Page 69 of The Seeker

I understood what he was saying. It was something I’d long realized too, ever since speaking with Askel in the forest on the last leg of our journey. While the intention behind the books was pure, they’d been leveraged as weapons for too long, and the vast majority of people no longer had access to what the gods had wanted us to have access to. And those who did have access were often those lacking good intentions.

“I wish I could speak to the gods about it.”

My mouth dried at his words. I’d never heard someone speak so casually of the gods. “If they’re real,” I murmured.

His eyes snapped open. “They’re real.”

“You speak as if you know them personally.” Nervousness was crawling up my body now like ants. I didn’t like where this conversation was going. I took a daring step forward, my heart pounding.

“I don’t need to meet someone to know they’re real.”

My mind was devoid of an answer for that, I took another step forward until I was close enough to pull Otho into a hug. “I know you’ll make the right choice about the books,” I whispered into his chest, silently pleading with him to choose the same path I was.

We stood like that, soaking each other, and the silence, in. It was a moment of peace that I’d long dreamed of, and one I would long look back on.

I finally felt like everything was open between us, like there were no more secrets.

“Did you find the others?” I asked at last.

“Yeah. They’ll be here soon. I already booked rooms for them.”

I wanted to ask more about where he had gone, and where he’d found the books, but it was clear he was exhausted, so I led him to bed, pushing him down into a sitting position. “Which one is Ena in? I’ll go visit her and you can have some rest.”

“The next door down—two-oh-one.” His words were barely above a whisper as he gave in to my request, lying down on the bed.

He was snoring before I even tucked the key back into my pocket and left the room.

No one answered when I knocked on Room 201, so I returned to the lobby instead. The same tired innkeeper was behind the counter and paid me no mind as I walked through and stepped outside. It was almost fully dark, and I wasn’t brave enough to wander around a strange city without the light of the sun, so I sank down, sitting in the dirt next to the entrance of the inn.

It wasn’t long before the group wandered up the street, laughing and joking with each other as they went. In stark opposition to the way Otho had returned, it appeared the rest of them had a wonderful day. Karl was the quiet leader, herding Jase and Nel, who were shouting in a voice that told me they’d had more than one drink in one of the many pubs I’d seen on my walk with Otho. Ena and Askel were a few steps behind, their voices too low to hear as they bent their heads together over the racket of the rest of the men.

The first half of the group passed me without taking notice, but Ena, ever observant, paused on the stairs, her gaze snapping to me. “Runa?”

“Yeah,” I replied, not moving to stand.

She whispered something to Askel too low for me to hear, before coming to sit down next to me. “Everything okay?”

Askel glanced our way before climbing the wooden steps, but the others didn’t even acknowledge us as they ducked inside the inn.

I’d found a stick in the dirt shortly before their arrival and I began peeling it apart with my fingertips. “I realized I’m not sure what to say to the king when we see him tomorrow.”

“Oh,” Ena gasped, her surprise a flicker. “I . . . didn’t really think about it.”

“Me either.” I sighed, peeling another piece off the stick and throwing it in the dirt. “It feels like it was another lifetime when we made this decision.”

“It was,” she agreed.

I debated telling her about my run-in with Milo, but decided it was better to keep the knowledge of my twin and his selfishness to myself for now. It wouldn’t help the situation anyway. “What did you all do all afternoon?”

Her lips turned up at the corners. “We walked around, ate, drank; it was a lot of fun. What did you and Otho do?” She raised her eyebrows suggestively.

“Relaxed, mostly,” I lied, saving the knowledge that Otho hadn’t been with them at all for later. “So, I’ve never spoken to a king . . . Do you think I need to be formal?”

She was pensive. “Maybe? I can’t say I’ve ever met a king either.”

“I wanted to ask for . . . protections for the Seid, but I’m not sure how I should . . . word my request.” Milo’s pleas burst into my mind and I pinched my eyes shut as I pushed them away.

“Well . . .” Ena’s gaze was focused on what little remained of the stick in my hands. “You could ask for a Seid to rule Heimland.”