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The street is so quiet now that I can hear the water dripping from the rooftops.
“If she chooses to help you, it will be because she is better than you all thought of her,” I say. “If she chooses not to, you will lower your heads and pray she changes her mind.”
I turn to the guards.
“Clear the road.”
They move at once.
The crowd breaks before them, leaving a path wide enough for me to carry Alessia through.
Eagan falls into step at my side, his face set, his eyes still scanning for any threat foolish enough to show itself.
“What the hell happened?” I say, though my voice is low enough that only he hears.
His jaw tightens. “I turned away for less than a minute.”
“And in less than a minute, she bled herself into exhaustion.”
“She asked fishermen to give her wagons and shovels,” he says, and despite the situation, there is a thread of disbelief in his voice. “They laughed at her.”
I glance down at the unconscious girl in my arms.
Of course they did.
“What was she trying to do?” I ask.
Eagan looks toward the docks. “She wanted help to revive the fields. She saw what needed doing and wanted to help.”
A bitter laugh almost escapes me.
“She will be the death of me.”
“At least she is productive while doing it.”
I give him a look.
He wisely stops speaking.
The walk to the castle feels longer than it should, though no one blocks the road now.
I carry her through the main gates, across the courtyard, and into the castle without handing her to anyone.
Servants step aside, and guards bow.
No one asks questions because the blood on her face and my expression are answer enough.
Eagan peels away near the stairs. “I’ll see that everything she asked for is taken care of.”
I take Alessia to our room.
The door closes behind us, muting the castle and leaving only the sound of her weak breathing, and the bond pulsing quietly inside me.
I lay her on the bed carefully.
Her skin is pale, her lashes dark against her cheeks, and the faint gold glow beneath her veins has already faded to a dull, tired sheen.
“You reckless little mage,” I murmur, sitting beside her.
