broke the shell, he would break it all and there would be nothing left of him.
But that hadn’t happened. He hadn’t broken.
Kalai had come along and turned everything Tauran thought he knew about himself on its head. And now he was a whole other kind of lonely. A burning, longing kind.
“Tauran?” Catria’s hand on his elbow startled Tauran from his thoughts.
“Sorry,” Tauran murmured. He wiped his hands with the towel and rolled his sleeves back down.
“Why don’t we go out? You and me?” she asked and smiled. “I... have to make a delivery, anyway. We can stop by the bakery. Get a treat. Sit and talk and get to know each other again.” She wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him against her side, and Tauran couldn’t help the smile tugging at his lips.
“You know, I think I’d like that,” he said, then frowned. “But wouldn’t you rather spend this time with Emilian?”
“You and I haven’t had a proper talk since you got back,” she insisted. She took him by the hand and led him to the door. “Besides, Emilian is working late and I’m terribly bored.”
CHAPTER 23
The quaint little bakery at the end of Lilypetal Street was a welcome change of scenery from the bare walls of Tauran’s room in the Sunrise Tower.
The window was carefully decorated, pretty figures and topped pastries neatly lined the walls on greywood shelves. The sweet scent of cinnamon and frosting made Tauran’s stomach rumble.
“Good evening, Mister Sarellus,” Tauran greeted when Catria’s father emerged from the back. The old man embraced Catria, then turned his kind smile on Tauran.
“Oh, just call me Villy,” he said, and wrapped his surprisingly strong hands around Tauran’s arms in an embrace, not quite able to reach all the way around. “I’ve known you since you were a recruit.”
Tauran shared a small smile with Catria.
“Tauran, why don’t you take a seat.” Catria patted her bag. “I’ll just handle this and then bring us some tea and warm buns.”
“Sure.” Tauran headed for the café table in the corner as Catria followed her father to the back room. A delicate empty tiered platter stood in the center of the table. At the top perched a tiny glass dragon egg. Tauran smiled and placed the tip of a finger against the egg.
The top tier shifted, and the egg fell. Tauran’s heart leaped as he scrambled to catch the egg before it hit the table, gripping the sliding tier with his other hand. Rolling his eyes at himself, he tried to place the egg back in place. The second tier came loose, and he swore, setting all the separate bits on the table.
“Uh... Villy?” he called, glancing toward the back. Holding onto the egg, he made his way around the counter to the back room.
“These have to last you a month.” Catria stood with her back to Tauran, holding a rectangular tin box in her hands. “You have to pace yourself, Father.”
“I know, I know.” Villy took the box from Catria and flipped it open. Inside lay three small vials of pills, strikingly similar to the ones Falka had given Kalai. Villy shook a pill out, raised his head and spotted Tauran.
“Oh, uh...” Tauran held up the small egg. “I think I broke your platter. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t you worry, my boy,” Villy said, swallowing the pill with a glass of water. “It was already broken.”
“I’ll grab us some buns,” Catria said, turning away from them.
Tauran lingered. This really was none of his business. But then, he was known to get himself into situations that weren’t his business. “Excuse me if I’m being too forward.” Tauran pointed to the pill box, trying to form a respectful question in his mind, but Villy was faster.
“My heart’s not as good as it once was.” Villy patted the tin box. “I’m very lucky to have a daughter in the Sky Guard. Not only is she a spectacular rider. They appreciate her so much that they give her free medicine for her father.” He gazed lovingly at Catria, but Catria’s gaze was firmly trained on the plates she was stacking onto a tray.
“They look similar to the ones Kalai gets,” Tauran said. “Do they work?”
“Kalai? The archivist?” Catria looked at Tauran over her shoulder.
Tauran’s lips parted, feeling suddenly hot when he realized his mistake. Kalai might not want Tauran to so casually share his medical history with others. He rubbed the back of his neck. Well done, Tauran, you big idiot. “Uh... yeah. He gets... headaches,