Braija hadn’t said a word through any of it. She stood close to the front with her arms folded, expression unreadable, and I’d nearly stopped watching her when she stepped up.
The room settled immediately. Braija held a lot of clout in this village.
“My ancestor built the metal oven I cook on,” she said. “No one knows where the parts came from, but she used it, and her children used it, and their children after them.” She paused. “It’s been in that kitchen for so long, that ancestor’s name has been lost to time. I cook on that oven every day. My children will cookthere. And I will befleckedif I let some off-world syndicate take it from me.”
I closed my eyes as the weight of her words pressed on me.
Orrec spoke last. He was the oldest person in the room and said the fewest words. “I’ve fished these waters my whole life,” he said. “I’m not fishing anywhere else.”
Maive asked for a show of hands to stay and defend. An overwhelming number of hands went up. Then they looked at me. I knew the question swimming in all those heads.Will you train us, Gilrox?
I looked at the room as I internally sighed. These people understood what they were choosing. They weren’t reckless. I couldn’t write this off as some impulsive whim. I had witnessed a great deal of courage in my life. Most of it hadn’t moved me. This did.
“Yes,” I said. “But I can’t guarantee it will be enough.”
“It’s enough for us,” Pasek said.
The hall cleared slowly. Maive lingered, then came and stood near me. For a moment, neither of us said anything. The room was different when it was empty. All the energy was concentrated on the two of us, rather than being dispersed among the villagers.
“I’ve been thinking about Belaga since you left,” she said.
I grunted. “It’s in the past.”
“I know. But it explains things.” She looked at me steadily. “I should not have said what I said to you.”
“No,” I agreed. “But you weren’t entirely wrong about it.”
She didn’t reply to that, which I appreciated. We stood there for a moment.
“The elderly and the very young need somewhere to go if it comes to a fight,” I said. “I don’t want them in the village.”
“I’ve been thinking the same.” She paused. “The Runams in the mountains. We broke away from them generations ago. I don’t know if they’re friendly.”
I’d had the same thought. “I’ll speak to them.”
She looked at me. “Alone?”
“I’m difficult to kill,” I said with a grimace. “Even now.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “All right. If you think there’s a chance.”
“There’s a chance.” I paused. “If there isn’t, we’ll come up with something else.”
There was a pause. It made me feel twitchy, but I had a feeling she had something more to say, so I waited.
“Gilrox, I’m sorry.” Her gaze met mine. “You’ve shown nothing but kindness to everyone here, and I…I don’t want to lose you, either.”
I moved to her. I took her face in my hand, fingers against her jaw, and kissed her hard. I was still hurt. Still a little mad, but it didn’t change how I felt about her underneath all of that. In a way, it was a relief to see a few cracks in her. She wasn’t perfect. Neither was I.
She gasped against my mouth. This kiss was a declaration, or a vow, or the closest I knew how to come to both.
When I pulled back, she was looking at me with those clear green-gold eyes.
“If you will not leave,” I said, “I will fight to my last breath defending you and everyone in this village. That isnota figure of speech.”
“I know,” she said quietly. “I know you will.”
I released her and stepped back. There was nothing to say after that, so I left it there.
