Bearclaw Valley can't complain

An ear turned back at the familiar voice—a voice she, Anselm, and Etienne had discussed silencing for good. He posed a question, and Fiona slowed to a stop, pivoting so she could face him from a distance. She wasn't sure how unstable he was emotionally, but physically he looked worse than she remembered. Druid hadn't done all of that, had she? There was no way a single glancing blow could have delivered that much damage. So what the hell had happened?

She'll recover, Fiona replied, trying to gauge his reaction to that news. What happened to you? Are you staying here? A million other questions bubbled up to the surface, but Fiona limited herself to those two for now. There would be more time to ask. And if there wasn't, she'd be on her way, knowing the guard dog's updated whereabouts.