Yes. Llew took a moment to remember Jonas as he had been. Physically strong, and yet crushed at his inability to save those he loved. He was a man who loved deeply, and hurt just as deep. Llew had learned to keep her own heart well protected long ago. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel, just that she did so cautiously. Often it had left her feeling numb to the plights of her friends. Feeling all their losses fully would have crushed her years ago. She cherished her good fortune that had placed her within Jonas’s circle of love. From within its bounds of safety, she had been able to let herself love in return. And despite her immediate love for their children backfiring with total heartbreak, she had felt brave enough to still take the risk with Jonas, and her heart was full of him. The joy of that knowledge that came to her through her connection with her tree was a great comfort on this wet night, of being bled for the sake of a woman who had done nothing but cause her pain. No matter what happened, Llew had a deep connection with these Ajnai trees that led straight back to the one in Taither. She would never be Llew alone again. And with that backing, she could achieve anything.

  Keeping her eyes closed, she unfolded her free arm, presenting her veins once more.

  Rain still hammered down, surrounding them in white noise. Fortunately, the breeze remained mild, almost warm, so apart from the increasingly sodden ground and the frequent stabbing pain of the needle, she was almost comfortable enough to sleep. Almost. But, no, she could do nothing about that pain, so there would be no sleeping. Still, she let her head fall back against the tree and tried to let her brain rest amongst the thunderous cacophony.

  Eventually, the rain eased, though it did nothing to stop the water soaking through the seat of Llew’s trousers, or the pain of the needle, it did allow her to hear Karlani release a satisfied sigh.

  “I think that’s enough,” the Syakaran said.

  Llew opened her eyes as Karlani stood, shaking out her limbs. She stepped from beneath the tarpaulin and took off at a run, soon returning, bouncing on her toes, energized.

  “Yeah.” Karlani jogged on the spot, shaking the last of her stiffness from her hands. “That’ll do.” She crouched by Llew. “I don’t know if you have any idea how grateful I am that you chose to do this. I promise I’ll never do something so stupid again. And I am yours, so long as you need me.”

  Llew didn’t know what to do with such a declaration, but Karlani’s restraint in taking any more blood went some way to cooling her anger at the Syakaran.

  Karlani hovered at Llew’s shoulder as if she intended to grip it in camaraderie, but wisely thought better of it.

  “I think sun-up’s not far off. You should rest. We’ll keep the place running today.”

  Despite everything that had come before, Llew was inclined to believe Karlani. They would never be friends, but they could work together as need dictated. Another reason to fight for the return of Jonas’s powers: to get Karlani out of their lives forever.

  Llew stood beneath the tarpaulin, brushed at the mud on the seat of her pants, leaving her hands wet and filthy. She dried them on the front of her trousers as best she could and thanked Delwynn and Ianto, who had swapped with Garnoc an hour or so earlier.

  “Sorry about the—” Llew gestured at Delwynn’s hand, but he just waved her off and yawned.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  Llew headed for the farmhouse, hoping the farm would escape the interest of any more Turhmos soldiers for today. It had been a late night for them all, and an all-nighter for most. If more soldiers showed up and their exhausted defense faltered, their failure would lie at the feet of Karlani. Yes. A cooled anger, perhaps, but it would simmer for some time yet.

  Jonas slept soundly in the bed, bundled safely as he would if Llew lay beside him. She stripped off her wet clothing, slipped into one of Merrid’s chemises, and climbed into bed, pressing her cheek to Jonas’s blanket clad back. He breathed steadily and Llew closed her eyes, grateful for the cloudy skies diminishing the growing brightness of the day, and was asleep before the household stirred.

  Braph stalked the circumference of the tree once more, peering at it, the truth of what stood before him butting up against his expectations. He’d spent the previous couple of days drilling holes, magically inducing each hole to release more sap, then moving on to drill another.

  He’d slept. He had to. And they’d all had to eat.

  Most of Quaver’s economy ran under the hands of the mundane, and with the garden lying so centrally within Taither, there were many restaurants and coffee shops to choose from. The proprietors and customers eyed Orinia’s pale complexion suspiciously, but Braph was clearly one of them, and Orin shared enough of Braph’s features to pass for Quaven. And Braph still had the knack for quelling questions with a glare. Unfortunately, it meant he couldn’t send Orinia and Orin off to fend for themselves entirely. A stroll down the road wrapped up against the spring chilled air was one thing. Walking into an establishment and demanding service was another. A nuisance, no question. With the crystals Orin had willingly stockpiled while being utterly spoiled with treats before they left home, Braph could keep himself healthy without eating for days. Weeks. Perhaps even months. If no one came to challenge what he was doing. And it was unlikely anyone would. The Quaven authorities were unaware of his presence and would be otherwise distracted. And Jonas … Well, Jonas was lucky to be alive … or not. Braph supposed he would keep fighting to live if he had become as ill as Jonas. So, Jonas was lucky to still have the opportunity to live, even if he wasn’t doing much of that now. The point was, he wouldn’t be bringing the fight to Braph any time soon.

  Regardless, Braph wouldn’t waste Orin’s crystals entirely. It never paid to underestimate one’s enemies. Braph had been on the other side of that assumption plenty, rather enjoying the satisfaction that came with proving others wrong. It was never wise to be the one assuming, however. They usually fared poorly, or dead.

  And so, he accompanied his lover and son for meals, and succumbed to sleep. The rest of the time he had spent drilling holes and collecting sap. For two days the Ajnai had become increasingly riddled with holes.

  Now they were gone. All of them.

  Braph circled the tree once more and the truth remained.

  At first, he’d thought he should feel angry about it, but then it dawned on him that each hole had only been useful once and now he had a blank canvas from which to start over. Perfect.

  Of course, he wondered why. Why had the tree tolerated the holes for two days only to heal itself now?

  He could accept the premise that it took several days for the tree to heal the holes. But, then why had the holes drilled only hours earlier closed in the same night as his initial holes? No answers presented themselves immediately. So be it. He was contented to ponder, for now.

  And while he pondered, he would drill.

  He had his suspicions that injecting raw Ajnai sap into his veins would be even less agreeable than Aenuk blood, and the potential healing properties less accessible. So, he dedicated himself to collecting sufficient to sterilize, if not boil down to crystalline. At least a cup. Likely several. At between one and two tablespoons each day, it would take … some time.