I felt the same, as if a part of me had been missing and I’d finally found it.
“That’syourname,” I said. “You’re welcome to keep it.”
“I’m Layla. Your Layla. I’d rather you called me that.”
“Then I will.”
Zayde’s arm went around her shoulders, and he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. The mating symbol on his wrist matched my sister’s. Who would’ve thought that two half-brothers could fall in love with two sisters?
“I appreciate how you tried to defend me fromhimback at the castle,” she said.
She’d married him, yet now she was with Zayde. How did they reconcile that in their minds? It wasn’t any of my business, I supposed. If I succeeded in my mission, then she could be done with the father and marry the son.
“I wish I could’ve done more,” I said.
A server brought over mugs of ale and added a pitcher for refills. “Stew all around?” he asked.
“Yes, please,” Layla said demurely. “There will be three more of us. Thank you very much.”
“Of course.” He spun and strode toward the door in the back leading to the kitchen.
“My love told me about the plan.” She squeezed Zayde’s hand still lying across her shoulder. “I’ll support you in any way I can. We both will.”
“What do you know about forming an army?”
“You probably think I’m full of fluff,” she said, “but I didn’tspend all my time trying on dresses or entertaining my ladies with tea. My father . . .” She swallowed hard and a frown filled her face. “Actually, we don’t truly know who our father was, now do we?”
“I assume we’ll one day find out. I hope we’ll discover everything that was kept from us once we reach our destination.” I was taking my cue from her and Vexxion and not naming anything that might connect us to Bledmire or Lydel.
“My point is that the man I called father made sure my lessons included battle strategy,” she said.
“Then you can advise me. I focused on the skills needed to be one of the soldiers, not how to lead more than a flight into combat.”
“I’ll help as well,” Zayde said. “We’re going to do this together.”
I liked how confident he sounded. From what Vexxion told me, it had taken Zayde a long time to see the man his father truly was. Brenna—no,Layla—might’ve turned the final key.
“Thank you.” It meant a lot that he was on my side.
Before we could say anything else, Vexxion and Reyla came down the stairs. They joined us, Vexxion sitting opposite me, beside Brodine, and Reyla on Bro’s other side.
“Airia ordered a tray to eat in our room,” Reyla told us softly. “She’s tired and wanted to stay upstairs. She said this place is too noisy.”
A bunch of guys sang loudly at a table nearby, swaying while hoisting their mugs. The family at a table a few down from ours kept shouting at each other, only adding to the din. They ignored their youngest, who’d tipped his head back andwas wailing. Servers bustled around the big room carrying trays of food, while others poured more ale.
Airia was brave to leave the castle and join our ragged group of insurgents. Did she realize that there was a good chance her reward would be death?
Vexxion’s gaze remained on me, and each time I met it, it smoldered. My skin caught flame again, and I fidgeted on the bench.
Maybe hewasremembering me. My heart tripped over itself and slammed onto the floor. I could only stare back with what had to be my soul in my eyes.
Before I could get up and round the table to sit at his side, our server hurried over with a tray perched on his shoulder. He swung it around to place it in the middle of our table. After giving each of us a big bowl of stew from the tray, he added cloth napkins and silver beside them.
“One of us is eating in her room,” I said.
“Very well. I’ll be right back with biscuits.” His smile took all of us in as he returned the bowl to his platter. “I’ll bring butter and jam as well, and if I do say so myself, the jam is excellent because I made it.” He turned and headed back toward the kitchen.
We started eating.
