Wind story, Lantern Against the Wind full, Lantern Against the Wind Latest Chapter