Wystwood

82. Body of the Saltsworn

A soft wind whispered between the wystwood branches, and then a dead silence settled in the throne chamber. Ada felt Raeph's arms tighten around her waist, holding her upright, his eyes fixed upon her face. But she could only stare out at the sky. Pale clouds drifted by, as though weaving a shroud around the tower.

"Min," whispered Ada, her voice rough. "Oh, Min."

She tore herself from Raeph's arms, though his hands remained at her hips when she staggered to the window. The Stone Circle's dark smoke had mostly dispersed, its remaining coils clinging to stiff bodies laid out along the canal. There were no more cries of pain, nor rattle of chains. A number of injured fae sat huddled under awnings, tending to open wounds or falling silent in the morning sun. A smooth ripple creased the surface of the canal, and fingers of red came creeping through its waters from the bloodied cobblestones.

Ada forced herself to look for Min, but the fae bodies were stacked too closely, and the throne chamber was much too high to see their faces clearly.

"Come back, Ada," said Raeph, smoothing a hand down her arm then pulling her from the window.

"I can't..." Ada tried to say, but found her mouth was dry. "I promised I'd take care of her. Oh... What have I done?"

Raeph fingers were far stronger when they came to her chin and turned her face from the city. His eyes were bright in the sunlight, like coals catching fire. "Listen to me. This was not your fault."

"I brought her up here," Ada's eyes were burning too now. "I thought she'd be safer than down in the streets."

"But you came to the Lady alone," he said, and his voice softened as he brushed the tears from her cheeks. "You were so brave, and she chose to follow you. She made that choice."

A sob welled up in her chest as Raeph tugged her against him once again, and then they were on the floor between the roots, her arms around his neck and her hips between his legs, rocking together through the pain. With her head tucked under his chin, Ada could hear Raeph's heart beating, and when she looked up, his cheeks were also wet and shining.

"Your brother, Raeph," Ada whispered. "I'm so... so sorry."

"He's free now," Raeph said, though Ada felt the tremor coarse through his body. "I only ever wanted him to rest peacefully."

She stroked her fingers through his dark hair, and his head fell to her shoulder, slow and gentle. Then, they simply sat and cried. The sun was streaming in, its warmth carried in the wind that tugged at their clothes and shuddered the wystwood. It eventually coaxed them back to their feet, though neither stared out at the sky and the valley. They looked only at each other.

"I want to find..." Ada couldn't finish the sentence, could scarcely bear to think of the little body sprawled out somewhere below. "Her."

Raeph nodded. "We'll go together."

He turned a final time to the throne, where he must have spent so many long hours knelt at the feet of his Lady. Reaching out his hand, Ada thought he was going to caress the twisted branches, but instead, he picked up the empty wystwood box. His eyes were fiercely bright and his fingers twitched, as if preparing to rip the box apart. But then he held it out to Ada.

"The iron dagger," he said. "If you put it inside, the wystwood will dull its burn."

Ada took the box and picked up the knife, careful to keep its iron far from Raeph, and marking the spots of blood on its blade before she tucked it away. Raeph didn't ask for the box back, but stood aside to let Ada leave the chamber first, following after her without a glance behind him.