Again, when she turned to leave, he called her name.
“Cara, please, would you let me hold you for just a moment before I let you go?”
She at last smiled as she returned and slipped her arms around him, and he around her, as she laid her head against his chest. He tenderly put his hand to the back of her head and held her, wishing there were words, but there were none.
When she finally separated from him, Kahlan was standing there. Without saying anything, Kahlan took Cara into her arms, hugging her silently for a long moment.
“He was a dear, dear man, Cara, and he will be greatly missed,” Kahlan whispered in a broken voice when they separated.
“Thank you, Mother Confessor.” She took a hand of each, then. “You both have been the greatest thing in my life, other than my brass buttons … Ben. I love you both.”
She released their hands and wiped the tears from her eyes, then wiped her palms on her hips. “It will be light soon. Get an early start. I want both of you to get back to the palace so you can be healed.” She smiled. “Maybe I will see you again. You never know.”
“Your home is with us,” Richard said. “It will always be waiting for you.”
“Thank you,” she said with a nod, and turned away.
Kahlan leaned against Richard as they watched her walk away.
“I love her too much to keep her from leaving,” Richard whispered, half to Kahlan and half to himself, his heart breaking as he watched her melting into the night.
There were a thousand things he wanted to say to Cara. He loved her too much to say any of them.
“I know,” Kahlan said, choked with tears. “Me too. Do you think she’ll be back?”
“Anything is possible,” Richard said as he put his arm around Kahlan’s shoulders.
“Do you think she’ll be safe by herself?”
Richard had seen that Cara had a steel knife on one hip and the Shun-tuk stone knife for putting down the dead on the other.
“Oh, I don’t think Cara is the one who needs to be worried.”
Richard sighed and gazed down at Kahlan.
“Well, it’s going to be light soon. I think we should get all of our gear collected, the horses saddled, and be on our way. The sooner we get to the palace, the sooner Zedd and Nicci will be done meddling with us.”
He saw a smile overcome her in spite of herself.
“I would have to agree with that, Lord Rahl.” She hugged him then. “It will be good to get home.”
“Cara will come home, too. I know she will.”
Her beautiful green eyes turned to look up at him.
“Promise?”
Richard could only smile in answer.
ALSO BY TERRY GOODKIND
Wizard’s First Rule
Stone of Tears
Blood of the Fold
Temple of the Winds
Soul of the Fire
Faith of the Fallen
The Pillars of Creation
Naked Empire
Debt of Bones
Chainfire
Phantom
Confessor
The Law of Nines
The Omen Machine
The First Confessor
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE THIRD KINGDOM
Copyright © 2013 by Terry Goodkind
All rights reserved.
Cover art and design by Rob Anderson at Revel Studios
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
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New York, NY 10010
www.tor-forge.com
Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Goodkind, Terry.
The Third Kingdom / Terry Goodkind.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-0-7653-3599-9 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-2627-4 (e-book)
1. Wizards—Fiction. 2. Magic—Fiction. 3. Fantasy fiction.—Fiction. I. Title.
PS3557.O5826T48 2013
813'.54—dc23
2013021461
e-ISBN 9781466826274
First Edition: August 2013
The Third Kingdom Page 46