CHAPTER 75
Durvla
Alys is whisked awayto the infirmary—a small building just beyond the barrier—and we’re told that our horses will be brought through the wards for us. Chiyo, Tiernan, and I are ushered to a mysteriously well-lit room with bare wooden wall panels. We sit on one of the pristine, wine-colored couches facing a lean woman with warm brown skin, leather armor, and a sword on her hip.
She regards us with intimidating eyes, a greenish shade of hazel. Her shiny black hair is in thick braids that fall to her waist. She hurls questions at us about our relationship with Alys—Elviera—our reasons for seeking sanctuary, and even our powers. We leave out the Basduun detail, of course. When she’s pleased with our responses, she stands and meanders from the room.
I glance at Tiernan who immediately hides a grimace of pain with an artificial smile. As I start to say something about him needing to seea healer, the couch sinks in a little. Chiyo has shifted and is staring in the direction where the young woman just left. When she turns her bruised face back to me, her thin brows are drawn close together. She doesn’t say anything, but the woman reenters the room before I can ask anything.
This time she’s with a tall man who is practically just an older version of her; they have the same warm brown skin and hazel green eyes. He turns to me and halts, taken aback by something. As the woman tilts her head at him, he blinks as though a spell has been broken and speaks up at last. I focus on his signed words, some of it a tad odd for my mind to translate, but I get the gist of it. “My sincerest apologies for the interrogation. We just want to keep the Verge safe for all our inhabitants. My name is Dayfyd O’Hara.”
Dayfyd… the name rings a bell. I recall the conversation I had with Alys back at that marketplace we’d walked through.His eyes are a gorgeous hazel green, she’d said. I blink at him. “You’re Alys’s husband.”
Now he’s truly taken aback. “Yes.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” I say, smiling. “Your wife has told me about you.”
Chiyo scoots to the edge of the couch. “Is she alright?”
“Stable,” Dayfyd says. “It seems the arrowheads were poisoned, but her Healer’s blood is fighting it off as best as it can.”
The arrowheads were poisoned? But not the dagger… I glance at Tiernan, who at least isn’t declining, then back to Dayfyd. He’s still regarding me with a strange expression that I can’t figure out. “Ava will lead you three to your housing. Try to get some rest, and you can visit the infirmary tomorrow during visitation hours.”
Ava… My head snaps to the lean woman who watches us stoically. So, this must be Alys’s daughter. I get to my feet and extend my hand to Tiernan to help him up. “Tiernan needs to see a healer as well,” I say, ignoring his scowl. “He’s just too stubborn to admit it.”
With a smirk in his direction, I remember him saying very similar words to Alys about me back in Paramount.
“I’ll have a Healer come by,” Dayfyd says.
“Thank you.” Tiernan offers a pained smile.
We start to follow Ava out of the building, but I stop, my heart tugging on me. I have to know. I turn back to Dayfyd. “My little brother was taken from Cluain Baile by Forayers a few weeks ago, but the rebels managed to rescue him on the way to Paramount. I was told that they’d been intercepted again, but… Is it possible that he still made it here? Somehow?”
Tiernan places his hand gently on my shoulder, and I place my hand over his.
Dayfyd looks thoughtful. “How old is he? What does he look like?”
“He’s five years old and has chestnut curls and big, brown eyes. He walks, though not well, and he doesn’t speak.”
Dayfyd glances at Ava who shrugs her shoulders. But then she says, “We have a home for children here—the Hatchling’s Nest. We can visit in the morning and see if your brother is there.”
I nod, hope blooming in my chest even though I know it’s unlikely, given the circumstances. “I’d like that, thank you.”
It’s completely dark outside now, but the sky is flecked with countless stars surrounding the full moon. I can’t make out much of the landscape, but silhouettes of trees surround a mixture of buildings, meadows, and a body of water beneath thick mist. My attention is drawn to the fog as we follow Ava’s long strides. Tiernan hobbles beside me, too stubborn to ask Ava to slow down—and admittedly my legs are now truly as wobbly as a newborn foal’s. Luckily, we don’t have to walk too far before we arrive at a two-story house of whitewashed stone. Ava stops and pulls a key from her pocket to open the door.
“There are a few rooms,” she says, slipping the key into my hand. “Make yourselves at home. I can bring you all some fresh clothing until you can get your own.”
We all thank her and step into the house. A domed light of some sort is nestled in the ceiling, illuminating the sitting room. I stare up at the light until spots fleck my vision. When I face Ava again, she’s fighting a smile.
“Magelight,” she says. “It automatically turns on and off according to your needs.” She shrugs, then turns to Tiernan. “I’ll make sure a Healer has already been dispatched.”
Tiernan doesn’t even get the chance to thank her again before she turns on her heels and strides off with purpose. Chiyo watches her go, then lumbers further into the sitting room and collapses on the couch. She puts her feet up, crossing her ankles and pressing her hands over her face. She mumbles something that I don’t quite make out, but I don’t bother to ask as I take in the rest of our surroundings.
Like the other building, the floors and walls are wood, and there’s a fireplace in front of the couch. There isn’t much decor, but a few paintings of flora and fauna hang on the walls. Tiernan turns to me, one hand still over his abdomen. He pulls me close with his free arm, but his grip tenses before his arm falls away, a grimace on his face.
I huff out a sigh. “Alright, you need to get off your feet and wait for the Healer. Chiyo?—”
I don’t even have to say anything more before she swings her legs off the couch and stands up. “In that case, I get to choose a bedroom first,” she signs with a grin before sauntering away.
