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“And maybe I will. Don’t be such a baby.”
She dabbed a little more ointment on her fingers and leaned forward.
I pulled back.
She searched my eyes and frowned.
“You really don’t want me to put it on your face, do you?” she said.
I couldn’t answer her. If I did, she would ask the obvious question: Why?
And what would I tell her?
What would make sense?
Who didn’t want to recover from their burn wounds?
I decided to change the subject.
“I didn’t know Changelings had attacked us for so many years,” I said. “They’ve been attacking us forever, making us their slaves and killing us. What sort of emperor lets that happen?”
Hazel sat back on her heels.
“A bad one, I guess,” she said. “But maybe he didn’t do it on purpose.”
“How could he not know?” I said. “It’s his responsibility to know.”
“Sometimes people make the wrong decisions. It’s not his fault the Changelings attacked. Maybe he could have arranged better defenses. But it’s not his fault the Changelings decided to take over the empire. At least, I don’t blame him.”
She had an innocent look in her eye. She really didn’t know I was the one we were talking about.
And was she right? Was it not my fault?
I hadn’t intentionally attacked the empire or allowed for it to be taken over. I would never do anything like that. The advisors were the real traitors. They must have worked with the Changelings, making it easier for them to overthrow the empire.
I was guilty of negligence, nothing more.
My lips quirked into a smile. Hazel was right.
And if I was going to get a shot at a second chance, I was going to need to show my face. The Titans would need to know their emperor was still alive.
I nodded to her.
“Give me the ointment, please,” I said.
Hazel leaned forward and smeared it over my injured face. Once she had covered every inch, she leaned back.
“There,” she said. “All done.”
She yawned, and it took up her entire face.
“Let’s go to bed,” she said. “With any luck, we’ll arrive at the Fallen Temple tomorrow.”
Hazel stripped off her clothes, folded them up, and placed them on a rickety wooden chair. I watched as her naked form slipped underneath the blankets.
I removed my clothes and joined her.
There was still a chill in the loft, but enough for us to have to sleep together naked again?
