Kingdom of Ash

Aelin peered down at her hands. Cold—that
was a trace of cold now biting into them.
Altered in every way.
Dorian said as they approached the first of
the rukhin, “What are you going to tell them?”
The first words any of them had spoken
since they’d begun the trek back here.
“The truth,” Aelin said.
She supposed it was all she had to offer
them, after what she’d done.
She said to Dorian, “I’m sorry—about your
father.”
The chill wind brushed the strands of
Dorian’s hair off his brow. “So am I,” he said,
resting a hand atop Damaris’s hilt.
At his side, Chaol kept silent, though he
glanced at the king every now and then. He’d
look out for Dorian. As he always had, Aelin
supposed.
They passed the first of the ruks, the birds