Page 54 of Sky’s Edge

“I’m scared to ask him too much about her,” I admitted.

His features softened. “This is understandable too. Zyr and I have been equally cautious. He was undone when we commed with the news.”

He shook his head again, and his gaze drifted to the windows before he continued speaking.

“He’d always been such a winsome, animated lad. Every day was a new opportunity. A new adventure.” He came back to me. “Sometimes, Zyr and I wondered if it was a show to make Darynda feel better about the circumstances. But in the end, we don’t believe it was. This”—he held both hands up at his sides—“was all he ever knew. He loved being out, fishing, trekking. He could happily pour over a thousand-piece puzzle for hours. He didn’t care that his only friends were canines, because he didn’t know what having a friend was. Even when he went to the academy, since his life was so physical here and he’d learned to entertain himself, and learn quickly with few distractions, he excelled. We were surprised he made friends, but not surprised that his group was few, though close. But when she passed…”

I watched how difficult it was for him to swallow, and my heart lurched.

“All that used to be him just drained out of him,” he finished.

“I thought it was his father passing and Arnaud succeeding.”

His shoulders straightened. “Make no mistake, Darynda raised a king. Although she knew Riland intended to try to circumvent succession, his whole life, Tanyn was in no doubt that his mother expected him to assume the throne, and she trained him to do so. So, yes, when Riland died and Arnaud became king, Tanyn assumed a certain determination to right that wrong. But how he is now, so austere, that was never our Tanyn.”

Our Tanyn.

He’d told me they’d been here around thirty years.

Tanyn, I knew, was thirty-six.

Mangold had known him, probably, his entire life.

Oh yes.

This was a family.

“I’ll keep an eye on him when we’re with the lynx,” I promised.

“Thank you, Catla.” He tipped his head to the side, and a small smile hit his lips. “Now, is there anything you need?”

I shook my own head.

“Would you like me to set you up with the screen while Tanyn sees to whatever business he’s seeing to? It’s old, and doesn’t respond to voice commands, but a remote.”

How interesting.

I couldn’t concentrate on anything on screen, but I wanted to see this remote business.

So I said, “That’d be great.”

We went to the family room.

Mangold showed me how to use the remote.

He left and I fiddled with it, not watching anything, just changing channels, adjusting volume, forwarding and rewinding.

After a while, I heard a Heli-Craft approaching.

My boots.

Excellent.

It was time to play with the kits.

This.

Was not.