His blood went cold.
Not here. Not in front ofher.
It had been painful enough to speak to his brother in the woods.
Coward,his mind hissed.
Not a coward,Kinlear corrected it.I’m just...not ready to see him again. Not so soon.
Because they hadn’t spoken, nottruly,since after Soraya’s death. After Kinlear had awoken from his runed sleep, flustered, because Soraya wasn’t there. He’d sent a servant after her, wondering why he felt so much heaviness in his chest.
She’s gone;the servant brought the news back to him.She took a war eagle and left.
He’d stumbled to Arawn’s room in a panic.
Save her,he’d begged him.You must save her!
Arawn went after her. Into the night sky, he soared...and Kinlear knew. He pieced it all together in that awful, heart shattering moment.
That winged shadow in his visions, a part in his dreams he’d missed the point of, had finally come true.
The brothers didn’t speak, after that.
And they wouldn’t again, certainly notnow,as Kinlear turned back to Ezer, his memories fading...Arawn’s pounding footsteps in their place.
“I’ll be seeing you, Ravenminder,” he said, holding her gaze. “I do hope you enjoyed your little private tour of the Eagle’s Nest. In the future...be careful where you step. And where you hide, for you never know who might be watching.”
He winked at her again, but this time it felt right.
A warning, perhaps...that Arawn would not save her, should she fall.
16
He’d seen her twice now...
And he couldn’t shake therightnesshe felt from sharing the same space.
Years of dreaming of her, and she wasn’t quite how he’d expected her to be.
He blamed his love of books for filling in the gaps. What was she supposed to do...fall into his arms, confess her love for a stranger? One she – quite clearly – was repulsed by?
We all suffer from something, Little Prince.
Magus’ voice called out to him from the abyss.
Well, if repulsion was her ailment, Kinlear would cure her of it.
He’d get to know her slowly at first, for he’d be able to visit her in her Ravenminder’s tower soon enough. Perhapsthatwould be a safe space, where his brother could not interfere. He’d gain her trust, start a friendship, get her to understand him...beforehe introduced her to the raphon.
And then?
Then, they’d change the shape of their entire world.
He whistled to himself, strangely happy, his footsteps light as he left the Eagle’s Nest behind.
It’s a good day,Kinlear thought, for it was the dawning of something new.
His era.
