Wedidmanage to chop down a tree, cut it into three pieces, and hollow those out.
I’d winced when Maz had delivered the final swing that cracked the tree trunk from its stump. It landed with a mournful crash in the woods. Aiden had brushed his fingers over the jagged edges and whispered his thanks.
Ruru and I stared at the stump, waiting for the mythical tree to grow back. I almost didn’t believe it would happen. But then, the edges smoothed and elongated, like pointed fingers reaching for the sky.
I gaped as Ruru whooped and danced around. Slowly, slowly, tender twigs curled out from the growing trunk. They hardened and lengthened. Leaves sprouted. The bark groaned and sighed, stretching back to its original height.
“Fucking Four,” I breathed, my eyes wide. “I mean, thank you, blessed Viridana.”
No wonder Father—and then Renwell—had gotten greedy with these woods. The goddess had made sure there was an endless supply.
But to feed a forge of deadly sunstone armor and weapons? To build warships? Things that would end countless lives?
No, the gentle goddess would’ve abhorred that. Just as Mynastra likely hated how Renwell was using her beloved pieces of night sky.
If only the Four were still here to fix things. But it was our mess. We had to clean it up.
We’ll fix it,I promised Viridana’s tree.Aiden will stop this once he’s king.
Nikella had nodded with satisfaction when she saw our work. She worked from dawn into the deepest night on her explosives. She even ground a handful of black seeds from a blackrust tree into a powder she said wouldn’t harm skin but would eat through metal.
I also wasn’t the only one searching for someone.
Ruru usually accompanied me on my routes. He’d climb a tree almost as nimbly as Aiden and sit up there for hours. He noted routines and faces, but he was looking for one in particular—his brother, Daire. Once, he thought he spotted a young boy he once knew, but couldn’t be sure if he was the same.
I told him that if we were victorious, all of this would change. No more innocent prisoners. No more Shadow-Wolves stealing people in the night. We would make Rellmira safe again.
He’d smiled, but it hadn’t quite reached his brown eyes. So I asked him to tell me more stories about growing up with Daire in Aquinon. He eagerly obliged, his usual spirit rekindling.
As the sun set on our last night in Twaryn, I paced by the fire while Aiden watched me, sympathy twisting the lips I desperately tried not to think about.
Nikella had finished her explosives. The logs were ready. The plan was simple and full of holes—steal a shipment along the river in the dead of night and hope we didn’t raise any alarms.
But still no Henry.
“Perhaps he misread your letter,” Ruru suggested, munching on a handful of nuts Nikella had picked.
“I was very clear,” I said shortly, pacing a rut in the dirt.
“Perhaps he got lost,” Maz offered.
I shook my head with a growl. A child could’ve understood my message, as innocuous as it was, just not its intent.
“Let’s search one last time,” Aiden said softly, getting to his feet and pulling his hood over his head.
Gratitude flooded me. I made sure I had my knives and shrouded myself in my cloak.
We slipped into the shadows. I walked between the trees that now felt like old friends and guardians instead of hiding places for our enemies.
But then I heard the clank of armor.
Aiden and I darted behind a wide tree. I unsheathed a knife and felt Aiden do the same.
We listened as the sound of booted footsteps and shifting armor grew closer.
Aiden tapped my shoulder three times.Three people.
I nodded.
