Redhawk Caldera you are blood and earth, not theory and chalk

I’m sorry.

Thuringwethil leans into her again, trying to assure her without words that it’s okay. It’s not her fault. She wouldn’t have abandoned them. She hadn’t been willing to accept that as an option and being with her now confirms it. If anything, she feels the need to apologize. They should have moved sooner, searched farther, came straight to the caldera to begin with and maybe they would have found her sooner. They could have stopped all this, found her wherever she’d been kept—Blackfeather Woods—and destroyed them long ago and while she can’t change how things actually happened, she can make sure they don’t happen again.

Wildfire’s explanation of what happens only fuels the fire insider her. The Moonspear wolves warned her about them. She should have stayed the last time she was here, waiting for her to wake up so she can make the move. Whatever happens next, it comes in the form of death, and Thuringwethil will see to it. Whoever Cicero is will not see the light of day anymore. A low rumble rattles deep in her chest and she shifts awkwardly, opening her mouth to say something but Wildfire sneezes, turning away to avoid another spray, and a beat later her mate continues. Thuringwethil holds her tongue, trying to redirect her anger and turn it into the compassion she has on getting her mate better.

“We need to get you home,” she tells her, unaware of the feelings she had prior to her return. It’ll fix everything, at least for the time being. The winter will not be easy on them and Wildfire is far from healthy. Even something as small as a cold has taken a toll on her and slowed the process down. Can she and Étoille get her home in one piece without making things worse? Is she going to have to leave her again? Thuringwethil sighs, wishing they were not so far away from one another, but she does not know what to do. “We should have taken you home when we found you but I was afraid of hurting you even more,” she murmurs quietly, ignoring her companion behind her and oblivious to the approach of Eljay.

She even temporarily forgets she called for the leaders of the caldera. All that matters if Wildfire in her embrace and she closes her eyes, pulling her close again regardless of whatever bodily fluid comes out of her. I will kill them, she thinks. All of them.

416