Page 92 of Destiny of a King

Adira had. And she had heard her.

Welcome home.

The words had been so clear that even now she could hear them in her head, though the strange opening that had allowed them through seemed to have closed again.

She did not understand what the Wolfin meant. This was not her home. She had never been here before, never walked these forests or known the creatures that inhabited them. Yet the Wolfin had looked directly at her when those words reached her.

Had the creature spoken them?

Adira could not be certain.

She had seen no movement of the Wolfin’s mouth beyond what she would expect from such a creature, and yet the words had come as clearly as if someone was standing beside her and whispered them into her ear.

Dravic’s fingers slipped beneath her chin and lifted her face.

Adira was startled from her thoughts to find him watching her.

Concern lingered in his eyes. He thought she was frightened.

She smiled and shook her head, hoping it would be enough to reassure him.

His brow remained furrowed.

Apparently, it was not.

Adira gave him a firmer shake of her head and placed her hand briefly over the arm he kept secure around her waist.

She was fine. Confused, but fine.

His eyes narrowed slightly, making it obvious he remained unconvinced, but he finally released her chin and turned his attention back to the path.

Adira settled against him once again. She would tell him if she could. She simply did not know how. How did she explain that silence was no longer silent when she did not understand it herself?

The voices of the men continued around her, mouths moving, faces alive with the excitement of what they had witnessed. Every so often something brushed against her awareness, so faint she could not be certain whether it was sound or simply the strange whispers that had followed her since entering Driochmor.

She concentrated harder, but whatever she heard was gone before she could catch it.

Adira turned slightly, watching the men riding behind them. Several spoke at once, making it impossible to know where the faint sounds came from.

Then two words broke free of everything else.

“King Dravic.”

Adira froze.

The sounds vanished as quickly as they had come, but this time she knew exactly where they had come from.

One of the warriors riding ahead of them.

Her gaze went immediately to the man whose mouth continued to move as he spoke to the warrior beside him. She could hear nothing more.

But she had heard those two words.

King Dravic.

Her eyes widened.

King, she understood. Feena had managed to teach her what some written words meant. She had taught her the word king and a gesture for it once they arrived at Caerith Castle.