Page 29 of A Fate so Cruel

Rion looked at the wound on his arm again, then continued the agonizing task of closing it. He’d have to stitch the cut across his other arm, too. He sighed and worked on his body as the sun made its way across the brightening sky.

Chapter Six

Rion moved on, never sleeping in the same place twice, but keeping close to the river.

Three days passed in a blur as he tried and failed to come up with a plan.

Rion had just pulled the bandage away from his shoulder when a branch cracked nearby.

He whirled, nostrils flaring and magic answering his call. He’d been careful to ensure he covered his tracks, but the familiar sight of blonde hair had his shoulders and magic relaxing.

“I’ve been looking for you for days.” Saoirse’s breath was ragged and when her gaze dropped to his shoulder, she grimaced.

Rion bent and filled a small pot with water before returning to his pitiful fire. “It’s not as bad as it looks.” Lie and truth. The skin around the wound was swollen and tender and moving hurt like hell, but it wouldn’t do any permanent damage. Maybe a scar at most.

Saoirse gestured for him to sit and opened her bag, rummaging through the contents for what Rion presumed was her medical kit.

“Here.” She tossed him an apple and Rion caught it with his good hand. He eyed the tender flesh of the fruit before sinking his teeth into it.

She settled on the ground at his side and folded her legs to examine his shoulder. His sister cleaned it with a delicate hand, then opened a tin and spread a greenish salve over the cut before binding it with a clean bandage.

“Alec sent out multiple teams to hunt you down,” she said. “I couldn’t stop him.”

“I never expected you to.”

Silence.

“What happened?”

Rion loosed a breath and ran a hand through his hair. “Honestly? I don’t know.” Images came flashing back, but he still couldn’t make sense of them.

“Try,” she urged. Her tone wasn’t accusatory. She was probably the only person on the continent willing to let him explain himself.

“Caol told me not to go.”

“Naturally.” She sat back. “So why did you?”

“Because I’m tired of being locked up in that damn cabin,” he bit out.

“So you went to the festival?”

Rion nodded. “I took my cloak and stayed hidden. I was leaving when I saw a group of Fae playing in the field.” Rion looked down at his hands and the bruises across knuckles. “Liam was there.”

Saoirse’s body stiffened. She rolled the dirty bandages up and placed them in her bag. “What did he say?”

Rion shook his head, his heart aching all over again. “Nothing worth repeating. I was about to leave when three warriors showed up. I thought they were part of the city guard. That maybe they’d spotted me in the city. I knew I needed to get out of there, but—” He paused and clenched his jaw.

“But what?”

“They killed them. Just like that.” He looked at her. “They killed them, Saoirse, no warning. Why would they do that?”

Her eyes searched his. “I don’t know.” She fiddled with the strap of her bag. “We couldn’t identify the bodies. They weren’t from Nàdair.”

Rion sat straighter. “Where are they from then?

Saoirse shrugged. “Could be any one of the major cities.”

“But why attackthem? What was the point?”

---