Page 79 of Stranger's Choice
Eventually, Heolin told her it was time to set up camp. Auraelie looked around, amazed at how far they had already traveled. She had paid little attention to their surroundings as they walked, but she didn’t think they were making especially good time. She knew she wasn’t walking that fast—every step away from Sebin was a trial—and Heolin had matched her pace.
Then again, she hadn’t left the city in nearly a decade. Maybe they weren’t as far as she thought.
Auraelie spread out her bedroll, then rummaged in her bag. She wanted something to string the ring on so she could wear it around her neck. The tie around the pouch of tea Sebin had insisted she take ought to work. It’s not like she needed to save the tea. Not now, when the only man she could imagine having a child with was headed to the other side of the world.
Her fingers brushed over a tied up pouch, but it felt wrong. The fabric was a soft velvet rather than plain canvas. Auraelie plucked at the pouch, surprised at how heavy it was. Then she heard the metallic clink as she lifted it out of her bag. Had Sebin slipped money into her pack?
She opened the pouch slowly, not sure what she thought of Sebin giving her money. She had more than might be expected for a woman who had not earned so much as a copper her whole life. The seven veils costume had still been in her trunk when she packed for this journey. She had felt no guilt at all over taking the gold collar and selling it in order to buy new clothes. While she had gone a little overboard buying anything bright and cheerful she saw that morning, she still had a considerable amount of money left.
She poured a few of the contents onto her open palm and gasped. They were gold, but not money.
Auraelie looked into the pouch to confirm that all the items inside matched the two in her hand—gold rings, the same as the one Sebin had handed her that morning, only without the ruby. Null charms. He had given her all the extra null charms he had brought to Pynth. Over a year’s worth of immunity to magic if used nonstop. A lifetime’s worth if used more judiciously.
This final gift pushed Auraelie over the edge. This was it. This was goodbye. She couldn’t pretend she was taking a quick trip and would see Sebin in a few days. She was going . . . home, and he was, too. He no longer needed charms to protect him from the prying magic of oracles. She needed them to live a life that approached anything close to normal.
Heolin came over, stopping at the edge of her bedroll. “What is wrong, Auraelie?”
“I’m never going to see him again,” she sobbed. She picked up the ruby ring and ran her thumb over it, trying to calm her tears.
When her tears slowed, Heolin spoke, his voice soft. “Why did you let him go?”
“He has to go back. His home needs him—I saw it.”
Heolin didn’t ask how she had seen a vision about a distant kingdom when the only person from there she could have scanned was supposed to be immune to her power. Instead, he asked a far more devastating question. “Then why aren’t you going with him?”
It took Auraelie several attempts to draw enough breath to answer. “He didn’t ask me.”
“Of course not,” Heolin said with a sad smile. “He has spent months working to free you from the Emperor so you could go home. Did you really expect him to put you in a position where you had to decide between your family and him? Especially with the speed he apparently needs to return. He wouldn’t want to pressure you that way.”
“But it isn’t pressure—the choice is easy.” She wanted to see her father and meet her younger sister, but in truth, they were strangers. If she never saw them, it would be disappointing, but she’d move on. The thought of not seeing Sebin again was agonizing.
“Then make that choice now.”
“Even if we turned around, we’d never catch up. And if I managed to reach him before he sets sail, he’d probably send me back if I told him I didn’t even see my family.”
“You forget,” Heolin said, his smile turning bright, “he is traveling by river.”
“Exactly. That is the fastest route to the harbor.”
“Not when you are traveling with an earth sprite.” Heolin gestured at the surrounding forest. “Your village is a four-day walk from Kalitalo, yet look how far we’ve already come.”
Auraelie looked again at their surroundings. The forest was thicker than it should have been. Actually, if she remembered correctly, they shouldn’t even be in the forest by this point. “So I wasn’t imagining it when I thought we were farther than we should be.”
“No. I am moving the land beneath our feet as we walk. We cover twice the distance we should with every step. We can get to your village, you can see your family, make sure you are making the right choice, and then we can get down to Reslin before the prince’s ship sets sail.”
Auraelie beamed at Heolin. “Thank you!”
He chuckled. “I’m only doing exactly what Prince Sebin asked of me.”
She cocked her head to the side.
“He told me to make sure you got to enjoy your freedom. I figure that includes making your own choice on where to go now that you are free.”
