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She put her gigantic nose in my palm.Thank you, Keir.
With a shake of her soft fur, she shifted back into her human form, her limbs unable to hold her weight. I easily caught her as she fell toward me. “I’ve got you,” I said softly. “Sleep it off, Amory. I’ve got you.”
“Keir?” she said sleepily.
“What?”
Her eyes drooped closed, and she gave me the barest of smiles. “You belong with us.”
I closed my eyes and swallowed down my emotions as by the sounds of it, the rest of our group finally caught up to us.
When I opened my eyes, Esta had tears in her eyes as she looked at us.
She good?Malachi asked me.
“Yeah, she’s fine. Said she just wanted to feel the breeze along her fur. I had no idea she was so damn fast though,” I laughed. “Where are we taking her?”
“My quarters,” Esta responded then added, “Please.”
Malachi lowered himself to make it easier for me to get on with Amory still in my arms.
We’d done it. We had changed two shifters back into their human forms, and one back into their shifted form. We could fix Dra Skor. And yet knowing how much energy it was going to take, I was afraid there would be months, if not a full year, before the shifters were all back.
I needed more hands, or I would be in Dra Skor a while. And though on one hand that sounded just fine, on the other it sounded like torture.
* * *
I was debriefingon the day and discussing my letter back from Krew and Jorah with John when a knock sounded on the door. We had been debating on how long it would take us to finish the job in Dra Skor and if it was worth it to train and bring a team of men here. I hated pulling more men from Wylan when there were other countries left to help. It looked like a return trip to Wylan for the Harvest Festival was best. Talk everything over with Krew and Jorah. They wouldn’t put much information on how things were going there in their letters, likely afraid my letters were getting read by someone in Dra Skor before coming to me.
It was all overwhelming to consider. That I had been here months and had only the lakes and three shifters to show for it. That there was still so far to go in Dra Skor, and still three other countries to help outside of that before we finished reversing what my father had done.
“Progress is progress,” John reminded me on my way to the door. “One bite at a time.”
I opened the door to find Esta standing there alone.
“Hi,” she offered.
“Hi,” I said back, too tired from the day’s events to maintain my level of pissed off any longer.
“We were just finishing, Your Grace.” John stood from his spot. “Be sure to get some rest, Keir. Emric has already been out for a few hours.”
“I will, you worried old man,” I smiled.
With a pat to my shoulder, he let himself out, closing the door and leaving Esta and me alone. The very thing I had been avoiding these past few days.
She took a deep breath, her chest heaving.
“Is Amory all right?” I asked, immediately worried. It was not like her to be so upset.
Another heave of a breath. “Yes.”
I was left to stand there worrying until she finally said, “Amory was right, you know.”
Her voice sounded shredded. So shredded my magic flared as if we were in agreement that we wanted to destroy whoever had made her feel like this.
“Esta,” I said gently. “What is wrong?”
“What is wrong?” she let out a laugh from around her tears. “That is what is wrong. That Amory was right. You belong here with us. I know you have family and a life in Wylan. But you do belong here. You walked into Dra Skor and not only began to heal us but filled this gaping hole.” She paused as a set of tears fell down her cheeks. “I don’t even know what Dra Skor looks like without you anymore. I want you to stay. I want you to be here with us. I just don’t know how to stopwantingyou.”
