Kaelric sat cross-legged on a flat boulder near the bank, eyes closed, hands on his knees. There was no one else, no guards, just Kaelric and the river.
Without opening his eyes, he spoke: “You can go, Godric. Thank you.”
Godric glanced at me, checking to see if I was okay with that. Warmth flickered somewhere in my chest. I liked that he was protective.
I nodded once, giving my permission, and Godric disappeared through the trees.
“Have you suddenly taken up meditation?” I asked Kaelric.
He patted the rock beside him, still not opening his eyes.
Really?After screaming in his face last night, he wanted me to sit next to him?
I huffed, unsheathing Val and setting her on the wide flat rock behind us as I plopped down. The stone was cool under my legs. I peered at Kaelric, and I wanted to hate him. I wanted to cling to the barrier I’d built around my heart this morning.
But the way sunlight filtered through the leaves and landed on his face made it difficult. He looked almost unreal. Sharp nose, strong jawline, long dark hair gathered loosely, lips relaxed. The shield around my heart bent slightly but held.
“Sometimes, when I sit really quietly, with my eyes closed, I can remember things she told me that I’d forgotten,” he said, voice low.
My heart pinched, and I frowned. “Your mother?”
He nodded, eyes still closed. “I was only eleven when my family was killed. I was in the middle of my training, but I never took it seriously. I wasn’t the eldest, so the odds of me being alpha were slim.”
I stayed still beside him, the sounds of the river curling around us like quiet company. Sunlight filtered through the leaves overhead and made thin, shifting shapes across his face. He looked ethereal, sitting like that, almost like the wild itself had paused to listen to him with me.
I swallowed hard. I couldn’t imagine my mother and father, and all my siblings being murdered when I was that young. The thought alone made my chest tighten. I could not fathom bearing the weight of such huge heartbreak on such small shoulders.
“My mother was my father’s top war advisor. She had a mind that was unlike anything he’d ever seen. An ability to sort out problems he thought unsolvable.”
His voice softened when he spoke of her, the hard edges of him easing as though the memory smoothed them. A breezebrushed the river, carrying the scent of pine and wet stone. Kaelric lifted his chin slightly, eyes still closed, as if he could feel her presence when he thought of her.
His eyes popped open, and his gaze fell briefly to my lips.
“But as hard as I try, I can’t remember what advice she would give me for this situation,” he said, then he turned and glanced at the sword that lay on the rock.
The river rushed steadily below us, stealing the silence. I followed his gaze and felt Valkaryn’s grief even though we weren’t touching. It slid over my skin like a slow ache, blooming beneath my ribs.
‘Tell him I love him and I’m sorry. I’m sorry for leaving him too soon,’Val said, her voice quieter than usual, as if she were speaking through water.
Her sorrow struck deep. It wasn’t loud or angry, just unbearably sincere. I had to exhale slowly, grounding myself before speaking.
I didn’t want to be the translator between the love of my life and his dead mother, but there was no other choice.
“She says she loves you and she’s sorry.”
His gaze narrowed, green eyes sharp as glass.
“Sorry for thinking I wouldn’t be pure enough to wield her?”
There was so much venom in his words, resentment honed over months, maybe over every moment he’d spent trying to be stronger, more capable, more worthy. I realized I might have underestimated how deep that wound ran.
‘I don’t think. I know. Just as I knew the second you walked into the binding hall, Brynn, that you were worthy. It’s a gift I have.’
I blinked. That was… a lot. It explained things that had never made sense. Why she’d chosen me so fast. Why Kaelric felt so betrayed.
Even though I was still mad at how Kaelric had treated me for something beyond my control, I still cared for him. I cared that he not be emotionally scarred from this. Those scars were already deep enough.
I reached out and took his hands in mine, his warmth sinking into my palms. The moment our skin met, that familiar connection sparked to life, and a soft buzzing heat spread through my belly. His eyes locked on mine, and I almost forgot what I intended to say. I could stare into those eyes forever and still find something new, shaded emotion, flickers of memory, the tiny flecks of gold that appeared when his wolf stirred.
