Page 48 of Kiss the Dawn
My heart sinks into my boots.
“I’ve informed headquarters,” he continues. “They’ll be sending a replacement?—”
“No one can replace you,” Edwin blurts out. “You’re Haiden. You’re…You’re our Haiden.”
I can’t speak past the knot in my throat.
Haiden’s eyes well, and he blinks rapidly. “I’m going to fight this,” he says. “I will be back.”
“We’ll come visit,” Merry says. “Just tell us where and we’ll be there.”
He nods. “Once I’m settled, I’ll send word, but my carriage will be here early in the morning, so…I’ll say goodbye now.”
We watch him stand, slowly, painfully, but none of us get up to help because we all know that his pride is at stake, that he would want to walk out of here on his own steam.
Merry is the first to hug him. A full-blown squeezy hug that makes my eyes well. Edwin is next, and even Holly, who hasn’t known him for very long, steps in for a hug.
I wait till they’re done before stepping forward. Haiden and I have worked together for almost eight years. Way before we came to this chapter house. We’d been drafted here together, and now…
He holds out his arms, his eyes misty, and I step into the embrace.
“You should have told me.”
“You had enough to worry about.”
I shake my head, dislodging tears. “Damn you, old man. I’ll miss you.”
“Course you will. I make the best fry up.”
A soft laugh escapes my lips. “You do. You totally do.”
He releases me with a sigh. “You take care, Padma. You keep fighting, you hear me?”
“I will if you do.”
He smiles and nods, but his eyes are tired. “You fight too. All of you. No matter what happens. You fight.” He heads for the door. “Please don’t wake up to see me off. I don’t want any more goodbyes.” He slips out of the room, leaving us standing under a cloud of gloom.
“This is so unfair,” Merry says.
“Shall I make a fresh pot of tea?” Edwin asks.
Merry wipes at her eyes and shakes her head. “Not for me. I think…I think I’ll get an early night.”
“Yeah, me too,” Holly says. “It’s been a crazy few days.”
Orina left yesterday, so she should be on the Isle by now. I can’t help wondering if she’s all right. She’ll be upset she missed saying goodbye to Haiden, but I know that if he could have put it off for a little longer, he would have, which tells me how serious his condition must be.
Edwin looks to me. Is he holding his breath whilehe waits to see if I’ll keep him company? “I’d love a cup.”
His smile is breathtaking and sad all at the same time, and a fresh prickle of dread washes over me for something I don’t understand.
With a fresh potof tea sitting on the coffee table and the fire fed, Edwin ducks out of the room and returns a few minutes later with a blue folder bulging with paper.
He hands it to me. “That’s all of it.”
“All of what?”
“Everything I could find on Loviator.”
