Broken Promise (The Broken Ones Book 3) (35 page)

Watching her carefully for a long
moment, he finally nodded. Stepping close, he gave her an awkward hug.
"You look worn out. Get some rest."

"I will."

The front door slammed closed. Bo strode
into the room, face set in a worried frown. Too tired to deal with everyone, she
said a quick goodnight and slipped away as he pulled Elaina into his arms.
Pausing by the kitchen door, she peeked her head in, wondering what Baelan had
been doing to scare Elaina.

She found him on his knees scrubbing the
floor. "Get some sleep. You can finish tomorrow." Not waiting for an
answer, she trudged up the stairs looking forward to her bed…though not the
nightmares sure to come.

"Wait! Please."

Something in his voice made her stop on
the stairs. "What is it now," she asked wearily.

"There hasn't really been a chance,
but… I'm supposed to ask you something."

That caught her attention and she
turned. "Prince?"

He nodded, but his brows drew together.
"I'm to ask how the tree is doing?"

Her eyes widened as he shrugged, clearly
having no idea what the prince meant. But she did.

"Thank you," she whispered,
turning and moving back up the stairs, a hand over her mouth.

The dreams had been real.

Chapter 30

Broken Kei

The nightmares woke her more than once,
sweating, panting, and terrified. When she dreamed of her brothers, grief again
overcame her. By the time sunlight began to light her room she'd given up on
sleep. Maybe she'd never sleep again. Quite the thought, she wished it were
possible.

Staring at the ceiling, she tried not to
think, not to let everything get to her. She couldn't be a hysterical mess, not
today.

Checking on the tree within her mind
brought only a little comfort. It lived and grew, so something must be going
right.

Forcing herself to get up, she stumbled
when her feet hit the floor and sat down abruptly on the edge of the bed.
Running shaking hands briskly over her face, trying to hold herself in one
piece, seemed an impossible task.

"I can do this," she whispered
to herself. "I'm strong. I'm fine. Everything is fine." Repeating the
words over and over in her head, she eventually managed to force herself up and
moving.

Half-dressed, she struggled with tying
the laces on her short bodice. A wonderful piece of clothing she'd found in the
shops, it certainly beat wrapping her breasts.

The latched clicked and her door swung
open. Spinning around, her hands went to her daggers. Garen trotted into her
room and jumped up on her bed, turning once before flopping down.

Good morning.
His mouth
opened wide in a yawn.

She snorted and went in search of socks.

You look horrible.

I feel horrible.
Finding a pair,
she headed back to sit beside him on the bed to put them on.
You don't look
too awake yourself. Up watching him again?

No, I knew where he was with all the
pacing.
He bumped his head against her arm.
You had a very bad night.

It wasn't a question, but she nodded
anyway. Giving his head a pat, she then pushed him out of her way and starting putting
on her boots.

What's bothering you? You were quite out
of sorts last night, as well. Did something happen?

Well, I said goodbye to Roan, and that was
rather awkward. Baelan is driving me crazy, and I really have no idea what to
do with him. I'm worried about Kei, and that I've still heard nothing from
Prince. And…
She paused, concentrating on tying her laces.
Is Bo up?

Garen's tongue lolled out in amusement.
What
do you think?

Get him up. I'll talk to you both about
it. Meet me down in the kitchen?

He pushed his head against her again and
she twisted to hug his neck. Giving him one more scratch, she stood. He jumped
off the bed and slipped out the door, more silent than any normal dog would
ever be.

Heading to a dresser for a shirt, she
ran her fingers through her hair, or tried to. The back was a horribly knotted
mess. She gave up trying to work her fingers through it and dug through the
drawers instead, looking for something she could layer under a sweater.

Finally finding the shirt she'd been
looking for, she slammed the drawer closed and turned. Her eyes widened and she
froze, seeing Baelan standing in the doorway staring at her. Anger rose within
her as she flipped out the shirt and pushed her arms into the sleeves. Men. It
wasn't like she was naked.

"Get used to it," she snapped.
"The forest doesn't have much privacy."

He jerked and his head lowered, shoulders
curving even more. She noticed how horrible he looked. He'd put on the ratty
clothes he'd arrived in and his tangled hair again fell over his face.

Pulling the shirt up and over her head, she
settled it into place, still trying to control her irritation and anger. He
looked pathetic, and it galled her for some reason.

Striding to her dresser, she grabbed a
brush and started jerking it through her hair as he just stood there in
silence.

After she'd cursed a few times his head
finally rose a bit. "Would you like me to–?"

"No," she said tersely.

His head dropped again and she cursed
some more.

Finally getting her hair brushed out, she
stomped over to him, putting her hands on hips. "Stop looking so rotting
pathetic."

Raising his head, he peeked at her in
surprise from behind his hair.

Sticking the handle of her brush between
her teeth, she reached out and tucked his hair behind his ears. Removing the
brush, she nodded once. "Better."

His hand rose, covering the scar on his
face.

"We all have scars. Get over
it," she said firmly. His hand reluctantly dropped to his side.

She poked him in the stomach.
"Stand up straight. Shoulders back." Sticking a finger under his
chin, she pushed. "Chin up."

Frowning, creases appeared between his
lowered eyes.

She let out a weary sigh. "This is
what you chose," she said softly. "Your actions, your choices,
brought you to this. Take responsibility for them, and take some pride in your
choice to try to mend your mistakes and restore your honor."

His eyes rose to meet hers. The pain in
them, the heartbreaking sorrow, struck a chord within her.

"I am…" Pausing, he stood a
little straighter. "I am sorry, for what I did to you. I understand it was
wrong," he continued, speaking slowly and softly. "I was wrong. I
will work hard, to gain your forgiveness and to repay the damage I have
done."

"Good," she answered sharply.
"Perhaps one day I will forgive you." Hesitating, a memory came back.
"I remember… you said you didn't hate me. I probably don't fully
understand why you did it, but I know you wanted to protect him. That means
something to me. I will not hurt you." She gestured, taking him all in.
"You've been punished enough and have given yourself your own punishment,
having to be with me."

"Serve you," he corrected.

She made a face at the words. "Even
so, you need to remember… You are still Baelan. From what I've heard, he was
quite the powerful Elf. Acting like you have, like some whipped, tortured
animal, you don't…it's not…" Her words sputtered out as she tried to
figure out what she was trying to say. "You're still you," she
finally finished, knowing that wasn't quite it.

"I…understand," he whispered.

"Good." She slapped the flat
end of the brush against his stomach. "Now brush your hair. Clean yourself
up."

Leaving a startled Elf behind her, she
headed for the kitchen, trying to get her wild hair into a braid as she walked.
It had grown too much, at least halfway down her back now. Maybe Kei would… She
stopped that thought. First she had to get him back.

After getting the fire in the oven going,
she set a kettle on it and then headed out to the side yard. She closed her
eyes and found Kei. He remained north and slightly east. Standing perfectly
still, she concentrated, trying to discern if he was moving yet or not. He
didn't seem to be, but then perhaps Damon hadn't left yet. He could certainly
cover a lot of ground quickly. From his message, she assumed he wanted to meet her
after dark and not too far from the city since he'd chosen a moonless night.
With a frustrated sigh, she returned to the kitchen.

Quite possibly she'd die from the agony
of waiting for the day to pass. She could only concentrate on the thought that
soon Kei would be by her side once more.

∞ ∞ ∞

Aro guided the horse along paths and
through barren, frozen fields. The low hills didn't provide much cover, though she
kept to the lower land to stay as much out of sight as she could. Nearer the
city, a few others had been out, searching for any missed foods or dried plants
to use for fuel.

Only the odd patch of snow remained and she
wondered if the prophecy about staying in the city until the snow left the
fields still had any merit.

The quiet of the fields helped calm her
nerves. The morning had been too chaotic. Telling the boys about her brothers was
easier than she'd thought. Perhaps since she'd had practice with such things
with Roan. Bo cursed. Both were supportive. They let her quickly change the
subject to Kei. That conversation hadn't gone as well. Bo didn't want her to go
alone. She didn’t want them to come with her and thought she had a valid
argument. Damon wouldn't kill her, but she didn't know what he'd learned from
Kei, so couldn't be certain the others would be safe.

Baelan had stepped in then, stating he
would be with her. Knowing he'd been listening in, and that he intended to come
along, irritated her. However, at least her boys would be safe, and when they
actually agreed, she didn't argue. Their mind spoken warnings about the Elf
made her feel a bit better. At least they didn't trust him either.

He walked beside her now, dressed in his
new clothes, and though not the person he used to be, he at least stood
straight.

Closing her eyes, she searched for Kei
again. A huff of air escaped, sudden excitement filling her. They'd moved. She was
certain of it. She didn't speed up. Where Damon intended to meet remained a
mystery. Considering she doubted he wanted to wait very long, he'd likely find
a place not far from wherever she was.

"They're moving," she said
quietly.

He looked up at her, brown brows drawing
together. When she'd found he had a glamor rune, she'd insisted he wear it. The
most noticeable change being brown hair now replaced the gray. He hadn't lost
the scar, something she found interesting, but didn't ask if the Elves had done
something to ensure that or not.

"How do you know?"

The question startled her and she almost
panicked. She didn't want him to know everything about her. Tapping the side of
her head, she just smiled, letting him assume Damon had told her.

He frowned but looked away.

He hadn't asked who Damon was, and she
hadn't mentioned it. Perhaps he knew. If not, he'd be in for quite a surprise.

The silence continued for a while until
her thoughts turned again to the various warnings she'd received about the Elf.
Silas and Raythe had both come by while she and Bo packed supplies on the
horse. Roan had left but sent a package for her. Baelan's weapons. After a talk
with the Were, they'd decided she didn't need them to watch over her any more
either. She would be leaving soon, and the main reason they'd been protecting
her had been dealt with. They did make her promise if she needed help to let
them know, as they'd be staying in the city finishing some of Roan's work for a
while.

"So," she said suddenly.
"How does this work? Do I have to be quite specific on what I want, or
don't want, you to do?"

Not looking at her, he nodded once.

Closing her eyes again, she let her mind
run free before she started talking. Protecting her family, her friends, and
even her allies, would be a good place to start.

∞ ∞ ∞

The sun hovered on the horizon by the
time she ran out of things to tell Baelan. He'd stopped answering or nodding,
and only let out a faint sigh now and then. Maybe she hurt his head, but she
didn't care.

"I believe I understand what you
want," he said wryly when she'd been quiet for a while.

"Well, I don't want any
misunderstandings because I forgot to tell you."

He rolled his eyes and rubbed his
forehead. "You don't seem to understand how this works. I serve you
willingly. Angering you, causing you further pain, is something I will try to
avoid." His fingers brushed the hilt of his sword and then fell away.
"I'd thought…" His quiet voice trailed off as he shook his head.

She'd given him his weapons, though not
because she trusted him. She saw no point in him not having them, since he
could probably kill her just as easily with his magic.

"I will ask, and await your orders,
if that pleases you."

She didn't know if it did or not. Why she
agreed to this still caused her no end of confusion. Closing her eyes, once
again she sought out Kei. They snapped open quickly in surprise. The dragon
certainly traveled fast. She nudged the horse into a faster walk.

Kei? I'm coming. I'm coming.

He didn't answer, though she hadn't
expected him to. She could feel him, yet still no emotions came through. He
slept or was unconscious, likely the later, since she'd felt nothing from him
all day.

Using her sharper Fey sight in the
growing darkness, she squinted to see the forest ahead of them and then turned,
trying to judge the distance to the road. They'd traveled at least halfway. Had
they gone far enough? She didn't know, though at the speed the dragon flew, she'd
know soon enough where he'd land.

Baelan remained quiet, concentrating on
keeping up with her and not tripping as darkness fell. She knew Elves could see
in the dark, though with only the light of the stars, their enhanced sight
could only do so much.