“Um,” I said. “Excuse me? I shouldn’t have what now?”
“That might have been a little much,” Morgan said. “You know. In case it hadn’t worked.”
“So little faith,” Randall said. “I believed in him. Mostly.”
No one seemed concerned that I was plotting their deaths out loud.
“Sam,” Ryan said quietly at my side. “Are you all right?”
I opened my mouth to respond (and say what, I didn’t know), but Randall beat me to it. “Away with you,” he said. “We can handle it from here. See to your training with your knights and leave us be.”
“But—”
“You have your priorities,” Morgan said, not unkindly. “Your responsibilities.”
“Your oath,” I said without meaning to, and Ryan looked away.
“I know what I am,” Ryan said. “I’m a cornerstone.”
“Yes,” Randall said. “You are. But you are not the only one. There will be others not bound as you are, and Sam will find them. Away, Knight Commander Foxheart. I won’t ask again.”
Ryan’s jaw tensed, but that was all. His gaze flickered to mine, and I held it because I wasn’t going to be hurt by him. I wasn’t going to show on my face that my insides were screaming for him to fight back. To rally against Morgan and Randall. Against Tiggy and Gary and Kevin. Against all of them. For me.
He didn’t, of course.
He called to his knights, even as some of them shook their heads. Pete looked annoyed, but he listened to his commander. They began to shuffle toward the far end of the sparring fields.
“You knew,” I said as I watched him go. “You saw him coming and knew how my magic would react.”
“Yes,” Randall said simply.
“It won’t be the same,” I admitted. “With anyone else.”
He looked sad at that. “I know. But it will be enough.”
“Has this ever happened before?”
Randall could have played the fool. He could have lied. Instead, he said, “Once.”
Morgan looked to speak, but Randall shook his head, once, cutting him off.
“And?” I asked.
“The man went Dark. He killed many people.”
“What happened to him?”
Randall sighed. “I destroyed him. I destroyed him because I could not save him. He made a choice, and like with any choice, there were consequences. I was one such consequence.”
“You’re worried about me. Aren’t you?” I didn’t know if that made me feel good or even worse.
“Not yet,” Randall said, and wonder of all wonders, he smiled at me. “You’ll know when I start to get worried.”
CHAPTER 27
Avoidance Is Key
to Maintaining a Happy Sam