The house was peaceful, quiet in a way that should've been relaxing but somehow wasn't.
We'd been here a full day now, and I was starting to realize the problem wasn't the house or the enforced rest or even the lingering soreness from the aphrodisiac incident.
The problem was Void.
It was sitting on my lap in one of the main rooms, completely silent, and that was wrong on a fundamental level because Void was never silent.
Void chirped, created sparkles, said "Mama!" enthusiastically when I entered rooms, floated around exploring things with cheerful curiosity.
This thing on my lap just watched everything with bright eyes and didn't make a sound.
"You should eat something," I said, holding out a piece of fruit from the tray the staff had brought.
Void looked at it, then at me, with an intensity that made me uncomfortable.
Then turned its head away.
"Void, come on," I tried again. "You haven't eaten since we got here."
Nothing.
