\u201cWhat just happened?\u201d\u00a0 Marin murmured to Thom.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I didn\u2019t know better,\u201d he muttered back, \u201cI\u2019d say a family reunion.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes didn\u2019t waver from Leinth, who stood before them in the driving, stinging snow, her gaze suddenly soft and sad as she peered back into the dim of the tent, the gloom into which Cameron had vanished.<\/p>\n
\u201cSuch fire,\u201d she said softly before her gaze flicked toward Marin and Thom, intensifying for a moment.\u00a0 The storm grew momentarily stronger, then abated as her expression softened slightly from its harsh severity into something almost sad.\u00a0 \u201cHe reminds me so much of those who are long lost to us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLike Seamus,\u201d Thom said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d she said, her voice almost lost in the wind.\u00a0 \u201cLike Seamus.\u201d\u00a0 Her gaze drifted toward the shadows beyond them again and she shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cThis did not go as I anticipated.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThese things seldom do,\u201d Marin observed.<\/p>\n
Whatever the hell this was.<\/i>\u00a0 Thom\u2019s brow furrowed and he shivered in the wind and snow.<\/p>\n
\u201cGo inside,\u201d he said to Marin.\u00a0 \u201cMake sure that they\u2019re okay.\u00a0 I\u2019ll handle\u2026whatever there is left to handle.\u201d\u00a0 His gaze drifted toward Leinth again.\u00a0 \u201cWhat, precisely, brought you here?\u201d<\/p>\n
Marin hesitated when he asked the question, making him regret asking it before she was out of earshot.\u00a0 Leinth stared at him for a long, aching moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cI came to see the young dragon,\u201d she said.\u00a0 \u201cI came to warn him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWarn him?\u201d\u00a0 Marin drifted back to Thom\u2019s side.\u00a0 \u201cAbout what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Leinth\u2019s eyes slid shut, the lids fluttering for a moment.\u00a0 \u201cYou will carry this warning to him, I trust?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIs it meant for him, or all of us?\u201d\u00a0 Marin asked softly.<\/p>\n
Leinth\u2019s lips quirked toward a smile.\u00a0 \u201cA fair question.\u00a0 I am no fool, he would share this warning, so I mean it for all.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis storm\u2026it is not my doing, though it was once within my power.\u00a0 I am not the only one who has ever possessed such power.\u00a0 Others will come who mean you ill.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSame story,\u201d Thom said.\u00a0 \u201cDifferent day.\u201d<\/p>\n
She laughed.\u00a0 \u201cI suspected.\u00a0 Tell him that sometimes, not even family can be trusted.\u00a0 I pray he\u2019ll understand my meaning before it\u2019s too late.\u201d\u00a0 Her smile faded and she drew the hood of her cloak up to shield her face.\u00a0 \u201cI have loved them all, in my way,\u201d she said, her words carried on the harsh wind.\u00a0 \u201cTell him that, too.\u00a0 Would that I could protect them.\u00a0 That task, I fear, will fall to him\u2014to you.\u201d\u00a0 Her head dipped.\u00a0 \u201cSafeguard them, Seers.\u00a0 Have a care.\u00a0 I have loved and lost.\u00a0 I would not have that be his fate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShould we tell him that, too?\u201d\u00a0 Thom asked quietly, imagining that he was still meeting her gaze, though her eyes were hidden in the shadows of her cowl.<\/p>\n
She nodded.\u00a0 \u201cYes,\u201d she said in a bare whisper.\u00a0 \u201cTell him that, too.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cWhat just happened?\u201d\u00a0 Marin murmured to Thom. \u201cIf I didn\u2019t know better,\u201d he muttered back, \u201cI\u2019d say a family reunion.\u201d\u00a0 His eyes didn\u2019t waver from Leinth, who stood before them in the driving, stinging snow, her gaze suddenly soft and … Continue reading