Page 174 of The Eye of the Fifth
Slowly, she pushed herself to mirror him, swinging her legs around on the cot. She winced as she lifted her burned arm, inspecting it.
In that moment, Gedeon hated himself, hated his flames, hated Eraura and her fuckinggift. ‘I’m sorry,’ he said in a thick voice. ‘I… I’m sorry.’
She looked up at him, eyes wide, but there was no blame on her face. ‘It’s alright,’ she whispered. ‘I’ve had worse.’
Gedeon couldn’t help his scowl at the lie. Nothing was worse than his flames, he was sure of it.
‘I…’ she began, then paused. Her throat bobbed. ‘I’m glad you’re alright.’
‘What you did for me was foolish,’ Gedeon said. ‘You could have gotten yourself killed.’
He hadn’t intended to sound so harsh, so accusatory. He’d been pondering the thought for hours now, and he couldn’t help it from spilling out.
Kyra narrowed her eyes. ‘Is that a royal way of sayingthank youthat I don’t know about?’
‘No, I…’ Gedeon struggled to find the right words. ‘I suppose it’s a reprimand. If saving me meant putting your own life at risk, I would have bid you not to. Your life is worth a thousand of mine.’
‘You don’t get to decide that,’ Kyra retorted. ‘I saved you because I was the only one who could. No one else would have been able-’
‘You mean because of your earth magic?’ Gedeon interjected. Probing. Ever so gently.
Something like fear flitted across her brown face. Her throat bobbed again before she affirmed, ‘Yes.’
‘How did you know it would work?’
‘I didn’t.’
They stared at one another. Questions burned at Gedeon, as demanding as his flames. But he could not ask them. Not for the dread blatantly glaring at him, masked in fields of green.
Perhaps she sensed those burning questions, for quite suddenly, she jumped to her feet, avoiding his gaze. ‘I have to see Maida,’ she proclaimed. ‘My arm is hurting.’
Another lie.
Gedeon watched her shuffle away, and as she reached the threshold of the door, he said, ‘There’s no royal way of sayingthank you,by the way, so I’ll just say it as it is.’ He paused, waiting for her to turn. She did so but only fractionally, her body still angled away from him. ‘Thank you, Kyra. I owe you my life.’
Kyra nodded once, with no hint of a smile, and said nothing before departing.
???
Kano.
The bed beneath Kano was more comfortable than it had ever been. Extra cushions had been placed around him, soft materials touching his skin.
But he couldn’t relax.
‘Will it hurt?’ he said, immediately hating the childlike tone of the question.
The Earth Warden, standing by his bedside, shot a guilty glance at Kawai. ‘We’ve… I mean,I’vetried before,’ she said. ‘It didn’t seem to hurt you then.’
‘Oh,’ Kano said, shifting a little. ‘When?’
‘That night on Wehyna,’ Kyra said quietly. ‘I accidently slipped into Kawai’s mind once. If I’m able to see memories, he thought I might be able to restore yours.’
‘Right.’
Kawai said, his expression very serious for once, ‘You don’t have to do this, Kano. If you’d rather stay how you are, no one will judge you. I just wanted to give you the choice-’
‘No, I want to,’ Kano said firmly. He’d come to know Kawai these last few weeks. Had felt a connection there even with his memories gone. Kawai didn’t treat him like the rest, like he was a little boy in need of shelter. He treated him like… well, like a brother. ‘Why didn’t it work before?’
