Page 60 of Earthbound

Then Yeeran spoke with tenuous hope, ‘Keeping Malak prisoner has bought us some time.’

‘True, but that time needs to be spent recalling the obeah; I will not have what happened here repeated. Speaking of which, we should not dawdle. I’d like to get those missives out with the new day. Then we should all get some sleep.’

Yeeran nodded but Rayan was frowning, and though he stared off to the distance, Furi could tell he was consumed by his own thoughts rather than following Ajax.

‘What is it?’ she asked.

Rayan shook his head. ‘We’re talking about how this affects us, but not how it affects the obeah. We know nothing of the curse that has also made humans beasts. It could be related to the boundary,’ he said. ‘We could be prolonging their imprisonment.’

Yeeran seemed to understand the thoughts he was wrestling with better than Furi. ‘Only Afa can answer these things, and no matter how close you think you are to the situation, you are here, and Afa is not,’ she said.

‘We cannot make decisions on things we do not know or understand. Go to bed, Rayan,’ Furi said. ‘Ajax can fill you in later. We’ll have a lot to discuss and I’ll need you awake.’

Rayan looked like he might protest, but then a yawn racked his body and he nodded.

‘I’ll organise the missives, you go to bed–and no sleeping in your chair,’ she said.

‘Yes, my queen,’ he said with some of his usual warmth.

‘I prefer auntie.’

His laughter rang out behind her as she and Yeeran began to walk back to the palace.

‘You know he’s going to sleep in his chair, right?’ Yeeran chuckled.

‘I know, but at least I tried.’

Anyah was already waiting for orders outside the war room and it didn’t take long for Furi to instruct her on sharing the message: all obeah on the surface are to return to Mosima immediately.

When her task was completed, Furi found herself excited about going back to her chambers. Sleep desperately beckoned but so did Yeeran. She looked at her from the corner of her eye.

Does she feel like I do?

Yeeran had been staying in her old quarters, which she had formerly been assigned with Komi, Lettle and Rayan. But when they’d been together, they’d spent a lot of time in her royal chambers. That was where Furi wanted to take her now–to finish what they had started in the forest.

Furi was about to tug her hand in that direction when Yeeran shook her head. Furi’s blood began to race from the incoming hurt she was about to feel. She dropped Yeeran’s hand and crossed her arms to guard herself from the pain.

‘You said to me before that you didn’t want me to misunderstand what this is,’ Yeeran said. She sounded apologetic and it made Furi’s temper rise.

No sorry will mend this rejection.

‘Tonight may have been mere comfort for you, but it wasn’t for me. I have missed you, Furi, desperately. I have dreamed of this night every day since we last parted–well, not the murders–but you, in your dress and…why are you laughing?’

‘I did not want you to misunderstand my intentions, and yet you have, for I didn’t finish my sentence.’ All of Furi’s anger had ebbed in a moment of realisation. ‘Listen well now: I want all of you, Yeeran. No matter how many days are left in this world, I want to spend them with you.’

Yeeran’s breath caught in her throat.

‘Truly?’ she whispered.

‘Truly.’

Yeeran’s arms wrapped once more around Furi’s waist and she felt herself being lifted into a kiss. It deepened, sending shivers along her skin.

‘Let’s go to my chambers,’ Furi said against her lips.

‘No,’ Yeeran said.

‘I don’t entirely oppose the war room. With the map gone, we do have the table, I guess…’