Before Seville could respond, a flicker of awareness sparked in my chest, and my world froze. It was small, like the first star winking to life in the presence of dusk, but brilliant just the same. And with it came a soothing warmth that beat through my limbs in time with my heart. My breath caught in my lungs. Slowly, I turned my gaze to Edira. And then she moaned. I’d felt her awaken through our shared bond before the soft sound filled the air. My power left in a rush, and my glamour slipped back into place as Seville straightened. She glanced around me to look at Edira, and the fear that had crested in her eyes dissipated.
“Okay, Rorik. Together, then.” She placed a soft hand on myshoulder, completely upending everything I knew about our sibling relationship, and then waved goodbye. I didn’t have time to process her words, and I didn’t care to. Because in that moment, my entire fucking world winnowed to Edira and her now parted eyes.
She blinked several times over, working her mouth for a few moments. Finally, she spoke. “Water.”
I was on my knees in seconds, gingerly placing a calfskin canteen to her mouth. Water spilled over Edira’s lips, and she drank deeply until she turned her chin. I capped the canteen and set it beside her.
“How are you feeling?”
She stared at me for a harrowing minute, and I swore I saw the moment all the memories came flooding back to her mind. The cloudiness in her eyes evaporated in a breath, and she scowled at me with a cold, distant fury that chilled me to the bone.
“I’ll be fine. Where are my brothers?”
“Helping Vora gather herbs for your medicine. They’ll be back shortly, I promise.”
“Promise? I’m tired of Ever promises.” A brittle laugh scraped from the back of her throat, and she pressed her head into the pillow to stare up at the ceiling. She frowned at the sprawling, interconnected tree limbs and ivy strands. “Where am I?”
“Vora refused to move you. You’re outside Fernglove in a makeshift shelter. Now that you’re awake, though, we can get you out of here.”
“Good. I never want to see this place again.”
While I could understand why, her words burned unexpectedly. If she detested the idea of remaining at Fernglove this much, then she undoubtedly felt the same way about me. An unfamiliar twinge of despair twisted through me, stemming directly from my heart.
Heartbond.
Her eyes widened, too, and suddenly she was glaring at me. “I don’t want this. I don’t want tofeelyou.”
“You won’t know I’m there unless you come looking. I swear it.” I would shield every emotion from her, distance myself both in mind and body, to keep her from dealing with the aftermath of me.
“More promises.” She looked away, but the absence of her ire-filled stare did nothing to assuage the guilt ravaging my throat.
“Edira, I’m sorry.”
She didn’t meet my gaze.
“I know that those words will never be enough. And that no explanation, no matter how true, will ever make up for what I did.” I wanted to beg for her forgiveness. I’d never felt more alive than when she targeted me with her dove-gray eyes. They tore right through me each and every time, and I didn’t care one bit if they left me bare and wanting.
A glassy sheen covered her irises, and the air in my lungs came to a screeching halt. She barely had the strength to move, and I didn’t dare touch her, so all I could do was watch as a single tear slipped free and slowly descended her cheek. It broke me entirely.
When she finally spoke, her words were barely a whisper. “Thank you, Rorik. For helping me save my brothers.”
That damn tear moved so fucking slow. My fingers burned to wipe it away. “You’re welcome.”
“But that doesn’t change what happened.” Slowly, she turned to look at me once more. “I’ll never be able to forgive you for what you did. You’re the reason they were sick to begin with.”
My heart thundered in my throat. She’d saved me from my brother’s wrath, and, heartbond aside, I would do anything to grant her peace throughout her final days. Even if it meant staying away.Especiallyif it meant staying away.
“I’ll get Vora and your brothers.” I turned to go, pausing onlyfor a moment at the threshold of her shelter. I gave her one last chance to say anything she wanted. One last opportunity for there to be something besides anger and remorse traveling down this heartbond of ours.
She said nothing.
I left without looking back.
Twenty-Eight
The freshly upholstered couch in our living room was my new favorite piece of furniture. I guessed Mrs.Marlow decided to use higher-quality fabric after seeing me with Seville, but she didn’t know I no longer had any contact with the Ferngloves. No one did. Sighing, I reclined onto the cushions and lightly dragged my finger along the rich indigo material.
Two months. I’d spent two months of my life with the Ferngloves. More, if I counted the weeks following Orin’s death. I’d been unconscious for days as my body recovered from the aftermath of ingesting blight on such a colossal scale. Apparently, Vora had refused to let anyone move me until I was healthy enough to do so on my own. Only when I regained consciousness long enough to send Rorik away did she allow me to be placed on an elevated cot instead of the strangely soft bed of moss.
