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I wasn’t sure where Rowan and Arryn would end up, once the dust settled. Rowan was kind of a celebrity in both worlds now, and I wondered if he would take King Galan up on his offer to live in the palace in the Crystal City. Or maybe he’d leave both the Lands Below and the Iron Mountains entirely, perhaps to settle by the ocean.
But in the end, Rowan and Arryn decided to build their cabin here, just a few steps away from my new family. Rowan said someone had to keep an eye on me, and I silently hoped this meant I could keep him from making any more stupid, borderline suicidal decisions. Like what he’d done for the Queen of Dragons while Alindra and I were in the Kingdom of Stone and Sea.
I don’t care that he was able to rescue most of the human army that he’d pulled into the void. He went into the void, for fuck’s sake, and with Arryn at his side. Singing stars above, if they’d found Rensivar. Or, worse, our father—
With a shiver, I try to dismiss that thought. Rowan promised me that he was done working with the Dragons of the Iron Mountains. I don’t quite trust him but, like a lot of things my brother says, I’m just going to have to let it go.
Lyari and I round a corner, and there it is, Rowan and Arryn’s ridiculous cabin perched on the hillside like a swallow’s nest. It’s almost all windows, including a huge square of glass in the roof, where Rowan claims they can see the stars at night. The door is open, but still, I call out a hello before stomping up onto the deck.
“Rowan?” I call. “Lyari and I are out for a walk, and— Screaming voids below, what is that thing in your hand?”
Rowan looks down at the mop in his hand, then back up at me with an expression that suggests he is completely done with my bullshit.
“Har, har,” he says, like he’s reading the words off a page. “Very funny.”
“Do you even know how to work that thing?” I ask. “You need me to draw you a diagram?”
“You’re hilarious,” Rowan replies.
“Hey, at least you’ve got the right end against the floor,” I say.
Rowan snorts, then leans the mop against the wall and crosses his arms over his chest.
“You two come up here to insult me?” he asks. “Cause if so, I’ll pour us some tea and we can hang out on the porch.”
“If you’re not busy,” I reply, peeking over Rowan’s shoulder. The floor of his cabin is cleaner than I’ve ever seen it. “Where’s Arryn?” I ask.
“At the Dragon,” he replies. “Having breakfast with her brother and his husband. I think they’re debriefing.”
“Oh, right,” I say as Rowan vanishes into his house. “How did last night go?”
Rowan was supposed to have dinner with Arryn’s parents last night. Given everything I’ve heard about Arryn’s family, I can only imagine the experience was unpleasant for all parties. Rowan steps back into the doorway with two steaming mugs in his hands.
“It was okay,” he says. He walks past me, then sets the mugs on a little table between the two carved wooden chairs on his porch. “Worse for Arryn than for me, I think, but we got through it.”
“Wow,” I reply. “Sounds like they’re a blast.”
Rowan grins at me as he sinks into the far chair.
“They are exactly what I expected,” he says. “And it turns out it’s your fault they’re even here.”
“Me?” I twist in the chair as Lyari lets out a little squawk of protest. She doesn’t want me to stop moving.
“They’re here for business,” Rowan continues. “The family Damoira is trying to diversify their investments. Apparently, their operations were severely interrupted when some asshole destroyed half of the damn Towers in the Silver City.”
“I told you, that was an accident,” I reply.
“Hells, I’m proud of you,” Rowan says. “Who would have thought my big brother would have such a flair for property destruction?”
Lyari fusses again. I stand up, conceding defeat.
“Here,” Rowan says, stretching out his arms. “Let me have the little monster.”
I fiddle with the straps on the carrier as Rowan stands to take Lyari. She lets out a disturbingly pleased sort of gurgle when he picks her up.
“Look at you,” Rowan says. “I think you’re bigger than yesterday already.”
Lyari waves her little fists at him and burbles. Rowan smiles at her in a way I don’t think I’ve seen him smile before.
