Page 39 of Forged By Heart and Claws
“Praise Fate!” Vyraetos breathed, grabbing the leather bag from me and taking it to Elara. Silus straightened and cradled her head, and her long lashes stirred. Her breaths came slow but steady.
When Quen spotted us, her face lit up, and Thalira gasped. Hope and fear flashed through her dark eyes as she reached for Quen. Her skin had gone waxy, and beads of sweat clung to her forehead. The bolt lodged in her shoulder hadn’t budged. “You found it?” she rasped.
Briar beamed. “We got it. You’re going to be all right.” She crossed over to them.
Thalira reached out with her healed hand and pulled Briar down into a tight hug. “Thank you,” she whispered.
“You’d have done the same for me.” Briar hugged her back. Through our bond, relief surged so hard that emotion pricked within me.
Briar had adopted these women’s fates like they were her own. And now that Ifelther loyalty to them, I finally understood. Words had never been enough.
“I told you, you aren’t going to die.” Briar sighed.
“No dying.” Thalira agreed with a weak laugh. “Except for Kaylen, Calla Lily, and whoever caused all this.” She grimaced.
Briar helped her sit up and tucked the blanket around her. “Are you still in pain?” She placed her hands on Thalira’s shoulders, taking care not to touch the bolt embedded in her flesh.
“I can manage. It’ll get better now.” Each of Thalira’s breaths came shorter than the last.
I gestured for Briar to return to the mat.
Even to someone with no medical knowledge, it was obvious Thalira’s life wasn’t safe yet.
“We brought back everything.” I turned to Vyraetos. “Pain relievers. Blood restoratives. And several types of medicine.” I refocused on Thalira. “Some of the medicine will help with the pain as well as blood restoration.” I set the last satchel down near her feet. “Vyraetos will take care of you. Is there boiling water?”
One of Morlo’s staple remedies had been red tea infused with a hazelnut base and whatever additional ingredients and elements he’d deemed necessary for his patient.
“Water has been boiled, and everyone had some tea. More is heating now,” Myantha said, appearing on the other side of Briar. Her gaze flicked to Thalen and then back to us. “Do you need help with anything?” Briar shook her head as Myantha flung her arms around Thalen. “I was so worried about you.” Her voice was muffled by his shoulder.
Thalen parted his lips like he wanted to say something witty, but no words came. He hugged her back, nuzzling his face against her neck.
Elias bumped into a shelf and swayed, as if he didn’t know what to do with himself. His hands slid against his trousers, searching for pockets that weren’t there.
Quen’s eyes flashed, and she went to him. “Come on. You’re with me.” She didn’t wait for an answer, just gripped his hand and guided him to sit near Thalira. “What do you need? Food? Water? Rest? Heat?”
“I—” He blinked and stared at her, wide-eyed, as she crouched and pressed her palm just beneath his jaw.
Quen tilted her head. “You’re cold, and your pulse is thready. My other patient is in better hands now, so you’re all mine.”
He leaned back against the wall, but his expression flickered between alarm and confusion… and something else. “Oh?”
I left them to it and checked on Elara as Vyraetos prepared the medication. Silus had curled his big frame around my sister.
Elara propped herself on one elbow as Silus steadied her with one hand. “I’m feeling better.” Her voice was weak, but the fire in her eyes burned bright. She reached for my hand.
I took it and rubbed my thumb over her icy knuckles.
She was lying. We both knew it. But sometimes we needed the lie more than the truth. She would be fine in time, and I’d buy her that time as long as I could. I’d lost more than enough. She wouldn’t be counted among the dead.
Forcing a smile, I nodded. “Good. When the time comes, I want you there with me so we can spill these traitors’ blood together.”
Her brow furrowed as she squeezed my hand tighter. “When it’s time to kill them, Iwillbe there. I will take their lives for Father’s. I want to feel the heat of their blood on my hands and see it spill across the stones.”
Silus’s hand splayed on her shoulder. Pride flashed in his dark eyes, along with protectiveness.
“Father will be avenged. All who have fallen will be avenged,” I vowed, and then turned to Silus. We might have clashed before, but I knew he’d hold the line. “Any warning signs while we were gone?”
Silus shook his head. “Nothing serious. Except…” His brow pinched.
