Page 123 of Threaded
“Trefor.” She moved through the large, open hospital wing, her court parting like the tide, until she reached the side of Trefor’s cot. Carefully, she unslung the shortswords from her back and unbuckled the dagger from her thigh, Drystan stepping forward and taking the weapons without a word. She sat carefully, just on the edge, and clasped Trefor’s hand in hers. He looked well; there was color in his cheeks, and his skin felt warm and healthy to the touch. The only sign of his injury was the massive bandage wrapped tightly across his chest and left shoulder, the thick gauze fresh and stiff.
Mariah surveyed him closely before meeting his stare and raising an eyebrow. “You aren’t left-handed, are you?”
Trefor’s answer carried a hint of confusion. “No …?”
Mariah grinned mischievously. “Good. I would hate for you to lose your sword arm and make it even easier for me to kick your ass.”
The entire room erupted into a too-loud roar of laughter, pounds of tension lifting with a single sentence.
Trefor answered her with a grin of his own. “Mariah, the loss of my sword arm should be the least of your concerns—”
A growl rumbled from behind the rest of the gathered court at Trefor’s flirtatiousness, followed by booted footsteps. Mariah spotted a flash of dark hair as a figure stalked down the length of the hospital wing and pushed through a set of doors at the far end of the room.
It took every ounce of her control to not roll her eyes into the back of her skull.
Trefor returned his wide, sea-green gaze to Mariah. “I was only kidding—”
“I know,” she said, cutting him off. She smiled softly at him again before rising from the cot, looking back over her shoulder in the direction Andrian had disappeared. “I guess I need to go deal with that.” Glancing back down at Trefor, Mariah soaked in the joy of being here, with her court, the first real happiness and relief she’d felt in too long. “I am … sobeyondhappy that you’re okay. I don’t know what I would do without you.” She turned her attention to the rest of those gathered around her, the second family she’d both chosen and been gifted with. “Withoutallof you.”
It was Ciana who answered her. “I know what you would do. You would continue on. You would be sad, but you would keep your head high, just as it is now, and you wouldconquer. We all believe in that—inyou.” There were nods and murmurs of agreement. Tears pricked at the backs of Mariah’s eyes, and she felt those broken shards of herself weave themselves a little tighter together. She met Ciana’s amber gaze to find her friend smiling at her fiercely.
“Now, go.” Ciana gestured with her head towards the far end of the wing, at the exit that lay beyond. “The grumpy one needs to calm down, and you’re the only one he seems to listen to.”
Mariah snorted. “I hardly think he listens to me.”
Ciana glared at her. Mariah sighed. “Fine.” She looked around to her court again, her heart swelling with gratitude that they were all safe and well andhere. “Thank you.” Her words were barely more than a whisper, but she knew they heard her.
With another breath, Mariah stepped away from her court and towards the rear exit of the hospital wing, pushing through the doors and into a quiet, deserted hallway.
* * *
Mariah found Andrian on a balcony off the furthest, darkest section of that hallway.Typical.
The heavy glass-paneled doors shut closed behind her as she stepped out into the crisp, afternoon winter chill. Andrian, clothed in his typical black, leaned against the white marble railing, gazing out at the view of the game park below and the Attlehon mountains beyond.
It was curious, Mariah thought, how every balcony or view in the palace seemed to face the great mountain range. She’d yet to step foot onto a balcony that faced the city and the Bay of Nria beyond it. She thought she remembered seeing some from the exterior of the palace, but … she couldn’t quite remember.
Shaking her head slightly to clear her lingering musings, she stepped forward once. Twice. Three times. She kept taking single steps forward until she stood no more than a few feet from Andrian’s broad back, close enough to see the steady movement of his ribs as he inhaled and exhaled. She opened her mouth to speak, drawing in a breath.
But he beat her to it.
“You shouldn’t be here. You should be with Trefor.”
She snapped her mouth shut, bunching her eyebrows together, before taking the last few steps to stand beside him at the railing. This man was so hot and cold that it drove her fuckingmad.
“He has more than enough support. If anything, I’m sure he would appreciate a little space. I’m just happy he’s going to be alright.”
Andrian huffed darkly. “Yes. Thank theGoddesshe’s going to be fine.”
Mariah’s gaze whipped to his face. She noticed for the first time the darkness that had settled in his eyes, the purple of his skin muting the brilliance of the tanzanite.
“When was the last time you slept?”
His eyes flashed to hers and then drifted back away. They stood in silence for several heartbeats, and Mariah wondered for a moment if he was going to refuse to answer her.
But then he spoke.
“It’s been … a while.”