Page 56 of Stolen Thorn Bride
This adventure was just one more way for her to feel alone.
But it was over now, and Kasia could feel the burdens of her old life settling back on her shoulders, filling her heart with worry. It was nearly midday if she judged the sun aright, and Rordyn would be… where? She had to find her family.
Breaking into a run, she raced through the woods, not stopping to see Gianessa, just wanting to get home as quickly as possible. Once she burst onto the road, it was a quick jog, and she was thankful not to encounter anyone else along the way. She hadn’t even considered what she was going to tell them about her absence. Or how to explain the clothing she wore.
Perhaps she should come up with a lie, and swiftly, because Ellery’s questions were bound to be both numerous and brutal…
Kasia skidded to a stop at the head of the lane that led to their house.
She blinked several times, then looked around, certain she couldn’t be in the right place.
She couldn’t. This had to be wrong.
Her house should have been right there, at the end of the lane, but there was no house.
Nothing but a blackened chimney and the charred remains of its four walls.
She stumbled forward, unable to take in what her eyes were telling her.
It was gone. Everyone was gone. No life stirred in the yard. The only movement was a scrap of cloth that clung to the gate, waving gently in the breeze as if to mock her.
As if to say, “You left us, and see what happened?”
This was her fault.
Suddenly, she couldn’t get enough air. She choked, dropped her pack, and fell to her knees, gasping for breath, for hope, for anything that could ease her terrible, crushing fears.
Had they been in the house when it burned? Had anyone survived? Where were Liam and Ellery? Where was Rordyn?
Gianessa would know.
Terror gave her feet wings, and Kasia all but flew back along the road towards Gianessa’s as guilt hammered her heart into a tiny, contracted ball of pain. She should have been here. She should never have crossed the Hedge. How could she have considered staying?
This was her punishment for selfishly wishing to escape—for dreaming of finding her own life where no one would judge her for her magic. She’d longed to be free of the burden of caring for her siblings, and now she was paying for it.
Kasia almost tripped over Gianessa’s front gate, and nearly fell into the front door as she pounded on it frantically.
“Gianessa? Are you here?”
She was about to check the garden when the door flew open.
“Kasia?”
A shocked pair of brown eyes met hers.
“Rordyn?”
Even after all the astonishing events of the past few weeks, Kasia found herself completely at a loss. How could her brother behere? In his stocking feet, too, she noted, looking entirely at home.
“Kasia!” He seemed to recover his wits and flew out the door to hug her, recovering his dignity after only a moment’s embrace. “Where have you been? We were so scared for you!”
“You were scared forme?” she squeaked, still too surprised at his presence in Gianessa’s house to say anything sensible. “What about Ell, and Liam? Are they all right? I saw the house.”
Rory flushed a deep, dark red and looked at his toes. “Kasi, I’m sorry. That was my fault. I left a candle burning by accident when I brought Liam and Ell here while I was working. I never thought… I’m so sorry.”
He looked so wretched, Kasia decided she didn’t care about his dignity and wrapped him up in another hug.
“I don’t care about how or why,” she said fiercely. “I’m just so relieved you’re okay.”