Rav placed a hand on her shoulder, leaning down toward her. She kept her gaze downcast and refused to look at him.
"I care for you, Isadora."
On cue, she slowly lifted her glassy gaze, swallowing hard to hold back the tears.
"I know this hurts you… by the olden gods I'm hurt too," he said.
"What others think of you doesn't matter, all you have to think about is how to survive,"
His teeth clenched hard. "In the Hunt, you either eat or get eaten, the weak becomes prey and the strong, predators"
She sniffled and nodded, understanding him completely, yet feeling she was more overwhelmed by his thoughts about her.
"Tell me the truth.." Isadora began, in a heavy tone.
"Do you believe I ran the Spine?" she asked hopefully. She needed to hear it from him… from his heart.
Rav wavered, lips coming apart but words didn't follow.
