“She is, but she’s so much more than that. Even this”—she gestures to the plants and vegetables growing despite the blight—“she has managed on her own, without magick.”
I gape at the abundance of green, an impossible task given the lack of sun we see this time of year.
Sam squeezes my hand before cupping my cheeks. Her glowing, amber eyes are full of equal parts warmth and worry. “I was worried sick about you.”
She slides her hands from my face, and I ask, “How haveyoubeen dealing with everything?”
Sam shrugs with a smile. “Everything will get sorted, it always does.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I say.
She tilts her head, brows stitching together.
Sighing, I brush her tightly coiled curls off of her shoulder. “You and I”—I point to her then back at myself—“we’re way far past casual pleasantries.”
She wipes her eyes with her free hand. “How is it that you’re giving me the pep talk this time?”
“Oh how the times have changed,” I say through a laugh.
Sam grasps me in a hug and my shoulders slump when she pulls away. “Galen hurt you.” Her words come out so quietly, I think for a moment I imagined them.
“He did,” I say. “He hurt all of us?—”
“No.” Sam shakes her head. “Don’t minimize your pain, Elora. He hurt you and the longer you suppress what happened, the worse it will be.”
My lungs burn, tears stinging my eyes but my words fail me. There are so many horrible moments in Valebridge I haven’t faced, mostly because I fear to. Facing them means they truly happened and if they truly happened, I’m not sure I’ll ever recover.
“Heal up,” Sam says. “You can trust Tallulah. I think you’ll like her.”
I nod and when she closes the door, I let out an overdue breath.
“Elora?” A woman stands in the doorway a moment later. I recognize her as an Enchantress immediately. Her dark hair is woven into an intricate braid, her blue eyes sparkling. “Can I come in?”
“Of course.” I wave her forward.
“I’m Tallulah.” The Enchantress holds out her hand and I take it, giving her a quick shake. “Welcome to the Jade Guild. Though I’m sorry for the circumstances of your arrival.”
I smile at her, unsure of what to say. My mind drifts to Loxley and my brief time there.
“I just wanted to check on those.” Tallulah points to my wrists, interrupting me from my thoughts. I rub them absently, my mind still fogged with memories.
Valebridge and Loxley and Galen. I shut my eyes and focus on the noises around me. The slight ping of rain hitting the greenhouse windows. Tallulah’s boots scuffing against the stone ground.
“Lord Calix says a healer saw to you at the Onyx Guild.” I open my eyes and find Tallulah staring at me. “I wanted to see for myself you’ve been taken care of properly.” She smiles and there’s something about it that puts my anxious thoughts at ease. “Not that I’m a Healer or anything.” She shrugs, twisting her fingers through the bottom of her braid. “But I also wanted to make sure there’s nothing else troubling you.”
I hold out my wrists and fight to hide the wince as Tallulah begins inspecting my wounds. “Nothing else is troubling me.”
Nothing she can help me with anyway.
She applies some healing cream before moving to clip a few leaves from various plants. “They’ll scar,” she says over her shoulder. “But otherwise, they seem to be healing nicely. Do you have any other pain?”
I bite the inside of my cheek. “No.”
She pauses, glances at me for a moment, the light from the greenhouse ceiling catching on her tanned skin and blue eyes. Tallulah joins me at the cot again and hands me a small satchel of herbs. “I want you to take this, drink it as needed.”
“It’s really not necessary, the pain is minimal.” I hand her the satchel back, but she closes her hand around mine and the herbs.
“It’s not for physical pain,” Tallulah says. “When you feel that tightness, here.” She places her hand delicately on my chest, and I flinch. “Or darkness here.” Her hand moves to my temple in a feather-light touch. “This will only help calm you.” My breathing increases as she hands me back the satchel of herbs. “There isn’t any shame in needing a bit of extra help.” She smiles and my chest tightens.
