from his hunt. As I nibbled on it, I said, “Surprised you found something edible out here.”
“Hunting would’ve been better in the forest,” Ahmose said. “There’s only a bit left of the supplies the tree gave us, and we ate the meat before it went bad. We saved what we could for you, but we needed the energy to carry you. Sorry there isn’t more.”
I nodded, and suddenly overwhelming grief flooded through me again. Errant tears trickled anew down my face. “Trees are scarce as hens’ teeth in the netherworld,” I said with a sniffle. “The heat out here is fierce enough to cook a grazin’ sheep in its own hide. She protected the forest from the worst of it. It’s all your fault that she was too weak to defend herself,” I accused. “You shoulda let him die,” I finished, jerking a thumb at Asten.
Ahmose narrowed his gaze, but Asten gasped in shock. I glared at him, my body shaking with defiance as I waited for him to tell me I was wrong so I could lash out at him. “She was more important than anything,” I spat.
Asten stared at me, a cold void filling the space between us. A part of me knew I’d said something extremely offensive, hurt him much more than he deserved, but my mouth seemed disconnected from my brain and my heart broke because of it. I would have expected Asten to try to bridge the distance and offer solace, but it was Ahmose who reached out.
He put a hand on my shoulder and said, “Come now, you don’t mean that. You’re not in your right mind. You’ve suffered a great loss, and we weren’t much help. I’m sorry about your…your friend. She was noble and worthy and didn’t deserve such an ignominious death. Her sacrifice should be honored.”
Sniffling, I nodded in agreement. Ahmose created a piece of cloth for me to wipe my nose. My head felt weighty and my heart fragmented. “No matter how long the day, the evening comes,” I murmured.
“What does that mean?” Ahmose asked.
“My mother used to say it when bad things happened. It means that sorrows will end. We might not know when, but a new day will dawn sometime.”
He smiled. “I like that,” he said.
“The fairy tree died well. I guess I couldn’t expect any different from her. She did it once before, so I should’na be surprised that she’d do it again.”
“Did the fairy tell you that?” Ahmose asked.
I shook my head slightly as if to clear away the fog. “The fairy? Oh. Yes. Her name was Ashleigh,” I added morosely.
“Ashleigh. That’s a pretty name,” he said.
“It was.” I nodded. “I’m not sure what to call myself now.”
“Call yourself? What do you mean?” Ahmose asked.
“What?” I blinked in confusion and a fog seemed to lift within me.
“You said you didn’t know what to call yourself.”
“Did I? That’s strange.” I tossed the skewer into the fire and pressed my palms against my head, trying to alleviate the headache I felt coming on. Ahmose offered me a sip from the water bag he carried. “Thank you,” I said as I nearly downed the entire bag, then froze. “Tell me there’s more.”
“We have only what Ahmose was able to collect before the fire. Two bags burst in the flames,” Asten said. He pointed to the ground, indicating we had three left. “Ahmose can summon some, but it won’t last for long.”
“Then we don’t have much time. The forest and the pools are the only pure sources of drinking water in the netherworld,” I said.
“How do you know that?” Asten asked.
“I’m not sure. I just do. Have the two of you slept?”
“We don’t need much,” Ahmose said. “If you’re ready, we can move on.”
“Good.” I nodded, moving to stand on shaky legs, determination pushing my grief to the back of my mind. “It’s time to find Amon.”
We’d only traveled for a few hours when we discovered we were being followed. Reaching the summit of a jagged peak, we paused to take in the view of the wide valley below, and I spotted a dark herd of something on the horizon. “What’s that?” I asked. “Some kind of netherworld buffalo?”
Even though I’d asked the question, a part of me suspected—no, knew—it was wishful thinking. Still, I hoped I was wrong.
“No, they aren’t buffalo,” Asten said, finally ending the stony silence he’d maintained since we broke camp. He peered down, watching the moving animals for a time. “Is it what I think