Page 151 of Brimstone

I held on to her a little tighter, needing to feel her close. “You should know, Saeris . . . I am my father’s son. My strength hasalwaysbeen my shadows.”

36

WOULD THAT I COULD

SAERIS

“SAERIS! SAERIS! HE’Sawake!”

I jolted from sleep, too startled to comprehend where I was or what was going on. For a foggy moment, I thought I was still in Zilvaren, delirious from trying to sleep through reckoning. Reality came back piece by piece . . . and then there was Archer standing at the bottom of the bed, peering over the footboard with eyes as big as saucers.

Wait,what?

I sat up too fast, my vision pitching. “Archer! You’re here! You’re awake!”

The fire sprite had no eyebrows, but I could still tell that he was frowning. “Notme, my lady. Your brother.Master Haydenhas woken up!”

Next to me, Fisher was sprawled on his front, his inked arms splayed out, both hands tucked beneath the pillow. When he pushed himself up, propping himself up groggily on his elbows, his hair was sticking up in five different directions. The second he registered who was hovering at the foot of the bed, he sat up brushing his waves back out of his face. “Archer. What in all five hells are you doing here?”

The fire sprite stepped back, a small flame kindling on his shoulder. “Me, Master? I, well, I came to let the mistress know that her brother—”

“No, why are you up here, in the house? Why are youworking?”

“I—I am sorry, Master. I didtryto stop that feeder—”

“It’s okay, Archer. You did more than you should have. I only mean to say that you should be down with the pyre, healing from your injuries.”

“Oh.” The fire sprite relaxed. “That’s all right, Master Fisher. Fire sprites don’t need recovery time after we’re injured. We’re either alive or we’re dead.” He let out a squeaky laugh. “The brimstone my brothers donated to me took all night to cool. Once my wounds were solid again, I woke up right as rain.”

He turned, hands in the air, wiggling his hips side to side in a little dance that seemed far braver than normal. When he had completed his dance, he cleared his throat and said rather seriously, “I am one inch taller than I used to be.”

“Oh. Uh . . . congratulations? Well done,” I told him.

He bowed his head, accepting the compliment. “Your brother is in the sitting room, my lady. He’s quite anxious to see you.”

Hayden.

After everything, he was here, and he was awake. Inside, I was brimming with excitement, but made myself stay calm as I got up and got ready to go see him. Long before she died, I’d promised my mother I would watch out for him. Keep him out of trouble and make sure he didn’t wind up in Madra’s cells. Honoring that promise had been a full-time job. I’d bailed him out of countless situations where he’d gambled away water or money he didn’t have. I’d protected him from Carrion more than once. The things I had sacrificed, sold, or traded to guarantee my brother didn’t die of dehydration . . . and I’d brought him here. There was an abundance of water in Yvelia. Plenty of food, too.But after everything I had done to keep Hayden alive and safe in Zilvaren, would bringing himherebe the thing that finally did him in?

With the rot and everything else going on in Yvelia, the truth was that Hayden might have actually been safer staying in the desert.

The irony of that was far too bitter to swallow.

What had I brought him here to face?

What was he going to do?

Fisher had said it himself while we were resting: Humans were difficult to keep alive in a place like this, and there was still so much about Fae and Yvelian politics that I didn’t know. I had barely scratched the surface of what it meant to be a part of this realm, and now I had brought my brother here. When I’d arrived, I had been the only human in Yvelia. Now the mantle of that title fell to Hayden . . . and I had no idea how he was going to handle it.

I moved slowly, getting dressed, watching Fisher out of the corner of my eye as he did the same. The muscles in his back shifted as he shrugged on a shirt and turned to face me, tattooed fingers deftly fastening the buttons. “I can feel you worrying,” he said quietly.

I ducked my head, pulling on my boots. “There’s no point telling me not to worry,” I replied. “He’s my brother.”

“I wasn’t going to.” Fisher lifted his leathers over his head, settling his chest protector in place. He had the straps fastened over his ribs in no time. “There’s every reason to be worried. The future’s very uncertain for your brother. It’s uncertain forallof us.” The floorboards creaked as he crossed the bedroom and came to stand before me. “But we’re going to figure it out together, Osha. We’ll get through all of this and have a far better idea of what the lay of the land looks like in time, too.”

I smiled up at him sadly. “I actuallydidwant you to tell me not to worry,” I admitted. “Can you rephrase all of that for me, please?”

Kingfisher’s eyes danced with amusement as he bent down to kiss me. “Would that I could, Osha. Would that I could.”