Empire of Ashes

Chapter LX - Fare Well

She smiled at me lazily, a little shake of her head deflecting the question before it was asked, and instead her eyes slid to our left, where Alisa was adjusting Asan's stirrups and Tommas was stood behind her, waiting to help her up.

"Friends of yours?" she asked.

I nodded. "They are going back to Cambria. Keep an eye on them for me?"

Tommas could look after himself, and he could look after Alisa, but Kiare knew how to use a sword, so she could protect them both in other ways. Somehow, I didn't think the journey back home would be as easy and risk-free as Tem had advertised.

"As you say. Are they headed for Sierra?"

"The wetlands, if you don't mind the detour."

Kiare laughed. "Mind it? I owe you my freedom, girl. Everyone here does, whether they know it or not. If you asked me to swim to Sihone and back, I would have to do it."

I didn't bother arguing. "I don't need you to swim anywhere. Do this, and we're even."

"Then you can consider it done." She offered me a hand and I shook it. A transaction — nothing more. We didn't know each other well enough for favours.

Once Alisa was settled on Asan, we found Tom a horse, too — a palfrey who had belonged to a corps member who was too maimed to come to Belmery with us. I held the reins while he fastened the girth, but instead of mounting, he turned and sighed at me.

"How long have we known each other, Lyra?"

That was a difficult question. Our friendship had lasted longer than I could remember clearly. We had been about five or six when I had first seen him sitting alone by the well. The other children had not excluded him, but they had not made any effort to include him either.

So, naturally, I had decided to take him under my wing. He had made a brilliant counter-balance — quiet where I was loud, light where I was dark, calm where I was hot-headed. Tom had quickly dispelled any notion of needing a wing to hide under, and we had been friends instead.

"Forever," I replied softly.

"Yes, it feels that way." He swallowed, and it was a miserable sound. "And this is goodbye?"

"Unless you want to come with me ... yes."

I had to offer, but I knew the answer already. As always, his eyes watched my lips. He flicked his eyebrows up, and I repeated the sentence because that meant he had missed a few words. They were heavier the second time around. It would be my choice and my choice alone to leave my life in the wetlands behind — but it would be my friend who paid the price.

"You know I can't," Tom said, gentle but firm. "I have to find my father. He needs to know I'm alive."

I nodded. I understood that well enough. But there was an ache growing in my chest, because if he went to Heathersedge and I went north, the chances overwhelmingly favoured us never laying eyes on each other again.

"And I will have to explain what happened to Ma, of course," he went on, his voice beginning to shake. "I will have to explain that I couldn't hear her screaming. Half an hour they kept her alive, and I carried on brushing off the plough horse because I couldn't hear."

"Gods, Tom, that's not your fault—"

"They told me afterwards. Thought it was funny," he continued heedlessly. "And do you know how they captured me, Lyra?"

I shook my head.

"They knocked me out cold from behind. I didn't even get to put up a fight," he muttered. "Did you?"