‘I’ve accepted my fate,’ Kinlear said. ‘It’s time you accept yours. At least … we’ll be together.’
He bowed low, and when he came back up to standing, he looked like a prince again.
Healthy.
Happy.
Not at all doomed to die.
He turned and walked away, pausing to speak to some younglings who were busy cleaning saddles. She watched him, wondering why a part of her still feared him, and why a part of her actually liked his company, so long as he wasn’t telling her what to do with Six.
Her dreams certainly hadn’t warned her thathewould be the one dying.
And suddenly, his words echoed into her mind.
All you have to do is get me there.
She realized with a pang in her gut … he’d told her to take himtothe Sawteeth. That was the mission. But he’d never once mentioned her bringing him back.
23
The stone in her pocket warmed as she walked, alone, down the steps towards the Citadel.
She didn’t answer, partly because she was in shock.
And partly because she didn’t think she could tell Arawn about her fate.
The stone went cold again by the time she reached the courtyard, passing by the swords driven deep into the snow.
She wondered if Kinlear would soon have one to join them.
He truly wished to go north.Allthe way north, to face an enemy he knew little of. To kill him.
And hope that it would be enough to stop the war.
She felt shaky and utterly frozen, so she ducked inside, making her way through the halls until she came to the set of twin golden doors that marked the bathhouse.
A cloud of fragrant steam billowed out when she opened the doors.
‘Gods,’Ezer said, choking on the sudden heat. But it waswonderful.The warmest thing she’d felt since leaving Rendegard’s southern sea wind behind. She instantly removed her cloak. The steamsmelled like eucalyptus, earthy and vibrant enough to open her senses in a rush.
The walls were rounded dark rock, the ceilings low over her head. Water trickled down them, a delicate, natural sound that had her instantly sighing as she stepped further inside, following the torches that lined the walls.
The room widened when she came to the end of the tunnel.
Her jaw dropped.
It was an enormous rock cavern, utterlyfilledwith natural hot spring pools. Delicate gold light emanated from each pool, from runes that marked their bottoms. Steam danced from each of them, clouding the entire space with an otherworldly haze.
A servant in a brown cloak tended to one of the pools. There were eels swimming inside it, every few seconds sending sparks of blue into the water until it bubbled hot and blazing.
Ezer made a point to avoid that pool.
She cleared her throat awkwardly, and the servant glanced up and spent a few moments walking her through the various benefits of each one. It was the Sacred bathing chambers, with healing properties inside each pool.
‘Your clothing will be laundered and returned before you conclude your time here,’ the servant explained. ‘You could use a deep clean, my dear.’
Ezer couldn’t disagree.
