Page 98 of Tears of the Wolf
“A child will make it easier for you to keep ahold of Glasney.” Selene sounded like she was considering something. “A child with Paega would be ideal. If you can’t get another in a few months, I am sure we can arrange something.”
Brynn blinked at her mother. “I already had a child by Paega. Just like you told me to. And I buried him in Glasney.” Brynn refused to cry, though mention of Osbeorn threatened to make her do just that.
The puppy squirmed in her arms, noticing Ash on the ground and trying to reach the larger dog.
“If you had just kept him with you, this wouldn’t have happened,” Selene snapped. “Those Valdari raiders wouldn’t have stumbled upon him.”
Brynn frowned. “How did you know they were Valdari?”
Selene shrugged. “I don’t, but it does seem like their tactics. Striking at night and all. Even if a spring raid is unusual.”
Brynn wasn’t sure what to make of her mother’s statement. It couldn’t be, could it? Surely her mother hadn’t known anything about the raid? She had been in the far south.
Immediately, Selene changed tactics. “I am sorry, my dear. It is terrible. I too buried my firstborn and—”
“Do you remember what you said to me when my son was born?” Brynn set Guin down and the puppy sprang toward Ash. “Because I do.”
“I believe I congratulated you.”
Brynn raised her chin. “You said not to worry because I was young, and I could still try for a girl.”
Selene’s brow wrinkled. “I never said that.”
“Yes,” Brynn hissed. “Yes, you did.” She would never forget her mother’s words as long as she lived. She’d been exhausted, still covered in sweat and gore, breathing in the scent of her slimy, squirming child, and her mother had tsked in disappointment.
“I would never say something like that.”
“Why are you lying?” Brynn asked the question coldly, voice low. “Always I have done as you wanted.” Brynn’s throat grated and she fought to keep her voice from cracking. “But that was before.” Before Osbeorn. Before she realized she wasn’t the only one who would pay the price for her mother’s schemes.
It would never be enough. There would never be an end to the demands.
“Stop being selfish,” Selene snapped. “You’re being childish.”
“Childish?” Brynn laughed, though her eyes stung.
“Someday, you will have your own daughter, and when—”
“When I have another child, you won’t be permitted anywhere near them.”
“You think I wanted to swyve your father?” Selene demanded, composure cracking. “You think I wanted to birth you or your sister?”
Some part of Brynn had already known that for a long time. Unwanted—that was what Brynn had been her whole life. Paega hadn’t wanted her, neither had her mother. Brynn knew little of her father, but she knew full well he had hoped for a son.
Selene seemed to recover herself. “Your grandmother said to me what I am saying to you—this is not about you.”
On the floor, Guin and Ash bounded in circles, oblivious to the argument taking place over their heads. Guin let off littlepuppy squeaks that might have been growls and Ash pranced in circles, tail lashing wildly.
“No,” Brynn agreed. “This isn’t about me at all.” She inhaled a long, slow breath. “I must be married to someone. I know that.” An unattached sorceress was a target, especially one of her notoriety. She needed a husband to offer her safety, to be a buffer against competitors for her loyalty. “But I have chosen Cenric. And when we have children, you will stay away from them.”
Selene’s eyes widened. “How dare you.”
“I dare,” Brynn grated.
Neirin coughed, indicating that someone was coming.
Brynn sensed two sources ofkanearing from the main entrance to the longhouse. It was probably Gaitha coming to check on her and another one of the dogs.
“What is so special about this Cenric?” Selene demanded, her voice lowering to a hiss. “As far as I can tell, he has abandoned you less than a month into your union. What makes you so loyal?”
