CHAPTER 57

The Echo (From Rachelle's Perspective) My knees were trembling after only five minutes of walking. I felt like I would not be able to walk anymore. But I did not tell him that. I did not want to look weak. I knew I could do it. But he stopped suddenly and looked down directly at my legs. I did not even wince in pain, but he seemed to see through me. "Do your legs hurt?" he asked. "Just a bit. Not so much. I can manage," I said. "Hold onto me." "Wha..." Before I knew what he meant, he picked me up in his arms in bridal style. No one had ever held me like this, not in this way. I blushed and was surprised as well. "I can walk," I murmured. "Just relax," he said. He started walking again. He was carrying me so easily that it looked like I was weightless. It was true that I was very slender, but the way he picked me up, was completely effortless. Father had never let me eat properly. He said that if he fed me fully, I would get spoiled. I tried to steal food from the kitchen as