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“Who taught you about the trees?” Liam asked. He idly picked at a seam in my tunic sleeve, wrapped around him where I gripped the reins. Having him this close, him fidgeting and his head constantly shifting around as he took in the world around him, was the most surreal experience. I had a son. He was right here with me, blood of my blood and flesh of my flesh, asking me questions. He didn’t hate me. He didn’t resent me for not being around. He was curious and beautiful and perfect.
“Was it your father?” Liam prompted.
“Who?”
“That taught you about the trees?”
I smiled, if a little sadly. “You could call him that. His name is Jake.”
“TheJake? Patron of Healers?”
I grinned. “Yes. He raised me and taught me many things because he has lived for many, many years. He knows a little about everything. At least,” I added, “he likes to think so, anyway.”
Liam peered up at me again, his big green eyes blinking. “Will I get to meet him where we are going?”
“Yeah, Liam,” I said with another grin. I knew without a doubt my son would meet Jake, even if I wasn’t sure when. I still had no idea where he was or when he was coming back.
“What else did Jake teach you?” Liam asked.
“Let’s see...” I perused the random bits of knowledge I had. “Did you know that black bears can be brown? We might even see some while we’re in the forest. Or that these trees are the tallest in the world?”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. And it’s said that they are as old as the dinosaurs.” I paused, realizing I had a very different upbringing, being raised with Jake—a man with hundreds of years of knowledge—to guide me and teach me things. “Do you even know what a dinosaur is?” I had no idea what other children were taught about the old world before.
Liam shook his head.
“No? Oh man, then I’ll tell you all about them. I used to love hearing stories about dinosaurs when I was younger—giant animals as big as these trees roaming the earth. Imagine mindwalking with one ofthose.”
“Wow,” Liam said with a burst of laughter. “That would be so cool.”
“Yeah, it would.” I chuckled as we lost ourselves in thoughts. I imagined Liam five years from now. Ten years. Fifteen. And I tried to think of what sort of man he would be. A prince? A king? A ghost, living on the outskirts of society, like I did, simply trying to survive this world? I told myself that would not be his fate. Whatever happened with Corvo and Del and her place on the throne, I would do everything I could to give Liam a life worth living.
“Fin?” His voice was soft in our silence.
The horses’ hooves clacked on the rocks as we maneuvered through a dried-up creek bed.
“Yeah, bud?”
“When Mother gets her crown back,” he began tentatively. “Are you going to leave again?”
I stopped breathing for the briefest moment. “No, Liam,” I said quickly before he could feel the stutter and stop of my heart. But I realized the instant I said it that it wasn’t a promise I could make to him. “Even if we are separated for a while, I will always come back to see you,” I amended. “Always. But I have others who need me, people who don’t live in the Corvo Kingdom, and even if I never want to leave you and your mother again—ever—I can’t abandon them either.” I leaned over to look into his eyes. They were green and sparkling and full of unspoken questions and worries. “Does that make sense?”
Liam licked his lips and nodded. “Is that where you’re taking us? To see your people because we aren’t safe at home anymore?”
My heart sank a little more, hating that Liam had to ask such questions—that he had to worry about any of this at all. That he had to be a prince, not just a boy, and that he didn’t have a home, not right now. Not anymore.
Only for now,I told myself, and I forced a smile for Liam’s sake. “Yes. In a few days, we’ll be in the desert—in my home, where you might make some new friends for a little while.”
“Is that where Lyra and Callon are from, too?”
I nodded. “That’s where they live, yes. Lyra and Callon help me keep everyone safe. Their families will be very happy to see them come home.”
That made Liam pause for a moment, and he chewed on his bottom lip. “Do you have family there, too?”
I wasn’t sure why I hesitated, only that it was a sucker punch to the gut to realize the answer was no. I had no one, and yet, it was a relief as well. I had no previous ties to complicate what Del, Liam, and I might share.
“No, Liam,” I breathed, my heart in my throat. “I’ve been waiting...for you.”
