Redsand Canyon Zestasiá

tamar felt her eyes throb with tears.

she pillowed her head back against arsenio once more. to be given a choice. to have the imperator informed that it would be her decision. she knew what the red wolf had meant: he wished to center her in this.

it was a weight to carry. it was nothing to carry. "i say yes," she whispered, turning her pale eyes to him again. "when my time comes, i want to be mother to your children. to our children."

her mouth twitched tearfully. tamar reached to pull her husband into an embrace that dulled the rest of mereo away, until it was only she, only he, only the brilliant collapse of the sun fading timelessly into its own bed.