Killi’s lips twitched. “You’renot so important.”
Kade tried for a smile, it wobbled before it fell apart. “I don’t know how to go out there.”
“Just take it slow. Step by step. Minute by minute. And if it feels like it's too much, find me, and I’ll take you away.”
“I thought you were too important. You’d be missed if I stole you away.”
“You’re more important.”
The sincerity that Kade saw in Killi’s eyes made his tears fall for real. There had been too many tears shed over the past two days, and very few smiles. This pushed him right over the edge yet again.
Killi pressed a kiss to each of his cheeks, and then over his eyes. His lips came away wet with tears but he didn’t seem to mind. The smile he gave Kade was warm and calming.
“We’ll get through this.”
Kade nodded. “Just a few more days.”
“I need to go. I’ll be expected in Fyar’s quarters before we go down.” Killi’s eyes tightened and he looked strangely unsure. “You?”
Shaking his head, Kade sniffled, “I need to get my new robes from my room. Hokda’s changed our dress robes to black this evening in honor of—”Porthos.Kade choked, unable to bring himself to say the name.
“Alright,” Killi accepted easily. “I’ll see you in the hall.”
Later, once Kade was changed he sat down on his bed in hisdingy, dark room, and didn’t get back up. He didn’t move until the last vestiges of sunlight began to fade.
The feast should have started already. Fyar giving a speech.
Kade didn’t want to hear it.
Someone had been in his room, he could tell by the way that certain things were put away in the wrong spots and the lack of dust. Kade hadn’t slept in this room—in this bed—for nearly a week. Whatever they were looking for, he hoped they didn’t find it.
Kade put his hand over his heart and felt for the eventhump, thump. It felt grounding.
Step by step.Killi had said.Minute by minute.
Kade had only made it one step out of his room when he froze. There was movement in Porthos’ room across the hall, he could hear the boots shuffling on the floor and see the flash of golden hair. For a split second, Kade thought Porthos had come home. He ran into the room, a bit crazed.
His growing smile died on his face when the figure turned to reveal eyes the wrong shade of blue.
Lyra.
“Apologies,” the prince said, grimacing. “I didn’t mean to surprise you. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here at this hour. I thought everyone would be at the feast.”
“Why aren’t you?”
“I—” Lyra looked around. “I wanted to see where he’d been living. Where he called home.” Lyra cleared his throat. “He loved it here. He always said so in his letters. Not so much the room, he always complained about how small it was, but the palace. Ingara. Learning under Hokda, though he had his fair share of complaints about him, too.”
“We all do. Hokda’s special, but we all thought P-Porthos was one of his favorites.”
Lyra smiled. A real smile, though marred with anguish. “That’s my little brother for you. Always worming his way into everyone’s heart. You couldn’t help but love him.” He turned his back on Kade and scrubbed a hand over his face.
Kade didn’t know what to say, so he said nothing at all.
After composing himself, Lyra drew himself up. There was something new in his eyes that Kade couldn’t read. “He wrote about you. Kade del Torau, the new apprentice who got in riding his brother’s coattails. Bold and talented, he said you were. I can see why he took to you, why he trusted you, why he used you.” Lyra took a step towards him, and Kade took an answering one back. Uneasy. “You tried to save him. You went against Fyar to try and save him. How stupid. How reckless. My cousin would squash you like a bug. But you tried to save my brother, I thank you for that. I’m truly sorry that it’s come to this.”
Terrified, Kade’s voice came out small. “Come to what?”
Prince Lyra Yvylr didn’t answer. He held out a hand that sparked gold with hisen, and Kade’s world went dark.
