Page 62 of For the Ghastly and Beautiful

“I’m wrapping your arm,” I say slowly, grabbing the bandage I’d already prepared.

She doesn’t need it, but I don’t know if she’s ready for everyone to know she has extra abilities. So, I cover the wound before Shyla notices it’s gone. She’s healing quicker as the days pass, which means her ability isn’t like any of the other Mongrel healers.

I suppose I’ve grown into mine, though. Maybe it just seems exceptional because we haven’t known about it for more than a few weeks.

“I’ll send everything you need with Rin,” Shyla says as she hugs Ada. “But I’ll see you all for dinner soon. It’s been too long since I’ve had all the kids at the table.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Ada replies as I groan.

“We’re not kids, Shy.”

She reaches up to pat my cheek, then turns for the door as she calls over her shoulder, “I’m fifty years older than you, and I caught you at birth.”

“She’s impossible to deal with,” I mumble. “Though she was more observant today than she normally is.”

“Shyla is a mother, Imryll,” Ada states like that explains everything. “You may not be her child by blood, but that doesn’t mean she has to treat you any differently than she treats her own children. She loves you. That’s the only thing that matters to her.”

I hum in response, not knowing how to acknowledge her words. Then I guide Ada out of the exam room, through the clinic, and onto the footpath. She’s quiet as I lace our fingers together, her thumb immediately tracing circles across my palm. It’s a habit I’ve picked up on, but I find it as calming as she does.

“Thinking about your mother?” I ask once I’m sure no one is around us.

She’s so lost in her thoughts that I’m positive she didn’t hear me. I don’t like to drudge up the past, so I decide against repeating the question. I have my hand on the palace doors when she finally sighs.

“I was, but then I ended up thinking about my dad. He would have fit right in with the Mongrels.”

Before I can ask more about him, Rin appears from the dining hall. She has two plates filled with food balanced in her hands and four bottles of mead tucked under her arms.

She gives us a quick grin, but it’s gone just as fast. Her gaze hardens as she glares over Ada’s shoulder. I cant my head, spotting Poko disappear toward the hallway that leads to the catacombs.

“Let me take the bottles before you drop them,” Ada says, drawing my attention to the women in front of me. “Why didn’t you take two trips?”

“Are you serious? I would have made it to—”

“Your bedroom door? How were you going to open it?”

Rin rolls her eyes as Ada wraps her fingers around the necks of the bottles.

“Lift your arms.”

“If you drop them…”

“I won’t.”

I rub at my jaw, amused by their familiarity with each other. Knowing they’ve become friends is one thing, but seeing them like this is odd. And worrisome. I’ve not seen Ada drink, though I have seen Rin intoxicated too many times to count.

“Do you need help?” I ask.

“I don’t, but Ada does,” Rin quips. “She wants to read all night, and I need to drink myself to sleep before she makes me read Spiran’s history out loud. Again.”

“I’m trying to learn,” Ada gripes. “You said you would—”

“Yeah, yeah. I know,” Rin interrupts. “Why do you think I was gathering snacks and drinks? I found some of the more entertaining stories that I can translate, so let’s go before I change my mind.”

Ada smiles at me. “I swear, she’s the grumpiest Mongrel I’ve met so far.”

I lean down, kissing her before sending them upstairs. Rin wrinkles her nose as she waves me away.

Once they reach the hall, and I hear the soft click of a door closing, I turn to the guard stationed at the palace entrance. He tips his head when I catch his eye. I motion him forward, though he’s not quick to comply.