“I’ll do my best,” I promised. Krew and I returning counted as two, right?
We fled down the steps and away from the king’s presence as quickly as possible.
He tapped my hand,I sent Krew as I tried to keep walking and standing upright like I wasn’t about to lose my mind.Just like the disloyal.
Krew’s eyes snapped to mine as we headed for the pathway through the forest.What?
He knows that’s what the disloyal do. He knows.
Krew let out a sigh.We can’t stop at Hatcher’s to let them know because with all the extra guards he demanded we take he’d know we made an unplanned stop.
You’re right, but we need to figure out a way to warn everyone. No one is safe.Not a single disloyal.
I believe our timetable just got moved up. We make our move on the throne. Soon.
* * *
“What hasthe two of you so skittish?” My mother asked almost halfway through Savaryn.
I sighed. I wasn’t sure why we had tried to keep it from her. “The king knows the disloyal secret greeting, it seems. He just did it to me back there.”
My mother and Flora’s eyes went wide.
“At least he did it before a trip to Nerede. We need to let the disloyal know right away to cease doing it,” Krew added. “And Jorah was hoping to visit Beau Jones so that is a great place to start.”
For the rest of the trip we chatted. I wanted to focus on the king and how we were going to make our move. I wanted to talk about the new sword he wore on his person.
But today was not about all of that. Today was about getting my mother back to Nerede for her own safety. And apologizing to Beau Jones for the loss of his son. Plans for the king would have to wait until our return trip.
Today was about facing the nightmares the king forced us to live through. Tomorrow we’d figure out a way to deliver one of our own.
As soon as the final wall creaked open, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.
My mother reached across the carriage and gripped my hand. “You have nothing to be ashamed of. You did not kill Theodore.”
Krew had the carriage drive to the stop before the merchant street so that we could go together to see the progress of the new bakery.
We walked the streets, arm in arm as we headed in the direction of the bakery. I knew Krew wanted to see Warrick today too. So I wanted to see the bakery, but also be mindful of our time.
I turned the corner to see the bright gold lettering on the bakery window. “Demir Family Bakery” it told all of Wylan. It had always said that, just now the lettering was larger and seemed a bit louder also.
It wasn’t just the Demir bakery, it somehow now had a Valanova touch to it.
I rather preferred the old one, the worn spots in the counters and the stools that were barely more comfortable than standing.
As we walked in, I noted the door didn’t yet have a bell. Merchants in Nerede always had bells on their doors. So that if they were busy working, they’d hear they had a customer. But the king’s contractors couldn’t have known that.
It was beautiful though. The first thing I noticed was my mother had not one large oven, but now two. The white counters were spotless. The glass around the showcase where my mother liked to sell her pastries was shining in the sunlight without a single print on it. It would make my mother’s life easier having a new kitchen. I had to keep reminding myself of that as I mourned the kitchen that had such an integral role in raising me. For some reason it felt like this new bakery had removed some of the memories with my father. It was in the same exact space, but entirely different. And I wasn’t sure I would have ever been ready to lose even more memories of him. Fancier kitchen or not.
“It’s lovely,” Flora admitted as she looked around.
“It is,” I agreed.
“But also not quite the same?” Krew asked me quietly as he brushed a kiss to my temple.
“Not quite the same,” my mother agreed, “but nothing likely will be again. And that’s okay.” She turned to me and smiled. “More than okay. Particularly if I were to become a grandmother in the near future.”
I gasped. “Mother!”
