Page 57 of Keeping Sarah

His eyes widened. “Really?”

I nodded. “But no funny business. We’ll join and set about finding ourselves in each other, and then we part. I am free to leave, and we can negotiate our official peace later. Agreed?”

“Happily agreed.” He sounded relieved. “My world has become too chaotic, even for my own liking. And you’re right—Iamsurprised you’re agreeing to this.”

I managed a small smile. “Maybe some of your practicality has infiltrated me.”

CHAPTER 17

Jacaranda

“We’re goingwhere?” Drift asked in the hall outside of Deacon’s quarters.

“Faithless.Now,” Deacon said firmly.

His pilot huffed unhappily, but said, “You got it, boss,” and put everything into motion for the trip.

I rolled my shoulders and winced. My muscles and joints ached from whatever Tolkabern had done to us. The pain was so intense that I had vomited twice on the onworlder ride back toAllegiant.

Now, weary to my ghost, Deacon helped me to his bed. He pushed my hair back from my forehead and looked at me in concern. “Any better?”

“Laying down is better than trying to stand,” I admitted, then glanced up at him beside the bed. “How are you still standing?”

“I am unsure,” Deacon said thoughtfully. “Perhaps Tolkabern did not have the time to recharge his magic to attack me as violently as you. I do not feel well, but I can stand.”

My head still throbbed. “I pissed blood when we got on board.”

Deacon grimaced. “Do you think the damage is permanent or—"

“No.” As much pain as I’d been in initially, the agony was starting to fade as time went on. “I’m better than when I first attacked him. I think it was a warning shot. And you were right. I knew better than to charge him again. I just…I lost my head when we realized she was gone."

“I only said that to you to gain his trust, though it was true,” Deacon said with a light smile, then sobered. “I just…I hope he was not lying to us.”

I frowned. “What do you mean?”

He dragged his fingers through his hair. “I do not know that much about magicians, outside of their evil tendencies. I do not know what they are capable of, or if that includes being able to make Sarah just…disappear.”

My stomach cramped at the possibility. “Fuck. I hadn’t thought of that.”

His lips thinned. “I considered staying behind to see if she reappeared, but given his distaste for our attacks on him—"

“That would have been a bad idea,” I said, knowing we wouldn’t succeed. “We can’t go at Tolkabern, just the two of us, with no plan. If she’s not in Faithless, then we will go back to the cave.”

“With a plan,” he agreed with a nod. “Do you need anything?”

“Some plain water would be nice.”

He smiled. “Still wanting to be sober?”

“I want to heal,” I countered. “Alcohol sounds like a great idea right now, which means it’s probably not.”

He chuckled and fetched a glass of water for me. I drank it down, along with two more.

“You may wish to pace yourself, if you are pissing blood,” he suggested.

“I want to flush out my system. Water is good for that.” A nifty trick I’d learned on my Earth travels.

“Very well, then. Would you care to rest until we reach the city gates?”

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