Thordin caught up with him three steps away from the door and fell in with him, walking shoulder-to-shoulder in silence for a few moments before Thordin said, \u201cFireworks this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEh?\u201d\u00a0 Cameron blinked at him.\u00a0 \u201cFireworks?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, fireworks.\u00a0 Things happening.\u00a0 Not sure what, but it seems like something from the looks on folks\u2019 faces that I\u2019m seeing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron frowned slightly.\u00a0 So much for cornering Phelan and grilling him about my sword.<\/i> \u201cDo you know what\u2019s going on?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNah, I was coming to get you before I went and found out for myself.\u00a0 We\u2019ll probably find out in a few minutes, though.\u201d<\/p>\n
The smell of breakfast reached Cameron as they emerged into the chill of the tent beyond the heated makeshift dormitory they lived in.\u00a0 It must have been later than he\u2019d anticipated.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long past dawn is it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLess than an hour,\u201d Thordin said.\u00a0 \u201cNot many people are up and moving right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
My chances just went up.<\/i>\u00a0 Cameron nodded slightly and headed for the fire, where he could see Phelan clustered with Tala, Thom, Matt, and Marin.\u00a0 \u201cG\u2019morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tala gave him a warm smile.\u00a0 \u201cMorning, Cameron.\u00a0 Coffee or tea?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCoffee would be fantastic if you\u2019ve got some made,\u201d he said as he and Thordin joined them by the fire.\u00a0 \u201cAnd the news.\u00a0 What\u2019s going on?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marin and Thom exchanged a look, then she answered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have a chance at peace with Cariocecus.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe jackass that attacked us?\u00a0 That one?\u201d<\/p>\n
She nodded. \u00a0\u201cHe approached Phelan this morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thordin blinked at Phelan.\u00a0 \u201cAnd you didn\u2019t gut him where he stood?\u00a0 You\u2019re slipping.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan snorted and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m significantly less violent than I used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom choked on his coffee, coughing and sputtering.\u00a0 \u201cThis from the man who knocked Vammatar over the edge of the ravine and probably<\/i> drowned her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was different,\u201d Phelan said evenly.\u00a0 \u201cThere was zero hope for any kind of truce with that bitch.\u00a0 And she attacked me first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCariocecus attacked us first,\u201d Tala pointed out as she handed Cameron a mug of coffee, then started to get a cup of tea for Thordin.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m still not sure what\u2019s different.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan shook his head again.\u00a0 \u201cHe knows when to quit and there\u2019s no real grudge there that I\u2019m aware of.\u00a0 Vammatar was a grudge older than bloody history\u2014and her family\u2019s going to keep coming, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m shocked they\u2019re not here yet,\u201d Thordin mused as he settled on the ground near the fire.\u00a0 Tala handed him his mug of tea, then a bag of potatoes and two bowls.\u00a0 Without voicing a question, he produced a knife and started skinning the potatoes for her.\u00a0 \u201cThose bitches of the underworld aren\u2019t usually the ones to leave off so easily or quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve been temporarily diverted, I think,\u201d Phelan said, nose wrinkling momentarily.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re chasing older scents and there\u2019s some friendly shifters running some interference for me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not going to work forever,\u201d Thordin observed.<\/p>\n
Cameron frowned, fingers tightening around his mug.\u00a0 And this is the world that Neve and I are going to be bringing a child into\u2014raising a child in.\u00a0 Frightening, that.<\/i><\/p>\n
A child that\u2019ll be heir to a blade whose legacy I don\u2019t understand, only the mythology\u2014and I barely understand that.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cPhelan,\u201d Cameron said slowly. \u201cNot\u2026just now, right this second, but soon, I need to speak with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan blinked.\u00a0 \u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout the sword,\u201d Cameron said simply.<\/p>\n
Phelan smiled weakly.\u00a0 \u201cI wondered when you\u2019d ask.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marin glanced between them, one brow arching slightly.\u00a0 \u201cYou haven\u2019t talked to him about that yet?\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cThere hasn\u2019t really been time to discuss it in any depth.\u00a0 Not yet.\u201d\u00a0 He met Cameron\u2019s gaze. \u00a0\u201cBut soon.\u00a0 After we figure out what we\u2019re going to do about Cariocecus, we\u2019ll have that talk.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron nodded slowly.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u201d\u00a0 I just have to hope that nothing goes sideways between then and now.<\/i><\/p>\n
The way his luck was running lately, he figured it\u2019d be at least three more days before he got any answers\u2014if he got any at all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Thordin caught up with him three steps away from the door and fell in with him, walking shoulder-to-shoulder in silence for a few moments before Thordin said, \u201cFireworks this morning.\u201d \u201cEh?\u201d\u00a0 Cameron blinked at him.\u00a0 \u201cFireworks?\u201d \u201cYeah, fireworks.\u00a0 Things happening.\u00a0 … Continue reading