Varyth turned with a dismissive gesture. I slipped out of the room, the weight of his presence lifting from my shoulders. My heart pounded, not in fear, but in the strange relief of being dismissed instead of destroyed.
A servant led me down the hallway, our steps echoing against the stone floor. The faint scent of lavender and wild mint reached my nose, and as we entered the bathing chamber, Mireth’s delighted giggles filled the air.
Inside, the room was spacious and warm, with two large steaming tubs against the far wall. Mireth’s silhouette danced behind a screen, splashing happily in a tub full of bubbles.
Lira greeted me with a sympathetic smile. “These are for you,” she said as she gestured to a set of clean clothes folded neatly on a bench. “And some for little Mireth as well.”
I peered around the edge of the screen and couldn’t help but smile as I watched Mireth, her hands gleefully swishing bubbles through the air. Her face was full of an emotion I hadn’t seen in months—joy.
“I added a healing tonic to her bathwater,” Lira explained. “It’ll help with any scrapes and aches. She won’t even notice. But she’ll feel better.”
Shame brushed over my face, but before I could respond, Lira’s hand rested on my arm, “Mireth’s been telling me about her mother.” She squeezed my arm. “How brave you’ve been.”
A lump formed in my throat. It was easier to nod than to argue with kindness. But I knew the truth, there had been so many moments, when I had failed them. When I had been too slow, too weak.
Too tired to protest, I allowed her to help me peel off the tattered remains of my clothing before sinking into the second tub.
Heat hit me like mercy, and I barely held back tears of relief. The water swallowed me whole. It soaked into bruises, curled around wounds, unwound knots in muscles I hadn’t even realised were tense. I let out a sound that was half sigh, half groan.
Gods above. If this is magic, I may like it after all.
For a few blissful moments, I lay there, letting the water seep into my bones. I scrubbed away the dirt and grime, each pass of the washcloth rinsing away the months of running, of fear.
But some things wouldn’t come off. Not with water. Not with magic.
A flurry of footsteps snapped the stillness. Mireth burst around the corner, towel clutched like a cape, suds clinging to her fingers.
“Mama, look! Bubbles!” Mireth’s voice was breathless with wonder. She grinned as she held up a handful of foam as if it were gold.
It had been so long since I had seen anything so simple make her this happy. Since I had seen her this bright. This carefree. I almost didn’t recognise it. Almost didn’t trust it.
But I couldn’t help it, a laugh escaped my lips.
I stood and wrapped a towel around myself before scooping Mireth up in a tight hug. She squealed, squirmed and giggled inmy arms, and the warmth of her little body brought a surge of fierce love that I couldn’t contain.
After a moment, I set her down, both of us beaming as we dressed in the clean clothes left for us. The fabric was finer than anything I’d worn in months. Mireth spun on one heel, arms wide, her nightgown billowing.
I marvelled at how peaceful, how wonderful she looked.
Lira appeared once more, her kind smile back as she offered her hand to Mireth. “Shall we?” she said, leading us through a door into a small adjoining room.
Eryx lay sound asleep in a cot, his chest rising and falling with each breath. “He’s been changed and hasn’t stirred once.” Lira gestured to a large bed in the room’s centre. “I thought you’d want them close tonight,” she said, “but we can bring another bed for Mireth tomorrow if you wish.”
Gratitude swelled within me as I looked at Lira. “Thank you.”
Lira nodded and offered me one last smile before she slipped quietly out of the room.
I crossed to the cot and gathered Eryx into my arms, holding him close as I made my way to the bed. Mireth crawled up beside me, and we tangled together, their small bodies tucked close.
At first, my body resisted. My muscles trembled, bracing for danger, for the sound of boots, of breath, of death?—
But there was nothing. The tension bled from my spine, my limbs grew heavy and my mind drifted. My fingers twitched, reaching for a weapon that wasn’t there.
I blinked hard as I fought the pull of sleep, but my eyes drooped closed anyway.
And for the first time in forever, I slept deeply, the shadows of the past few months fading. Not gone. But quieter.
My eyes flew open.Heart pounding too fast, too hard. All wrong.
