"You know, I don't know what would have happened to you if it weren't for my kindness, girlie. I bet you'd be spending your days huddled away, too afraid to move! I don't know how I get dragged into helping you! That parrot sure was good at convincing me."
Yuma sounded harsh, but he was only teasing, even if his tone didn't actually give that away. He was trying, in his round-about way, to snap her out of her silence.
He didn't even know her name...
"Okay." He paused. "Just wait here. I'll see who's about and if the coast is clear I'll come back and get you."
And with that he left her by the rocks that would give her shelter until he'd checked out that the oasis was free of life... or as free of life as it ever was, since water sources generally had someone around.
With a sharp nod, Anya sat in the shade, leaning her back against the smooth rock and waited in silence for the jackal to return.
She hated this...
She wished she could just...could just forget and move on. But she was beginning to realise it wasn't going to be easy. In fact, she was starting to think she was never going to get over what had happened to her.
