Page 96 of The Cruel Dawn
I roll my eyes, pretending to be annoyed, pretending that her hug doesn’t hurt my skin. “Another promise, Philia?”
Her face shines with love and devotion.“Promise.”
I smile. “Fine. I promise to visit.”
Satisfied, she closes her eyes. She bows, then slips onto her knees and folds her hands at her lips.“Oh, Guardian, gentle Lady of the Verdant Realm, hear the humble plea…”
Watching this young woman grow is almost worth the journey. I touch the top of Philia’s head as she prays, my heart full of her love and the love I now have for her. She’s grown from a thief, conspirator, and petulant girl into a fierce, devout warrior. Once she’s finished praying, I pronounce, “You will live a long life of joy, Philia Wysor.” I shift my gaze to Olivia. “Do better and perhaps you will, too.”
Separi takes my hands. “The threat in Caburh. Seven dawns are left.”
I nod. “And I’ll check in on the eighth.” I turn to Elyn. “Are they strong enough to…?”
Worry flashes across Elyn’s face.
I wince. “We don’t have a lot of time,” I say.
Elyn’s expression doesn’t change even though she acquiesces.
“Ridget and I and the others,” Separi says, “we’ll make sure they heal.”
Before they leave, I let the bloodhounds slobber all over me again. I laugh and say, “I love you, too.” Daisy and her brothers will live long lives until they’re ready to cross over their own bridge.
“Before you go…” I place a hand on Separi’s shoulder. “Wewillneed you and your kin to fight with us.”
The Renrian nods. “I’ll go and prepare them for your call. All of the Vallendor Renrians will do as you ask, Lady. Here—” She takes a scrap of clean gauze from her bag, sprinkles droplets of a pink tonic onto the cotton, and presses it against my still-bleeding cheek.
“That woman-fighter back in town,” I say, feeling the medicine’s sting. “Can you believe she cut me?”
“How did you reward her success?” Separi asks.
“I told her ‘good job,’ then drove my blade through her face,” I say.
Separi replaces her hand over the bandage with my own. “The cut should be better by dusk.”
“You’ve been a great help to me these last days,” I tell her.
She nods, but she doesn’t smile. “Gileon Wake… That man sat in my inn and yet, moments ago, he didn’t even remember my face.”
Nothing I can say will take away the sting she feels—everyone wants to be remembered. Still, I say, “You and your kin are the stewards of Vallendor’s story. Take up your pen and pay him back that way.” I hug the Renrian and add, “I’ll always remember you—hopefully, I will never have to wander the realm without my memories again.”
Elyn calls my name.
Separi hands me the last vials of tonics that she’d prepared for this trip.
Elyn says, “It will be a treacherous battle, Separi.”
The Renrian dips her head in acknowledgment. “But the traitor must be destroyed. If there’s a war that requires sacrifice, it’s this war. Our forebears, the Onama, didn’t help evolve the realms only for Danar Rrivae to destroy them.” She bows to Elyn one last time and says, “Just as we were there in the beginning, we’ll be there to erase the threat at its end.”
Philia, Olivia, Separi, and the bloodhounds gather around the Adjudicator. The cardinals flit around the group. In a blink, they are gone.
Jadon stands several paces away from me, his shoulders slumped. His loss is still fresh.
I say, “Hey.”
He looks up with hope in his gaze.
Before I can say anything else, though, Elyn and her sentinels are back.
