Page 142 of Enchanted Heir
“Wait. Won’t that out Emric as someone close to Krew?”
Owen shook his head. “No. Not Emric. If I sent Hatchet, yes. But Emric and Krew were best friends growing up.”
“Oh.” There was still so much about The Six that I did not know. Obviously. One had been my father’s killer.
I kept looking out the window, looking for anyone approaching the carriage from the direction of Nerede.
All this time I had thought I might lose Krew at the hands of his father. What I naively never considered was the fact that he could very easily be lost to his own cause. The disloyal.
I felt my breathing slow as I considered this in combination with the conversation I just had at my mother’s bakery. I needed to take a drop of Krew’s magic. First, I needed to make sure it did nothing to the chemical makeup and healing properties of my blood and tears. If it didn’t, I needed to take the damn magic. If I didn’t, Krew and I were going to be put in a situation like this again. One where he had to leave me to keep me safe and use his magic.
We needed to be bonded. Heart bonded, I supposed. Heart bonding was normally done at the same time as a wedding, but with the ongoing Assemblages, the wedding aspect was going to be out. For now, anyway. I was more currently worried about keeping Krew alive long enough to marry him. So I’d bond with him first to protect him.
Being helpless was a feeling I was not new to, but it was one I was ready to bury deep in the ground and leave behind. I was much stronger than I used to be, thanks to Owen’s training. I was faster. And with a drop of magic, I would go from being a nuisance in a fight, to helpful. Particularly if my touching someone protected them from other’s magic. If I were to keep that skill once I had magic. There were just so many unknowns. Too many variables.
“Owen,” I whispered. This was a frantic situation, and you shouldn’t ever really make decisions in the heat of the moment, but this was a decision I think I had realized a long time ago. I’d just fought it.
“What?”
“Once Krew gets back to the castle okay, I need for you to do some digging about my blood and the bonding,” I told him.
He gave his head a shake. “You don’t have to decide right now.”
I smiled tightly. “I know, but I need to know more details before I make a decision. So figuring out all the information is first.”
He gave me a nod. “Okay.”
“And don’t tell Krew,” I begged. “Not until we know more. I don’t want him to get his hopes up for nothing.”
“So you want me to lie to him about helping you?” Owen asked, eyebrows up.
I gave my head a shake. “No. I would like for you to just not disclose the fact that you are helping me with this for a few weeks.”
Owen let out a long sigh. “Fine, but I don’t like it.”
“Fine.”
The horses’ hooves clamored on. They had slowed down some but were still moving at a brisk pace. I felt awful for how hard we were pushing them. I wished Owen could use his magic and somehow make us appear at the castle immediately.
What felt like hours and hours later, we were finally at the Rallis wall. It wasn’t long inside Savaryn when we met a group of men and an open back carriage moving the opposite direction.
As Owen looked at them, I saw some sort of emotion quickly cross his face and then disappear entirely.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Nothing.”
“Owen!” I hissed. “Just tell me because I will automatically assume the worst.”
Owen let out a long breath. “I’m not surprised they are sending more Enchanted to Krew. The Nerede wall would’ve likely called in that Krew needed help.”
“Okay.”
Owen continued, “What did surprise me was the fact that they have three healers in tow, one aroyalhealer.”
My breath froze in my chest.No.
“So someone is hurt,” Owen added, “but that doesn’t mean it has to be Krew.”
