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I met his gaze again.
Was that why?
“Perhaps,” I replied. “I don’t know. Everything happened quickly, and my healing hadn’t come back as far as I knew. I guess... I guess I didn’t fully believe I have healing magic. I still can’t believe I have mind magic...”
“And empath magic,” Fiona added.
“That’s actually very interesting,” Dearen intervened.
“What?” I asked, meeting his gaze over the fire.
“Having three different powers,” he said. “I’ve never heard of that. Double skill happens sometimes, but having all three? I don’t think that is common.”
I felt the dark-eyed girl stirring inside me, but she pushed me away before I could focus on her.
What is it? I asked.
Another moment passed before she responded. I felt a monster close by. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.
“Dearen is right,” Kieran said. “I have never heard of someone having three powers at once.”
“It doesn’t feel like it,” I said. “I mean, the empath magic and the mind magic, I feel like they are one.”
Now, it was Fiona who seemed confused.
“What do you mean?” She asked. “You can sense thoughts as well as feelings. I never had that. It is completely different.”
“Is it?” I asked. “When I reach to someone, they are a whole. Healing focuses on their bodies, but their bodies are where their thoughts are. When I looked at Brigid’s brain to stop the swelling, her thoughts and feelings were there, along with the nerves and the blood.”
Everyone remained quiet as I spoke.
“I...” Fiona paused. “I never thought of it that way.”
“I don’t know if I’m making sense,” I said. “I was never instructed in magic, not before I met Orla. And even she did not focus on my empath magic, and we didn’t know about my healing magic back then. She only taught me mind magic, and we didn’t have enough time to complete my training. I’m not as knowledgeable about these things as you all are.”
“You are simply talented,” Brigid said, gesturing to herself as a smile took over her lips.
“I get that you did not want to share that memory with us, the one with your stepmother,” Kieran said as I smiled back at Brigid. I looked at him. Even as he said he understood, his expression betrayed his feelings. He looked hurt. “But in the future, don’t keep secrets from us.”
He was serious.
“Because if you do,” he added without looking away. “I will find it hard to trust you, and we need trust for the successful competition of our task.”
It was a cold thing to say. And as though Kieran knew my response would not be what he wanted to hear, he got up before I could say anything and started preparing the dried leaves they had found in the forest while hunting. I watched him in silence as he rubbed the leaves on the meat.
No one said anything.
“I will do my best,” I said to him, although he was no longer looking at me. “I should gather some more wood for the fire.”
I did not check to see if anyone believed my excuse as I got up and quickly walked away from the fire.
If Kieran’s words hadn’t struck me that deeply, gathering wood would have been a good excuse. We had set up our camp earlier and thus would need more wood to keep the light throughout the night.
When I entered the forest, the meat was sizzling on the fire. It would take some time before it was fully cooked.
I tried not to think about Kieran’s words. Although he had been harsh, I knew he was right. My friends trusted me to lead them into the depths of the enemy’s land, despite everything I had done to misuse that trust. They believed me when I told them that the dark-eyed girl knew where the queen’s weapon was. They were here, risking their lives because they trusted me.
And I was still hiding things from them.
