“I didn’t know what you were capable of, Elorie. If I had, Iwould have tried harder to hide you. There was no magic on Alyssium; you should have been safe.”
“No one is.”
“Either way, I’m sorry for not telling you where you really came from. I was respecting your father’s wishes, and that was a mistake.”
I swallow hard, looking up into Callum’s eyes. “I appreciate the apology.”
His gaze falls to my lips. To my cheek.
My skin is burning up the longer he stares at me.
I want to hate him. To ball this anger into a knot so I don’t have to face my conflicting feelings. But it’s not Callum’s fault that my father hid my mother’s true identity. And it’s not Callum’s fault I ran into that prison and woke our enemy.
He’s caught in the middle of this battle between kingdoms just like I am. And he’s still at my side through all of it.
The warmth of Callum’s magic swimming around me settles my nerves, and I lean toward him. It would be so easy for him to dip down and for us to forget everything that’s happening. But the slight shift has his eyes refocusing. He takes a step back, breaking the moment.
“You’ll be training again tomorrow.” He’s speaking louder now, like he expects the guards not to have heard the rest of our conversation. “You should get some rest.”
Callum turns, leaving me in a bundle of knots like always.
“Callum,” I call for him before he’s gone. “Can you get something for me?”
He nods.
“A quill and paper.” My fingers twist in front of me. “I’d like to write.”
“Of course.” He turns to leave, and it’s colder with him gone.
Stepping into my room, I find it empty.
Maybe this is for the best. No strings.No attachments.
Greer was right today; I might not survive this, and for all I know, that might not matter when Lyrichia and Vaelier flicker out. When magic is gone, and immortality wanes. The stories of the two Fae realms that collided will fade like the Arch to the Mortal Realm did.
If that’s the case, I’ll remember what I had while I can.
I close my eyes and sink into my thoughts, remembering home.
How snow felt when it was knee-high, and my toes were numb. How lavender tea warmed the belly on the coldest days. How there was no joy like the gossip running wild through the market. How friends were like blood, and we all survived together or died together.
Mortality made every moment matter.
Father taught me that.
Being a human might make me weak, but today reminded me that there are still reasons being a human is good.
Chapter 15
Elorie
Every morning for a week,Callum fetches me for training. Wilder attends each one but avoids picking a fight like he did in the first session. I can’t decide what’s worse: his attempts to piss me off or his silence. The way he watches from the edge of the training ring is unnerving.
King Malachi doesn’t show up for training once.
Apart from him parading me through his great hall each night at dinner, he treats me as if I don’t exist. Dinner has quickly become my least favorite part of the day. No one who attends actually eats anything. They gather to gossip and fawn over each other’s jewels and dresses. Praising themselves for their good fortune like the rest of the realm isn’t dying.
Maybe they don’t see that to be the case.
