Her panting grew heavier and she found herself entirely unable to control herself as everything began to boil up inside her. All the rage and terror, the loss and the anguish.
It flooded her body and she clenched her eyes shut, trying her best to calm herself.
The two vampires moved into the corner, but she no longer cared.
The scream burst out of her chest without her willing it, her body leaning forward over her empty stomach, the water drumming down on her.
Her scream lasted longer than it had any right to, especially when she hadn't taken in any extra breath.
The mirror exploded along with several windows in the cabinets and something downstairs. She thought it had happened upstairs too, but she couldn't be sure.
The scream faded into a keening wail and she dropped forward onto the floor of the stall, curling herself into a ball and cried with enough force that her body shuddered.
Arms soon found her, hard and warm and the scent of Jaia was rich in her nose.
He was in the stall with her, soaked to the skin but unwilling to let go of her.
He cradled her against his chest, his shoes squeaking while he settled himself with her between his legs.
She leant against him, shuddering and trembling as wracking sobs ripped her heart and soul into shreds until she was left with nothing.
Kai had come to join them at some point, his arms joining those already around her and no one thought to turn off the fountain of water that tried and failed to wash away her sorrow.
They stayed there, rocking gently for over an hour, Versalis now free and standing guard outside the door. His ears had bled, but he didn't seem to care.
When the water finally went cold, Kai bundled her up in his arms and carried her from the room while Jaia collected things she would need. Setting her down in a room that smelt strongly of Jaia, the twins made quick work of drying her off and wrapping her up in a large, oddly fluffy, powder blue dressing gown that made her start to laugh. Her humour faded almost instantly, turning back into sobbing as she was pulled onto the bed.
Stripping and changing into dry pants, Jaia climbed into the bed with her and pulled the blankets up over them both.
Immediately she moved to him, her head on his bare chest and the warmth of him enough to sooth her into an uneasy, exhausted sleep.
She woke groggily some time later, the spot beside her empty but she found Versalis sitting across the room, watching her with an angry look on his face.
When he noticed she was awake, he stood and moved to her, his hand gentle on her hair and she bumped her forehead against his stomach.
His arms were gentle around her shoulders, his fingers combing through her dry hair and he murmured softly in a language she didn't recognise.
Finally he tilted her head back with two fingers and leant down, placing a soft kiss against her forehead.
A zing of energy went through her but it did little to actually help her.
"Where are the twins?" she asked, staring down at his feet when he had let her go back to resting her head against his stomach.
"In the sitting room, they wanted to talk and let you rest," he said, that low, hypnotic voice barely containing his fury.
Making a soft sound, she wriggled out of bed in that ridiculous blue dressing down, padding across the room and out into the living room.
"He's not talking at all," Kai said, frowning.
"He knows exactly what he is doing, the whole thing stinks of him even if he wasn't there," Jaia retorted angrily.
Kai looked up at the sound of her scuffing feet and immediately stood but her eyes went to Jaia, and as soon as he stood, she was in his arms.
She didn't say anything, only stood with her body as close to his as was possible, soaking up the warmth of him like a leech.
"I'll go see if I can find her something to eat," Versalis said and left the room quickly.
Jaia stroked her hair and looked over her head at his brother, finally leaning down and kissing her temple.
"How are you feeling at the moment?" he asked, lifting her chin to look up into his eyes and frowning at what he saw there.
She could only shake her head and sat down, shamelessly stealing the warm spot he had just vacated.
He turned to see that she had sat directly behind him and narrowed his eyes in a show of challenge, but she just looked back at him, her eyebrows lifting in a silent dare.
His lips pushed out into a pout and he skulked away to fetch a mug of water for her.
"What were we talking about?" she asked, a little spark of enjoyment starting in her at their game and she murmured a thanks at the offered water, sipping the cool liquid. She was glad for any excuse to think of anything aside from the last week.
She watched the two exchange a glance and she knew what it meant.
"He told us it was Alaric," she said simply and they both had equal looks of shock on their faces. She let out a soft sigh and told them the story of the walk in the garden, Jaia's face going dark at the implications.
"Is there anything we can do about this?" he asked Kai and Kai frowned, trying to think.
"He's the King," Kai said sadly.
"I'm going to kill him," Etani said bluntly.
The silence was absolute, so much so that they clearly heard footsteps a floor above them.
"You can't kill him," Kai said in a small voice.
"He wouldn't be my first King," she retorted.
They both looked at her and she arched an eyebrow.
"What? I kill and eat people, sometimes they're the same person, how is this a surprise to either of you?"