road. She shared her history, and worked to teach me skills she thought I might need.”
“I see.” Dari once more lowered her eyes. “Her brother has been less … forthcoming. At least with me.”
Nic remained quiet as he watched her nervous movements, then said, “You care for Stormbreaker, too.”
Dari’s mouth came open again, this time faster. She closed it so forcefully Nic heard her teeth click together. “You’re beginning to distress me with your insights.”
“Forgive me.” Nic gripped his knees harder, feeling a rush of heat in both cheeks. “As I said, I’ve traveled with Snakekiller for many cycles now. Her bluntness and habits of observation have become my own.”
“I suspect you have your own talents in that respect.” Dari leaned toward him, close enough to make his face flush even more. Nic found himself too aware of every detail of her appearance, right down to her scent of spice mixed with vanilla and lavender. “Have you always made people so comfortable around you so quickly, Nic?”
Nic laughed. “No. Rather the opposite.”
Dari’s smile warmed Nic deep within his essence, and he realized he didn’t want to tell this woman the truth of his past, that he had been invisible to the people who knew him. That he had been a joke and object of ridicule to those who didn’t know him. That he was so inconsequential he could be pitched off a tower, and some other body passed off as his without his own mother even noticing the difference.
Looking into the eyes of this intriguing woman, Nic wanted more than ever to leave that other life, that other Nic, however healthy and able-bodied, far in his past.
Sounds in the doorway made Dari draw back, and when Nic looked up to see who had entered, surprise jolted through him.
It was Snakekiller, but as a man, with lighter skin and more benedets. The forehead, the set of the jaw and eyes—Nic saw now, for certain, all that Snakekiller had sought to teach him about recognizing blood relations by the markers of the body. This would be her brother, then. This was Stormbreaker.
As if to confirm Nic’s observations, a curtain seemed to descend around Dari’s energy, muting her essence. Her expression and posture became more neutral, and by the time Stormbreaker reached her side, Dari had become unreadable, almost aloof.
When Stormbreaker saw Nic looking at him, he smiled, then offered a quick bow. “I’m pleased to see you’re awake. My sister has been most concerned, as have we all. I’ll send a runner to the Den to summon her.”
“I’ll go to her,” Nic said, pushing himself to his feet only to collapse back to the bed. If Stormbreaker and Dari hadn’t leaped forward to steady him, he would have toppled sideways to the stone floor in a twisted heap.
Dari’s nearness made Nic’s heart beat faster, despite the bitter sting of embarrassment over his weakness.
“We’ve kept your muscles loose by moving your limbs.” Stormbreaker turned Nic loose. “But you’ll need to regain your strength.”
“I see,” Nic said as Dari withdrew and sat in her chair once more, and Stormbreaker stood beside her. Nic couldn’t look at Dari as he admitted the full truth of his situation. “The way my body works, or I should say fails to work, I’m not certain how much progress I’ll make.”
Stormbreaker gave Nic a look that wasn’t pity, but close enough to curdle in Nic’s heart. “Our healers can work wonders, even with old damage, Nic. They cannot repair your bones and joints from your initial injuries, but with some medicines and training, they can restore much function to you.”
Nic averted his gaze and chose to study the big square stones comprising the wall behind his bed. “Will I be allowed to take my vows with the guild before this treatment, or must I wait until it’s completed?”
Stormbreaker and Dari responded with silence, and when Nic looked at them, they both seemed so shocked that he felt his heart sink.
Perhaps they did know the truth of who he was, after all.
“Surely Snakekiller told you this was my intention, and that it has been for some time.” Nic swallowed, though his throat was dry and a slow, aching pain was beginning to claim him from skull to heels. “Are the infirmed not allowed to pledge themselves to Stone?”
“That is not the issue,” Stormbreaker said quietly, as Dari went back to studying her fingernails.
Nic’s misery increased, though he didn’t know if it was coming from his flesh or his spirit. He