Unwittingly, my arms tighten around Kilkenny’s middle, and he tenses in response. I immediately loosen my grip and prepare to apologize, but he just keeps riding. He never looks back, nor reacts further. He’s been generally speechless since the scene back at our riverside stop hours ago. I can’t blame him after the chewing out his sister gave him.
Why didn’t he write to his family all those years? Especially with knightly privilege, he should’ve been free to write to them and even to visit them. Yet he didn’t. There is so often a faraway look on his face, as though he’s living in some distant past or an even more distant future. He seldom smiles, seldom jokes, seldom reveals much of anything.
He perplexes me.
The dagger he made for me is suddenly heavy against my thigh. I don’t know how to use it, and I can’t fathom taking a life, anyway. Hopefully, there will never come a time when I’ll have to.
In the dark, it’s hard to make out the changes in the landscape, but we’ve not seen a house for some time, and there are no trees or dense shrubbery for refuge. The air grows cooler and my eyelids heavier. But at last, we make it to a town with scattered houses, and Chiyoko suggests that we stop at a stable.
Kilkenny dismounts and enters the stable, returning a moment later. “There’s water and hay and a couple of goats, so we’ll need to leave before the farmhands or owners arrive in the morning.”
That’s good enough for all of us. We’re worn out. I would sleep on a rock formation at this point. As I dismount, my knees nearly give out and I can’t walk straight for a while. Alys sets a glowing ball of light from her hands in a glass lantern hanging against a wall, illuminating the stable where two brown goats gawk at us uneasily from the corner.
At least they aren’t aggressive, because none of us have the energy for that. We spread out our bedrolls over the hay, and Kilkenny approaches his sister. I hold my breath, certain he is going to instigate another argument, but he speaks to her in a calm manner. Chiyoko nods, a hint of a smile flickering across her stubborn face.
I squint at Kilkenny’s hands in the darkness as he waves me over. We step closer to the magically lit lantern to better see each other. Nervous energy surrounds him, his leather vest rippling across his chest as he pulls in a deep breath. “I shouldn’t have approached you the way I did earlier. My apologies,”he signs silently.
His apology is so unusual for the Kilkenny that I’ve come to know over the past few weeks, I can only stare at him.
“I did, however, mean what I said about you needing to train.”
Typical.
“I know it’s scary, but we need to know. You need to know the extent of your dreamwalking. It’s a very rare power that a lot of people don’t fully understand. So, there will be a lot of figuring it out. Once we get to the Verge, there will be people with more experience that might be able to help. But for now, it will only do you a disservice to leave you with no idea at all of how to control your gift.”
My chest tightens and I force myself to take a steadying breath. “Alright. So, you want me to remove the bracelet now?”
“Yes. If we don’t find any answers tonight, we’ll take a different approach tomorrow. One step at a time.”
It certainly can’t be that simple, but I nod. “Thank you, by the way. For admitting that you were in the wrong.”
His lips curl up into a semblance of a smile. “Don’t get used to it, Garrick.”
A little band of anxiety wraps around my heart again as I lift my wrist and stare at the bracelet. It’s incredible that this little, seemingly valueless trinket holds so much strength. I flip my hand over and untiethe bracelet from my inner wrist. As soon as it’s off, my knees buckle as an overwhelming force surges through my body, pulsing through my veins, buzzing beneath my skin. My vision blurs, and Kilkenny grasps my upper arms.
“Breathe.” He inhales exaggeratedly, demonstrating.
I inhale and exhale deeply until my head clears and the unease slowly melts away.When that soldier had ordered the removal of my bracelet back in Paramount, the sensations had been overwhelming, but at the time I’d blamed it only on my emotions.
Kilkenny’s expression is assessing. “How do you feel?”
I roll my shoulders, trying to shake the unease from my body. “Strange.”
“Put the dampener in your pack so it’s away from you completely for the night. I don’t want it to interfere.”
“Alright.” I stifle a yawn behind my hand.
“Sleep.” It’s not a question, but he doesn’t have to tell me twice.
I slip my bracelet into my bag before heading over to my bedroll between Osheen and Alys, with Chiyoko across from me.“I’m going to talk to Tiernan,” Chiyoko signs. “We have some catching up to do.”
The sentiment warms my heart. “Good luck.”
Alys and Osheen still regard me. “All good?” Alys asks, her focus moving to my bare wrist.
“I’m anxious.” Admitting it aloud makes me even more worried. Especially with Osheen looking at me as though I’ll erupt at any moment.
Carys stands on the deck of a ship, her hand lightly grasping the railing while a gentle ocean breeze blows through her curtain of raven hair. Her face is lifted tothe blue sky, the rays of the sun bringing out the golden streaks in her hair. The scattering of freckles across her nose and cheeks extends across her sun-kissed skin.
