Page 99 of The Kingdom's Reckoning
Alone with Kalisandre, his throat seized up. He could have sworn he saw a flicker of fear in those sea-blue eyes.
"Are you hurt?" she asked after a moment.
Graeson swallowed, unable to lie to her. Not only did his body hurt, the pain only marginally subsiding, his heart hurt, too. "I’ve been better. Areyouall right?"
"I’ve been better," she said with a weak smile, never looking away from him.
Graeson looked her up and down, taking in her recent wounds. The bandage on her arm was already stained red, blood having seeped through the center. She stood with her hip cocked, carefully avoiding placing too much weight on her injured leg.
He tried not to let the guilt rise in his throat, but knew he had failed when his voice came out hoarse. "You should be resting."
"I will," she said with a shrug, making no motion to move.
He swallowed, realizing he couldn’t avoid it any longer. Graeson didn’t know where to begin, didn’t know what to say. So much had happened in the brief span of twelve hours. "Kalisandre, I?—"
His scimitars dropped to the ground with a clatter, cutting him off. In the blink of an eye, Kalisandre was hobbling over to him, tears rolling down her cheeks. Heart in his lungs, Graeson met her half-way. She barreled into his chest, her arms wrapping around his waist.
His eyes grew wide, but the shock was brief. He wrapped her in his arms, inhaling her. Graeson shoved his face into her thick, brunette hair, the smell of burnt lavender drenching him. He didn’t know how she felt about him, but he needed his friend. He neededher.
"I’m so sorry, Graeson," Kalisandre whispered, nestling against him and tucking her chin in the crook of his neck.
And as she squeezed him tighter, Graeson finally broke. His tears soaked her beautiful, knotted locks. He didn’t know how long they stood like that or how Kalisandre stayed standing with him leaning against her. He was just thankful she didn’t let go.
His mother was dead. His mother, to whom he had said only a few words before she was taken from him again. Whose chest he had driven a blade through.
Graeson recalled the way Lysanthia had looked up at him. Not with anger or sorrow, but with acceptance.
His sobs rocked his body harder.
Kalisandre didn’t speak. She didn’t say it was going to be fine. She didn’t say it wasn’t his fault, nor did she try to take the blame like she was prone to doing. In silence, she embraced him, allowing him the space he needed to process his emotions and grief. Giving him as much time as he needed.
And while grief, Graeson knew, was not something one could get over in a matter of minutes or days or even months, he was thankful for the time she granted him. Because, if Barinthian was right, they would need to be on the move sooner rather than later.
When he finally loosened his grip some time later, he didn’t let go of Kalisandre completely. He didn’t think he could. If he did, he would probably collapse, his weight too much to bear on his own.
With the pad of his thumb, he wiped away the moisture from Kalisandre’s cheeks. "How did you find me?" he asked, his voice hoarse and throat raw.
Her cheeks flushed. "I just…I had a feeling."
"Afeeling?"
She nodded, chewing at the bottom of her lip. "I didn’t understand it at first—I still don’t, but it’s like…like there’s a thread connecting me to you. I think, no matter where you go or how far apart we are, I’d be able to find you."
A question sat in the center of her bunched brows. And for a moment, Graeson didn’t think she would ask it, but she did. "It’s the bond, isn’t it?"
Graeson brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "I’ve been told it’s an even greater pull when a bond has been accepted."
Something flashed across her expression. Before he could identify it, she looked away. "Did you…did you bury her?"
Graeson shook his head.
"Do you need help?"
He closed his eyes, unsure how to explain that his father had visited him in wolf-form and had taken his mother. "It’s…complicated."
"More complicated than being a dragon?" she quipped.
The corner of his mouth ticked up. "Surprisingly, yes."
