Page 55 of When Ashes Fall

“You’re not disappointed that I’m not the same man I used to be?”

“I never expected you to be the same man after everything you endured.”

“But you never expected this either.”

“No,” she reluctantly admitted. “But you’re still not a disappointment, and you certainly weren’t one then either.”

I didn’t know how to take that, so I remained silent as she turned around in the saddle.

“Did any of your siblings go to listen to his tales?” she asked.

“No. They had no interest in such things; it’s one of the reasons my father favored them. They preferred to be training, hunting, and preparing for battle.”

“But you always enjoyed a story and getting lost.”

“I did.”

She leaned her head against my chest as the rat stared at me while continuing to nibble on his fruit.

“You know what I’ve wondered?” she asked.

“What?” I murmured as I resisted the impulse to bury my face in her hair and lose myself in its crisp, eucalyptus scent.

“Why didn’t one of the other kingdoms try to take over Wildwood after the curse? You weren’t here to defend it; it would have been easy pickings.”

“Why would they invade a kingdom frozen in time and encased in gray skies? The sprites would have gone into hiding instead of helping them, so everything here would have died, and nothing new would have grown. Not to mention the shadow dragon. I’m sure it kept many at bay before we returned.”

“No one knows of its existence.”

“That’s because it doesn’t leave any survivors. I’m sure some of the other kingdoms sent out scouting missions to see what happened here and how the lack of shifters could benefit them. And I’m just as sure none of them returned.

“The strigoi still attempt to claim some of Wildwood as their own. They would love to live under permanently gray skies, but if they were ever to launch a full attack against us, the other kingdoms would punish them for it.”

“Maybe not the casters,” she murmured.

“Maybe not the night casters, but I have a feeling Cozameal would gladly go against Marina. They don’t like each other very much.”

“My mother doesn’t like anybody other than my sister and a few chosen favorites. Those chosen ones often change as she’s pretty fickle and loves to torture others.”

“That she does,” I murmured.

I expected the reminder of Briar’s mother to unleash a surge of rage, but it didn’t. With Briar in my arms, the fury remained at bay as she soothed the beast and chased away the pain.

“If she tried something against us again, the other kingdoms would go against her… except for maybe the strigoi. No kingdom wants its only alliance to be the strigoi,” I said.

“They are rather… gross. I hate to say that about another kingdom, but they give me the creeps.”

“They give everyone the creeps.”

“I’ve heard they have a kind of blood magic; I don’t know what it is or how it works, do you?”

“They possess hemomancy. If they gain control of you, they can manipulate your blood. It’s said they can explode a heart in the chest of an eternal, if given enough time.”

Her mouth parted as she gazed at me in horror. “How does someone stop them from doing that?”

“Don’t look in their eyes for too long, and don’t let them bite you. Either of those things can allow them to seize control over you. Once they have it, you’re theirs.”

She gaped at me. “I’m never looking at one of them again.”