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He nodded, jaw still clenched. “I don’t know that I can ever forgive you… or trust you fully.”
“I’m sorry, Nica. I…” I didn’t know what else I could possibly say to him.
“You say the family we are, but you’ve never taken the rest of us into consideration. How is that being family, Florin?”
Braz’s fingers spasmed on my shoulder. “Nica…”
“It’s okay, Braz,” I said, bumping my shoulder against his side. “You don’t have to forgive me, but for Theon’s sake, I hope we can coexist peacefully.” I took a breath and decided that maybe showing him a small amount of vulnerability would go a long way. “I truly am sorry, Nica. I really am. I… I haven’t had a family in a very long time. I’m not… used to having people I can count on. But I can promise you I’ll do better, okay? I promise there won’t be a repeat of what happened.”
He didn’t respond, only staring at me in a way I couldn’t interpret his thoughts.
“I’m trying, Nica. I don’t want to be your enemy. I want… I want us all to be a family again.” That was the best I could do. I could only hope he’d accept it.
It was a long moment before Nica breathed out, “Okay.”
I sent him a tentative smile. “Okay?”
He nodded. “I’ll… I’ll try, too.”
“Thank you.”
Wey stepped closer, pulling Nica beside him, until the four of us stood together, forming a loose circle. He held his sword out in front of him, tip hovering in the air at the center of our circle. “For Theon,” Wey said, gaze sweeping over each of us.
I lifted my right arm, resting my sword point against the tip of Wey’s. Braz and Nica did the same.
“For Theon,” we all echoed Wey’s words.
It was a start.
* * *
Just before noon,I broke away from the training field, replacing my swords on the rack and walking to our tent. What I found made me smile. Theon was still burrowed into the bed he shared with Wey and Nica, hair a mess and snoring lightly.
He’d been so stressed that I didn’t want to wake him, but I knew he needed to eat and be in attendance at the war council after lunch. Kasper wanted to confer with Wey, Theon, Jedrek, and myself about the best way to use mine and Theon’s magic in the assault on Tisak.
Sitting beside Theon’s hip, I ran my hand over his back. “Theon, love. We need to get you up and fed.”
He hummed, nuzzling the pillow and snoring some more.
I chuckled, warmth filling my chest. Whatever differences there were between me and the others, I knew we could overcome them for him. Running my fingers through his dark hair, I tried again. “Sweet boy, time to wake up and face the day. Aren’t you hungry? It’s nearly time for lunch.”
He blinked his eyes, pretty blues orbs clearing as he came fully awake. “Florin? What time is it?”
“Almost noon.”
He lifted himself up enough to turn over so he could sit up. “Noon? Why’d you let me sleep so late?”
“You looked like you needed it. We all decided to let you sleep in while we went to the morning training session.”
He touched the braid on one side of my head. “Braz is so good at braiding your hair. It looks lovely. How’d training go?”
I decided not to share the conversation between Nica and I. Theon didn’t need any more reasons to feel guilty, and knowing we’d had that kind of confrontation over him would certainly make him feel worse, not better.
“Good. The Resistance has obviously been keeping busy while we were away. Tons of new faces and more precision from the old ones. They’re interested to see what we can do now that we both have control over our power.”
Theon nodded. “I’m ready to help. No one should have to be enslaved to the mages anymore.”
The goodness in his heart always warmed mine. Leaning in, I pressed a quick kiss to his lips. “Now up, my love. We need you dressed and fed before the meeting.”
