“I’m happy to. You know, you weren’t the only one cockblocked by the whole Tower trip,” I tease gently. “I’m excited to see you in your element at long last.”
“My element being hiking up mountains?”
“Exactly that,” I say. “You make a rugged picture in traveling clothes with that bow slung over your back.”
Dom chuckles before he rolls us, gently pinning me to the bed. “I’m serious.” His smile softens as he brushes a wayward lock of hair from my cheek. “This would be... a lot harder without you. Thank you, Olbric.”
The love in his eyes is like sunlight. It makes me feel warm as I reach up to cup his cheek. “If the past few days have shown me anything, it’s that youneedto do this. We’ll find her.”
Dom’s eyes gloss over before he closes them, turning his head to kiss my palm. “Thank you.”
I smile as I scoot more firmly onto the bed, giving him space to settle down beside me. His head comes to rest against my chest, and I reach over to dim the light globe before I stroke my fingers through his hair.
“You’ve never really talked about her,” I say.
Dom shifts before letting out a long sigh, his breath tickling over my skin. “There’s not much to say. I barely remember her. She left right after I turned six.”
The thought makes my heart ache. I hated growing up inside of the Shykhdar, but my ama was always there when I needed her.
“And she never gave a reason for it?” I ask.
“No.” His voice is quiet as he says, “No warning, no explanation, save for a note she left my da. When I asked him what the note said, he only told me that we shouldn’t go looking for her.”
I tsk before I tighten my arms around him. “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to drag up bad memories.”
Dom relaxes against me as he lets out a long breath. “She’s always been... a mystery. I remember more of her from the plant journal she left behind than my own memories of her. But when we reach Airedale, I’m going to look through her journal again to see if there’s anything I might have missed. See if maybe my da kept that note.”
I brush a kiss against the top of his head. “We’ll find something,” I say, though I have misgivings about being able to pick up a trail that’s nearly two decades old. But I’ve already committed to helping him see this through. I’m not going to weigh him down with more doubts.
“Speaking of notes,” Dom says wryly, “I’m... going to leave one for Arlon. Tell him that we’ll be gone for a while. That we’re planning on coming back.”
“What details are you going to give him?”
“Not many,” Dom says. “Just... that we’re trying to find my mother. I’m going to tell him that I have questions about my magic that I think she can answer.”
I nod even as I think of Galiva and Cancassi. Apprentice Qamari has been so busy I haven’t even seen her since the day we cast the sending spells.
“I don’t want to worry Galiva with this,” I say at last. “Besides, Arlon will no doubt tell her what we’re doing anyway. And... I love Cancassi, but good God, they’re theworstat keeping their mouth shut.”
Dom chuckles and says, “You’re not wrong. Think they could keep this secret?”
I groan, lifting a hand to my forehead. People say that it’s impossible to keep a secret in the Crux, but I’m convinced that’s mostly because of Cancassi.
“Honestly? I’m not sure,” I say at last. “The two of us running off into the mountains under the Royal Guard’s nose feels far too juicy for them to keep quiet.”
I don’t like keeping things from them, but for the sake of getting Operation Homecoming past the gates, it’s for the best. I sigh and say, “I’ll leave them a note, too.”
Dom must feel the tension that’s settled in me because he leans up, pressing a kiss against my cheek. “It’ll be alright.”
“I know,” I say, pushing my unease aside. Cutting ourselves loose from the Crux will be... difficult, but it will only be temporary. “Once we’re back, we’ll have plenty of time to apologize properly.”
Bad News
At times, the position of Grandmaster can feel incredibly mundane, but it’s important not to be lulled into a false sense of security. You never know what crisis is lurking just around the corner.
From the journal of Grandmaster Fawn Maitre, previous Grandmaster of the Crux.
THE WEEK AFTER OURmeeting with the King is strained and quiet. Arlon seems to be throwing himself into his work to avoid the inevitable, and I can only follow his lead. Though the question of when, ofhowhe’s going to break this to Olbric, rests just behind my teeth.
