Page 121 of Beast and Remedy
She snorts. “Vi, you are good at many things.”
“As are you.” I squeeze her twice, wanting and needing her to hear the words as well. “Love you.”
“Love you,” she whispers, and I pull her into a hug.
“Good. Now, we better hurry back before the men eat all the food.”
“True, they can eat like animals,” she replies as we break apart and stand.
“I know, right? I don’t care that they do—I just wish I didn’t have to hear every single moan and grunt.”
Marian cackles, her laughter echoing. Then my sister sighs, looping my arm around hers. “Sweet Makers, I love you.”
Trees guide the breeze, cooling the rising temperature as Marian and I stroll back to our friends. The smoke fills my nostrils before the light chatter leads us in the right direction, and when Beau’s eyes find mine, his dimples appear.
Christine and Jules immediately beam, Marcel dipping his chin in greeting. Leo pats his blanket, a soft tenderness smoothing away his annoyance from our earlier taunts.
Marian shrinks into herself before joining him. She sits beside him, and a slow smile stretches across Leo’s face, making my heart constrict.
Gratitude for his steady support of my sister funnels in, enveloping me.
We are so unbelievably lucky for this time together.
“Are you not hungry?” Beau asks, and I startle, my cheeks flushing.
“Oh, I am.”
As I approach, I let my hair conceal my blush, aware of the only vacant spot beside Beau. I try my best to mask my delight at being near him as I make myself comfortable.
Beau shifts, moving closer so our knees brush as Marcel hands each of us a portion of food. Beau glances sidelong at me as we eat, my stomach flipping from the smallest of touches linking us together.
We dive into lengthy discussions of portion amounts we will need to test and finalize once we get all the plants from each kingdom.
Christine pulls a pen and parchment from Marcel’s bags, jotting down notes as Jules, Beau, and I bounce ideas off one another.
“I think Palaena’s plant would be chanterelles,” Jules comments.
We all arch a brow, and she wiggles, adjusting her position. “Some texts I read said chanterelles were in Axidoria, but I remember seeing them in Palaena whenever I’d visit my grandmother’s dress store.”
Leo says, “But that means it’s not local to—”
“Axidoria and Palaena are merged, which makes them one territory now,” Jules interjects, scowling at Leo’s interruption. “Which means something in both old borders now would count. Right?”
I bite my lip, contemplating whether we should have plants from the six original kingdoms or from the new five.
Magic flutters in my chest, and I press a hand over my sternum, rubbing the pain buckling down, demanding its release.
“I think you might be onto something,” Beau says.
I want to convey my agreement, but tension coils in my muscles, pulsing. And the horror and fear of everyone seeing me in such a state rises, fueling my power forth.
I can’t let them see. The pain. The shift. I-Ican’t.
Words filter through my mind as my sister’s gaze finds mine.
I angle my head toward the woods, dusk approaching soon.
Help me, I try to express.
