Pain burned deep in the pit of his soul, unrelenting. Belen didn’t believe she’d return. That seemed a worse betrayal than Ryne’s.

“Kerrick, I’m very sorry about Avry. I knew about the growing bond, but I’d truly thought it wasn’t that strong. I thought she had more time.”

By pure force of will, Kerrick remained sitting. Hard to believe Ryne didn’t know how close she’d gotten to Tohon. Hard not to believe he had planned this from the beginning. Instead of throttling Ryne, Kerrick asked, “Why did you let Avry get taken by Wynn and Sepp?”

“I needed more time for Noak and his army to get into position. Tohon wouldn’t have believed a rumor Noak was at the Milligreen Pass or Avry’s dreams. He needed to have it confirmed by a trusted officer. Once he knew about Noak, I’d hoped Tohon would go after the Skeleton King’s forces in the south to rescue Avry, but he stayed at the Healer’s Guild.” Ryne raised his hands as if surrendering. “I know I’m horrible for using Avry. But she was Tohon’s only weakness.”

A smart plan, except...

Except.

“I’ll think about it,” Kerrick said, hoping that would get rid of Ryne faster.

It didn’t.

Ryne talked about fixing all the problems the war and plague had left behind; returning the Fifteen Realms to its prior health would take years and years of hard work and dedication. Kerrick didn’t listen, letting Belen ask questions. Instead, he wondered how long.

How long would the Peace Lily keep Avry? Before, the flower had spit her out soon after she died. So far, it had been twenty-five days. To stop the panic, he focused on Flea. A Peace Lily had held Flea for close to six months.

Grief clamped down on his heart when he remembered Avry’s limp body and cold, dead eyes. They’d found the Lily map in her pack. Noak had scooped her up and Flea had led him to the closest Lily patch. At that time, Kerrick had been too weak to stand. He still remained sluggish and tired. What kind of leader would he make when he’d have to fight to remain conscious every winter?

Besides, life had no appeal without Avry.

How long would he wait for her? Growing in this cluster, there were four Peace Lilys, and a few yards away was one Death Lily. The yellow-and-orange firelight flickered on its white petals. Kerrick had memorized the contours of that Lily.

“...new realm should be called Avry Realm,” Belen said.

Wary, Ryne stared at Kerrick. If anyone else had said that, Kerrick would have pounded him. But not Belen. Only Belen could get away with those type of comments.

“You should call it the Realm of Belen and make Belen king,” Kerrick said.

Belen shook his head. “Oh, no, I’m not a leader. I’m well suited for the role of loyal support personnel. Last time I had to make a decision I got my head bashed in.”

“It’s a good thing you have such a thick skull,” Ryne teased.

“Avry wouldn’t want it named after her,” Kerrick said in a low voice. “She never liked that type of attention. She’d argue to name it after her sister, Noelle, or... What was that one sergeant’s name that you hunted the dead with?”

“Ursan,” Belen said.

“Ursan, or her teacher, Tara.”

“You can only name the realm if you take the job,” Ryne said.

Kerrick stared at him.

“That doesn’t work on me. I know you too well.”

“Avry would have wanted to build a place for healers to learn,” Belen said. “Maybe you could build another guild for Zila and Danny in the new realm.”

Now Kerrick turned his ire on Belen.

Unimpressed, the big man smiled. “You can call it the Realm of Healing, or the Healer’s Realm.... No, I like the first one better.”

Ryne stood. “Think about it. I know you need time to... We all do. You’re not the only one missing her. And you know she’d be furious at you if you did anything stupid. Just think of what you’d want her to do if your roles were reversed.”

He fisted his hands, but kept them pressed to his legs. “Our roles were reversed. I was presumed dead and she refused to believe it. She didn’t give up.”

“But she did move on.” Ryne gazed at the fire for a moment. “I’ll be at the old Healer’s Guild for the next couple days. Then I’m traveling to Mengels to meet with the other realm leaders. It’s a central location and Mom offered to lodge and feed us. For a fee, of course.”

“It’ll be worth every coin,” Belen said.

Ryne patted his stomach. “And every pound, I’m sure.” Then he said goodbye and left.

Belen grew unusually quiet.

Kerrick cursed Ryne under his breath because he knew exactly what his friend was thinking. “No. I’m not going to do anything...rash.”

“But you were considering it?” Belen asked.

“Yes.”

“Did Ryne change your mind?”

“No.”

Belen waited. He’d learned that trick from Kerrick, which made it even more infuriating.

Kerrick stabbed the fire with a stick. Sparks flew into the air. “Avry did. By her own actions. She refused to give up on me, so I won’t give up on her. Happy?”

“Happier. But not happy.”

Belen’s comment pierced his hard shell of grief. They all suffered.

Loren and Quain returned to the campfire and soon Flea joined them. He’d just gotten back from a dead sweep in Vyg. They noticed a shift in mood right away. Flea gave Belen a questioning look, but Poppa Bear shook his head. Belen would tell them everything later.