“Elorie.” Tears spring to her eyes. “It’s really you.”
She bursts forward, and a wave of emotion spills out. Tears fall from both our eyes as we hurl ourselves at each other. Not caring about the blood or the stench of death that we both carry.
“It’s really you.” Her sob cuts her off.
My arms tighten.
She still smells of pine and lavender tea. If it weren’t for her warmth, I’d think I was imagining her.
When Letia pulls back, tears spill down both our faces, and there’s no containing them.
“You’re still here. The guards—the ships—the sea—” I can’t finish a thought. I’m stumbling over my words with grief and excitement.
“They stopped coming weeks ago.” Letia frowns. “It’s been just us.”
“How many are still here?” I ask, but the pull between her eyebrows answers before she does.
“Not enough.”
Her arms are thinner beneath her sleeves. Her face hollow. The humans are starving.
“But you’re back.” A tear slips down her cheek. “You came back for us.”
She pulls me tight again, and I’m thankful I don’t have to look her in the eyes as grief sweeps through me. I’m back. I’m home.
And at the same time, I’ve damned us all.
Chapter 58
Elorie
“I wishI could have seen this dress before the battle.” Letia runs her fingers over the torn and stained fabric, hanging on a hook.
Steam from my lavender tea warms my nose as I hold it near my mouth. “You would have gone wild for the dresses at the palace. They were unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The silk was…” Lifting my hand, I rub my finger and thumb together. “It was everything.”
“I can only imagine.” A wistful sigh escapes her lips, and I leave her with the beautiful picture of it, not pointing out that the dresses are simply another piece of the king’s mask. A facade he wove to hide his true intentions.
There’s no point upsetting her more after all that’s been lost.
After Letia found us in the snow last night, she brought us into her home, and I discovered that the Ley Court wasn’t the only place the realm experienced heavy losses in the past weeks. A bout of sickness swept through the village, claiming Mabel and Letia’s siblings, leaving her alone with the few humans who survived.
Half the Guard left to rotate and never returned. Finally, the second wave abandoned the village as well, deciding to give up on the last humans in Lyrichia. They didn’t realize at the time that leaving would mean their death. They’re either still at sea or at the bottom of it. Maybe that is a sick joke from fate, punishing them for abandoning their posts.
When Letia was done telling me about the struggles on Alyssium, I told her about my time on the continent.
About meeting the king and making the promise to heal the realm. About discovering my magic and the truth about my mother. And then I told her about Wilder, even as it tore at the seams of my heart to think of him. I told her about hating him, fighting him, and finally loving him.
Wherever he is in Vaelier, I wonder if he feels the same gap I do.
The void of darkness between us sings with echoes of emptiness. Inside me, there’s this place he should be, but he’s so far away that I can’t reach him.
I woke up through the night with a stir in my chest, and for a split second before I opened my eyes, I thought he was with me. But he wasn’t. All I have is his promise.
He’ll find me.
“Where are Callum and Greer? They must have been up early.” I stretch my legs, eyeing the empty cots they slept on last night in Letia’s cabin.
I’d planned to visit Father’s house, but after seeing Letia, I decided to put it off. There’s time to do it later. I fear time is all we have now.
