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“Baraqel? Did he say Baraqel?”

Tuttugu nodded

“At the end?” My sto had taken from me “Is he—”

“Dead?” Tuttugu limped to the heaped furs “No But he should be” He pulled a wolfskin aside and there lay Snorri, pale but breathing He looked to be asleep rather than unconscious The broken bones in his face had been repositioned and the skin sewn over them “I’ve done what I can We can only wait now”

“How long have I been sleeping?” It seemed important, even with our enemies fled

“All day, Jal It’s nearly sunset”

“But if SnorriBaraqel, you said? And healingSo he’s light-sworn now” I looked again where my wounds should be “Then the one who’s dark-sworn is”

Tuttugu nodded

“Ah”

I lay back It would be a long journey back to Vermillion, and if we didn’t beat the arrival of winter, then the Black Fort would be our hoh, and I’d take whatever still ree and stand before the Red Queen’s throne and deet her damned sister to take this spell out of us

All that, of course, depended on no one being able to talk me out of it between now and then

So I closedwould be

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