“Me, too.” She gave him a squeeze before stepping back and running her fingers through his shorn locks. As if that might make him presentable for the journey. “Will the mare let you ride?” she asked, tactfully not mentioning his blood-stained tunic.
“Probably not.”
“What if you took off the bleakstone? You could use your Gift. They always respond to you.”
He looked down the road again. If they walked through the woods just a little farther, they’d see Tanoshi Keep. “I thought about it. I want to.” He licked his lips. “We’re almost home, and I don’t want to risk—anything. I don’t dare. It’s just a feeling.” He shrugged.
“But Iniki is dead. We’re safe now.”
“I will believe it when I walk through the gate.” Holding his hand out and speaking quietly, Sherakai approached the mare. She pawed the ground, then danced away. It made his heart ache, but he couldn’t blame her. He’d asked her for so much already. He walked.
Mimeru rode beside him, and the fact that she didn’t offer to walk too didn’t bode well for her condition. The other two horses followed, but kept well back.
When Mimeru spoke after a long silence, her voice sounded loud. It startled him.
“Look, Kai.”
He followed her pointing finger. An opening in the trees framed Tanoshi Keep. Saffron banners flowed like golden tears from the rooftops. The setting sun gilded transient edges and made a beautiful thing of grief.
“There are so many…” she whispered.
“Tasan and Fazare. Mama’s brother and the whole family in Kelamara.” Captain Nayuri, Chakkan, and all the good men who had fought to protect him. Did she know of the soldiers that had fought against Chiro and died when Tameko had come? All the beautiful, valuable horses that were their livelihood?
An intake of breath announced her shock. “You didn’t tell me.”
“Would it have helped to know?” When would he have broken such terrible news to her?
Silence, snow, and silver encircled them as she considered, then shook her head. “You have carried such a burden.”
“It’s done now.” It wouldn’t be. Ever. These last months were impossible to forget.
“Such grief,” Mimeru said, both hands pressed to her chest as she watched the banners stirring gently in the breeze. Her lips trembled. “Poor Mama and Papa!”
The light gleaming behind cast her features in shadow. Metallic tears marked her wan cheeks and lent her a surreal beauty he found as sad as the excessive display of grief dangling from his childhood home. It was easier to look at the banners than his sister's face.
“Surely the mourning time has passed.” A single banner left after the official mourning ended was not unexpected. But this! Such vulgar attention-seeking dismayed him and provided a stark contrast to the relief at seeing home again.
“Unless they are for you, Kai.”
As disconcerting as it was to be presumed dead, her observation held some truth. A part of him had died. His innocence laid at Bairith Mindar’s feet, torn from him without mercy. It would be harder to trust now, harder to find joy. But Sherakai still lived. He lived… Hope surged in his breast and a flush warmed pale cheeks. He straightened and gave Mimeru a tired smile. After all this time, after all their hurt, they were home. “Mourning banners are for the dead. Let’s go take them down.”
Hello, Awesome Reader!
Blood and Shadow has been such a joy—and such a challenge—to write. Sherakai came into existence in a roleplaying game many years ago. It’s easy to write about a character I love! More challenging was the world-building. I needed to move his entire story to my own setting, and so the World of Tairenth was born. (I know, the world name doesn’t appear anywhere in the story, but you can safely assume it is the planet where Sherakai, Bairith, and the others live.) It was also a challenge to decide where to begin the writing. After many discussions and much twirling in my office chair, I eventually chose this beginning.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading Sherakai’s tale. If you did, please consider taking a few minutes to leave a review on the website of your favorite retailer or review site. Reviews help other readers discover my books (and keep me writing).
Sherakai’s story continues in Flesh and Bone, book two of The Mage’s Gift, coming soon!
If you’d like to be alerted to the release date, receive special offers, bonus content, and information about new releases, please join my mailing list.
Join the journey at:
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~Robin Lythgoe
As the Crow Flies
Be sure to pick up a copy of As the Crow Flies—
“A delightful tale of magic, intrigue, and plenty of good old-fashioned luck in As the Crow Flies.” ~Melinda Hills for Readers' Favorite
I am Crow, the best thief in all the empire. Ask anyone. Ask Tanris, who’s hunted me all these years and never pinched so much as a tail feather. Ask Baron Duzayan, the scheming wizard who convinced me to steal a myth.
I always said you couldn’t trust a wizard…
As the Crow Flies
Also by Robin Lythgoe
Novels
As the Crow Flies
Blood and Shadow
Flesh and Bone (coming soon!)
Short Stories
Dragonlace
In the Mirror
The High Roads
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to:
Kristie Kiessling for unfailing enthusiasm,
unflinching dedication, and wonderfully keen insight.
Boyd-the-man, Mickey Champagne,
M. Alan Mills, and Leeland Artra
for bravely daring to accept missions as first readers.
Judee Fitch for her horsey herbology.
Tammy Hayes Young for frog knowledge.
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