Page 133 of A Forgery of Fate

My thoughts were languid and soft. I longed to stay. I was so warm.

Elang kissed my throat, my neck, then my hand. Slowly, together, we emerged above the grass.

“Be safe,” he said, “and don’t leave the protection of the manor.”

“I won’t.”

Feeling a ripple in the waters, I turned around. Caisan was here, Baba secured to his wide back.

My father didn’t stir even when I held his hand, but I could feel a pulse. For now, that was enough.

“He is recovering,” said Elang, at my side. He tore off his cloak and folded it over Baba. “You needn’t worry about thesangi I gave him. So long as his first breath was underwater, he’ll be fine on land.”

My voice quavered with emotion. “Thank you.”

“Your Highnesses,” spoke Caisan gruffly. “The Dragon King’s forces are preparing for attack. We must hurry.”

There came a pinch in my chest. I wasn’t ready to leave.

Elang set me on Caisan’s back, behind Baba. “Tru,” he spoke. His two faces strained from warring with one another. “If at any time you change your mind about completing the portrait, give the Scroll to Caisan. He will see it returned tome.”

“After all the work I’ve put in?” I shook my head. “Don’t you insult me like that. I’m not going to change my mind.”

“You have lost years with your family already. No more. I release you from your contract. Be with your parents and your sisters, live a long and happy life with them.”

“Are you trying to get rid of me?”

That made him laugh softly. “Never would I dare,” he said. “My heart, my home—they are yours. They always have been.” He touched my hair, both his eyes sad and solemn. “I only want you to have the choice—to forget me, if you will.”

I didn’t get the chance to argue—or even say goodbye.

Elang withdrew from my arms, and Caisan took off like an arrow. Up we soared, rushing through the violet light to escape the realm of dragons. And my journey ended the same way it began—with all I had come to know being washedaway.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

It was morning when I returned to the world above the sea. The sun was young, magpies sang in the larch trees, and the garden was white with winter.

As Caisan floated across the pond, I held out my hands, catching snowflakes as they fell.

“Are you cold, Lady Saigas?” asked the general.

“No.” The air was brisk. My breath came out in swirls of steam when I exhaled, but I wasn’t cold. Not after my time in Yonsar.

I glanced down at Baba, who lay on the general’s back. He had slept the entire journey, and a soft wheeze passed through his nostrils.

I raised Elang’s cloak to cover his shoulders. How many times had I prayed to the gods, begging for Baba to come home? How many nights had I dreamed of seeing him again, only to wake up to the vicious reality that he was gone?

No more. My heart ached with joy. I couldn’t wait until Mama and my sisters saw him.

“Mama!” I shouted. “Fal! Nomi!”

I started to slide off Caisan’s shell so I could wade closer to the house. “Mama!” I shouted again.

That was when a warm hand clasped my own.

“Truyan?” came Baba’s hoarse whisper. “Is it really you?”

Tears welled in my eyes. I couldn’t speak, so I held his hand, bringing it to my chest. He was still cold, warmth shivering back to his skin gradually with every second. But his smile was real.Hewas real.

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