Chapter 8: ACT I, SCENE 3.5 CONTINUED

ACT I, SCENE 3.5 CONTINUEDDay 133 Minutes Since the Ash FellCathedral — CryptShe just sits there. Unflinching as the bandages press against raw skin.Then the fire catches.For a heartbeat, both Vespar and Kendra are caught by its sudden brilliance. Blue light surges outward, reflecting in her hair and washing over the hollows of her cheeks, the pale exhaustion on her face, the dullness in her eyes.Then the flames settle.And so do the shadows.Vespar notices a sign of life in her face before it disappears, and she returns to the same quiet monument she has been since he carried her away from the market...“I know...” Kendra responds, her voice cracking. Vespar has to strain to hear her over the murmuring crackle of the fire. “I know what his eyes looked like, Vespar. I know it wasn’t him. But my hands... I can still feel the frost on that iron. We locked the gate. I threw my weight onto the bracket. I helped you lock him out in the dark... how do we live with that? How does anyone live with that?”How does anyone live with that?I had to...Maybe she will understand.I hope she does.He watches as she curls into herself next to the fire—weeping.