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"I know" She glanced down at the toes of her boots "But I would not want to change all of it"

His eyebrows lifted in surprise "No?"

"Cade" His naue when she had not meant to speak it aloud Hastily she added, "The people I don’t reone forward in time" Despite the little she remembered, she felt certain that her time with Cade had been profound, complete in a way that her connection with Zachary never would be Never could be She’d always known it to be impossible to have such with him, and it only intensified her sense of loss Her loss of both ht to think it better if none of it had happened

"This Cade, he was--?"

"No! I don’t--" she began harshly When she saw his stung expression, she took a breath and said in a softer tone, "I mean, I don’t remember Not much But he was important To me"

Various emotions flickered across his features She could see hi about Cade, a hint of jealousy perhaps? He quickly ain, and reached for her as though to comfort her, but she stepped back, away from his touch, and his hand fell to his side His forehead crinkled, and once again he looked hurt How easy it would be to go to hith of his ar more than to be comforted by hierous She’d already lost toonodded in acceptance "I think you kno I feel, in any case About you"

Karigan looked away Found she could not reply After a painful er, he pulled an envelope from his pocket He held it out to her

"I--I did not read this," he said "I refused to believe you were gone I think I would have known"

It took Karigan a moment to realize what it was, but once she saw her own handwriting on it and the green wax seal, there was no iven to him in the event she did not return fros she could never say to him while she lived She did not knohether to feel relieved he had not read it, or disappointed Relieved because then all she held inside would have been exposed in no uncertain terms Disappointed for the same reason It was for the best, she supposed She did not need that letter adding fuel to the longing between them

He cleared his throat and saidelse for you Ellen?" The Weapon stepped in briefly to hand hi The journal that Rider Cardell took into Blackveil was being catalogued to be filed with other records His drawings are very good, and I aes and maps he dreill be helpful in the future" He paused, but very briefly "The odd thing was, a picture we had soht, tucked into the back of the journal Apparently Rider Cardell wanted you to have it"

He passed her the rolled paper, and she held it with trepidation What in the world had Yates drawn that he wanted her to see?

Preoccupied by the rolled paper in her hands, Karigan barely noticed King Zachary receding froered on her, his expression wistful and suffused with regret and his own loss She did not register the door closing silently and soundly behind hilad she was sitting because when the paper unrolled, she saw the gift for what it was, a gift froht now, she kneould<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>