42

Now there's a dark stain on Reeina's cheek as she says goodbye to me at the stone flower-decorated doors of what she calls the dassbat.

She says a maid in your position cannot come with me here.

She says this is a sacred place for her people, where Prince Alpha takes care of his tzauri. Before leaving, he tells me that I am safe here, that no harm will come to me, and that the Wolf King will come and get me as soon as he can stand up, “because I am important to him”.

I want to believe everything Reeina tells me when I enter the dassbat.

She also assured me that she will be back soon to see if I am settled in properly and need anything.

— Most Auri Fen speak your language, lyn Kim. If you need something, call them.

This makes me calmer.

I advance through the narrow corridors of the dassbat.

Here the air smells sweet and spicy, and there is a kind of low music being played on a stringed instrument that I don't recognize. There were few instruments on Goddess Island, and all of them were