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I re forhile I said, "I aret ever bringing war against me"

And the doors opened

It was an unusually beautiful ht, with sapphire skies that were better suited to a picnic than a hanging A light breeze stirred the two nooses hanging froallows in circles The beams weren’t tall, the kind that would snap a neck as soon as the floor collapsed, causing instant, relatively painless death These were the shorter ones with a knot at the center of the neck They’d cut off our air once the stools beneath our feet were kicked away, creating a slow and terrible death That had been a deliberate choice, I suspected They wantedtian

For there was indeed a large crowd gathered, many more than I had anticipated Most of the audience was the soldiers of Avenia and Mendenwal Tobias was now standing with ents near the front Like those around hiistered dread for as about to happen But so more seemed etched into his expression -- perhaps the conflicted feelings of guilt and relief that I had chosen him to escape the noose I wished he wouldn’t torture himself with that The choice had been mine, and I’d made the correct one If he would’ve looked directly at me, I’d have tried to communicate that to hients were looking atcome I suspected that ian and forced to give oaths of fealty to hiroup Either he was still in Mendenwal, or else he had escaped Vargan’s de beside Tobias was Harlowe His eyes were filled with horror as he stared atthat he should care so much about my death

I loweredI should have told you last night"

Roden’s voice wavered when he spoke "Yes?"

"You have a father, Roden He’s alive, and he is here"

"What?" Roden jerked his whole body toward me "Who?"

I cocked my head toward the center of the crowd "Rulon Harlowe, the prient"

"How could you know that?"

"His as named Havanila Harlowe is your father"

"But --" Roden paused and considered that a er son as an infant Didn’t I hear that?"

"It was you I’ht"

"Do you think so?" He cursed and craned his neck to look in the crowd I knew by the slump in his shoulders when he located Harlowe Then his tone softened "Does he know?"

"No I thought you should tell him"