Page 84 of The Last One
His ivory cheeks brighten, his shoulders sag, and his chest deflates. “That’s all you can say after hearing my epic tale of cunning and ingenuity?”
I pause, then say, “You areall the thingsand more.”
He smiles, lifts his chin. “Thank you.”
“Tell me your name.” I try to focus on him, but he’s blurry and his blue light is far too bright. Everything in this sitting room is far too bright.
He bows. “Veril Bairnell the Sapient. And now, what do they call you?”
“Nothing special. Just Kai.” I point at Jadon. “And he’s—”
“He’s already told me,” Veril says. “While you were passed out. And such a boring name at that.”
Jadon fake-smiles and gives an annoyedI’m standing right herewave.
Veril considers him, grunts, then returns his attention to me. “You say that you’re suffering from memory lapses, but how do you know of shothis, Just Kai?”
I run my fingers over the soft edge of a pillow at my side. “To clarify—‘just’ is not a part of my name. I’m Kai, and I know that term because… I… I remember sitting in an outdoor classroom next to a boy with eyes like yours. His name was…” I stare at the flames in the hearth, searching my brain, then sigh. “I don’t remember, but he taught me ‘shothi’ and ‘examia’—”
“Truth,” he translates, nodding.
“And ‘dawstering’—”
“Daughter.”
“I think his parents worked for my parents… Or maybe his parents were my teachers?” My mind muddles, and I squeeze my eyes shut to stave off the coming wave of nausea. “Forgive me—I haven’t been myself lately.” I slump back on the pillows.
Jadon kneels beside me again. “We appreciate your help with her leg and for allowing us to stay until we can be on our way. We’re a long way from home.”
“Some of us more than others.” Veril scrutinizes the bandage wrapped around my leg. “Oh dear. At it again. I didn’t think you had any blood left, Just Kai.”
I push out a breath. “This wasn’t my best battle.” I try to sit myself up again on my elbows, but my body rebels, and I lose the battle against nausea and fogginess. I want to vomit.
“So, can you help her more?” Jadon asks. “I mean, beyond the bandages?”
“Of course I can,” Veril says, shuffling to a small alcove off the sitting room. “I must gather a few more things first. If you’ll excuse me.”
I turn on my side and study the room to distract myself from the pain.
Over there, drying herbs and dry-aging ducks hang from string and nails. Living plants, some with flowers, grow on vines. Rows of jars filled with green things, slimy things, and prickly things sit over there, there, and there. There is not one crumb, not one fallen leaf on the bright wood floors. The lamps burn bright and steady. Wood crackles in the hearth, and the room isn’t too hot, nor is it too cold. All of it is orderly. Too orderly.
The sitting room shimmers with flecks of silver as though this space doesn’t really exist, as though this space is a mirage…which it may be. HeisRenrian, after all. Enchantments—that’s just one ofall the thingshis order does; he’s told us so much already.
“How can I help?” Jadon asks, sitting cross-legged beside me.
“Make everything stop hurting.” Tears burn my eyes, and my side pulses.
“We’ll fix you back up,” he says.
A teardrop rolls across the bridge of my nose. “Thank you for not leaving me behind.”
He catches my teardrop on his knuckle. “I’ll never leave you behind, Kai. We’ve got places to go, right? People to find.”
“Amends to make,” I whisper.
He catches another teardrop. “I’ll do anything to make you whole, to keep you safe.”
“Promise?” My skin warms from his touch, and his touch is all I want right now.
