The Shattered Mirror (Winter's Blight Book 4)
Page 34
Or at the least, he clearly wished to be.
But Cai continued talking, not discouraged, and finished with, “You and I have both made some pretty foolish mistakes over the past couple of days. I thought I could protect your mother. I told her I would. But I failed.” When James stayed silent, Cai pressed, “You’ll be judged before the Court soon, once Lonan is feeling a bit better. He is their judge.”
Going white as a sheet, James clearly knew what that meant—he would be judged not just by the Court but ultimately by the husband of the woman who had died thanks to his actions. He looked down at the floor as if he could disappear into it by staring hard enough.
“So”—Cai stepped forward, arms folded—“how are we going to make this right?”
James hoarsely whispered, “Um, we?”
“When the Court convenes, I’m going to vouch for you.” James’s gaze jerked up, and he opened his mouth, perhaps to protest, prompting Cai to continue, “I promised your brother I’d keep an eye on you and keep you out of trouble. I promised Kallista I’d keep her safe. As a knight, my word is my bond—but I failed them both. Right now, on all accounts, we’ve both failed. We’ve both made damn foolish decisions. But a man must at least try to set things right.
“And from what I hear, ultimately, this wasn’t you, was it? It was that Cait Sidhe. Can you still contact him?”
A bitter smile formed on the boy’s face as he asked, his voice scathing, “Why would I do that?”
“You need to contact him. You need to see what he wants you to do next.” Cai pointed at the well and continued, “When I asked her just now, Alvey said you were using water to contact that beast. Can you do it again?”
For a moment James looked at the well, on the edge of his seat but frozen—seeing the possibility of moving forward but hesitating.
Cai kept his face impassive but held his breath. He had seen this sort of fear before. A part of him wanted to go over and rock the hammock so James toppled off and was forced to move forward. But he knew that’d do more harm than good.
So instead he prompted in a firm but calm voice, “You can sit there and stew in your thoughts, waiting for the trial. Or you can reach out to that beast, and maybe you’ll learn something, find a chance to help your mother. This may be your only chance to try to help Kallista.
“Either way”—he gave James a small smile—“I’ll still vouch for you. I swear it.”
It was just the tiniest of sparks, but finally James’s eyes lit up, and he slid off the hammock. “All right.” He strode to the edge of the well, letting out a shallow breath as he steadied himself. “I’ll try.”
Final Words
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