He did?
When?
After I returned or before?
“How did Hector get so much bloodstone when the high gods destroyed bloodstone?”
“They didn’t take it all away. Someone the high gods trusted safeguarded it. I led Hector to that person.”
I slip the ring onto my finger and stare down at it, accepting this part of myself. Being Bloodstone. Being Everly’s twin sister. Being on the same side as the Seer.
The Seer glances at Tersah. “I told you she’d wear it.”
Tersah pours herself a goblet of chamomile tea. “She’s going to need it when all the Bloodstone warriors return.”
My heart gallops as I jerk my gaze between them. “There will be too many to heal. It will weaken me again, and I will be forced to return to the pool of Zalhandara.”
“You can heal the wounded more effectively than anyone else. And now that you have the flowers to lessen the impact of your Bloodstone magic, we believe you can cast more Kyanite magic before needing to renew again.”
“I don’t have my bag of Kyanite herbs and seeds. The Hematites stole it from me.” Bitterness shoots through my veins as I envision driving a spear through Jerrod’s face. A spear for Everly, Quinn’s brother, and for those House of Silver villagers.
“I will send Tersah to fetch you more from Lanvilla. You will not go without. I promise.”
I glance at Tersah, wondering how she can travel so quickly. “How do you go from one place to another so fast?”
She takes another drink of tea before answering. “By using the aid of a friend from House of Silver, who I recently came into contact with again. He creates portals using his silver magic. He will help you travel back to the pool of Zalhandara when you’re ready.”
“Please tell me I don’t have to use the tree that grows in reverse again,” I say to the Seer.
She laughs and shakes her head. “No more tree that grows in reverse. I promise.”
“Reverse tree?” Tersah’s brows knit together as she glances between us. “What is in your goblet, Phillipa? Have you two been drinking wine?”
“I saw time traveling as a tree growing in reverse in my visions before the truth revealed itself. So, I told Sol, she would need to find the tree that grows in reverse.”
“You’re so confusing, Phillipa.”
“I know, but my visions aren’t always so clear.”
Tersah shakes her head and stands. “Let’s go make bandages, Sol.”
ChapterTwenty-Six
The chair creaks as I stand and follow her from the tent and into a nearby apothecary, where two young women work to make bandages.
As Tersah and I make our way through the apothecary, I think about what the Seer revealed. Everly is my sister. I can barely comprehend it. All this time, and I did not know. Now, she’s out there, all alone—likely afraid, hungry, and shivering in the cold.
For the second time that day, the urge to steal a horse and search for Everly hits me. I even picture it, riding off to avenge her. Knowing this barren land is vast, and I would probably die of thirst before I ever found her, keeps me rooted.
Hector will find her.
He must.
Tersah hands me a mortar and pestle and instructs me to grind up herbs for the next batch of bandages. As I work, she talks about her childhood and her family. It’s a welcome distraction from my thoughts.
She even tells me about marrying young, and how her marriage ended after her son died. It makes my heart swell with compassion for her. But when I ask about her former husband, her mouth thins, and she changes the subject.
The day slips away,and the apothecary dims as the sun sets. We made more bandages than I ever thought was possible. My arms ache from the constant stirring and grinding of herbs, but I keep going, knowing how helpful they will be when the warriors return.
