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Authors: Jamie Sedgwick
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reassuring tone.
“How can I know that?”
Tam fixed me with a serious stare. “Breeze, listen to me carefully. Now that your mother is dead, you are the queen’s rightful heir to the throne.”
“Throne?” I exclaimed, my eyes going wide. “I don’t want the throne!”
He made a shushing noise. “I understand that, but there are others who might not feel the same. There are others who may be… concerned about the situation.”
“Concerned?” I said, placing my hands on my hips. “What exactly does that mean?”
“There are some Tal’mar who will insist you take the throne after the queen dies. As her only living descendent, it is your right.”
“But-” I started, and he cut me off.
“-There are others who will never allow it. They perceive you as an outsider; as a human. They see you as a danger and they will do anything to make sure you never inherit the throne.”
I pulled my gaze away from him and looked over the group of Tal’mar. “They would kill me,” I said absently. “To keep me from becoming queen, they would kill me.”
“Yes.”
“But I don’t want to be queen,” I said. “I want nothing to do with it.”
“That doesn’t matter. As long as you are alive, you will be a threat. I worry for you, Breeze. I think it would be best if you went with Robie. Go back to the humans. Find what solace you can with them. Forget about us.”
I felt my heart wrenching in my chest as he spoke. My gaze fell on my grandmother, and I saw her staring at me. I wondered how much of this she knew. I wondered if she cared. I had to believe that she did, but she was in a delicate situation. She couldn’t appear weak in front of her subjects. She also couldn’t choose me over them, even if some of the people would support her in doing so. She couldn’t choose sides at a time like this. She needed to put forth a united front. It was a delicate balance, like walking on the edge of a razor.
As always, it came down to politics. Once again, I was reminded of why I wanted nothing to do with crowns and thrones and politicians. I was both heartbroken and disgusted. I turned to Robie and saw my anguish reflected in his eyes. I saw his sympathy for me etched into his face. He gave me a sympathetic smile, and I could tell that he’d seen this coming long before I had. Once again I’d let my feelings get the best of me. The situation hadn’t even occurred to me until it was inescapable.
And this is why I fly, I thought. This is why I’ll never be part of this world. Humans and Tal’mar are no different… to them, I’ll always be a half-breed. I sighed.
“At least you care about me,” I said to Robie, my voice full of pain and anger. “Let’s get out of here.”
I handed Tam his sword and shot a disgusted look at the group of Tal’mar. Then I spun on my heels and started walking. Robie rushed to catch up to me and fell in, matching my pace. Behind me, I heard Tam call out, “Good luck to you, Breeze. May your ancestors watch over you!”
I didn’t reply. I didn’t look back to see if my grandmother was watching me leave. If she didn’t have the courage to love me after all that we’d been through, then I owed her nothing.
Chapter 7
Robie and I walked in silence for several hours. We were exhausted and emotionally spent, still coming to grips with everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. The drama with the Tal’mar remained fresh in our minds, but we also had concern for the family and friends in the southern lands who may already have been captured or killed by the Vangars. It was frustrating for both of us. We had no idea what troubles might lie ahead, but based on what we had learned of the Vangars, we held little hope. They were fierce warriors with advanced weaponry and complete air superiority. How could Riverfork stand against an attack like that? How could anyone?
Still we pressed on, placing one foot in front of the other until the
“How can I know that?”
Tam fixed me with a serious stare. “Breeze, listen to me carefully. Now that your mother is dead, you are the queen’s rightful heir to the throne.”
“Throne?” I exclaimed, my eyes going wide. “I don’t want the throne!”
He made a shushing noise. “I understand that, but there are others who might not feel the same. There are others who may be… concerned about the situation.”
“Concerned?” I said, placing my hands on my hips. “What exactly does that mean?”
“There are some Tal’mar who will insist you take the throne after the queen dies. As her only living descendent, it is your right.”
“But-” I started, and he cut me off.
“-There are others who will never allow it. They perceive you as an outsider; as a human. They see you as a danger and they will do anything to make sure you never inherit the throne.”
I pulled my gaze away from him and looked over the group of Tal’mar. “They would kill me,” I said absently. “To keep me from becoming queen, they would kill me.”
“Yes.”
“But I don’t want to be queen,” I said. “I want nothing to do with it.”
“That doesn’t matter. As long as you are alive, you will be a threat. I worry for you, Breeze. I think it would be best if you went with Robie. Go back to the humans. Find what solace you can with them. Forget about us.”
I felt my heart wrenching in my chest as he spoke. My gaze fell on my grandmother, and I saw her staring at me. I wondered how much of this she knew. I wondered if she cared. I had to believe that she did, but she was in a delicate situation. She couldn’t appear weak in front of her subjects. She also couldn’t choose me over them, even if some of the people would support her in doing so. She couldn’t choose sides at a time like this. She needed to put forth a united front. It was a delicate balance, like walking on the edge of a razor.
As always, it came down to politics. Once again, I was reminded of why I wanted nothing to do with crowns and thrones and politicians. I was both heartbroken and disgusted. I turned to Robie and saw my anguish reflected in his eyes. I saw his sympathy for me etched into his face. He gave me a sympathetic smile, and I could tell that he’d seen this coming long before I had. Once again I’d let my feelings get the best of me. The situation hadn’t even occurred to me until it was inescapable.
And this is why I fly, I thought. This is why I’ll never be part of this world. Humans and Tal’mar are no different… to them, I’ll always be a half-breed. I sighed.
“At least you care about me,” I said to Robie, my voice full of pain and anger. “Let’s get out of here.”
I handed Tam his sword and shot a disgusted look at the group of Tal’mar. Then I spun on my heels and started walking. Robie rushed to catch up to me and fell in, matching my pace. Behind me, I heard Tam call out, “Good luck to you, Breeze. May your ancestors watch over you!”
I didn’t reply. I didn’t look back to see if my grandmother was watching me leave. If she didn’t have the courage to love me after all that we’d been through, then I owed her nothing.
Chapter 7
Robie and I walked in silence for several hours. We were exhausted and emotionally spent, still coming to grips with everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. The drama with the Tal’mar remained fresh in our minds, but we also had concern for the family and friends in the southern lands who may already have been captured or killed by the Vangars. It was frustrating for both of us. We had no idea what troubles might lie ahead, but based on what we had learned of the Vangars, we held little hope. They were fierce warriors with advanced weaponry and complete air superiority. How could Riverfork stand against an attack like that? How could anyone?
Still we pressed on, placing one foot in front of the other until the
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