by Scott Moore
Malik shook from his bed. It was the first time he had moved in several days. His body still ached, but he could move again. He did so with care and pushed himself to a seated position. Mollie and Khris were sitting at the table. Egg was hanging off Mollie’s leg scanning the room with his over large eyes. Embre was seated in the corner reading a book. The old man was standing over the stove cooking something in a pan. Malik swung his feet to the floor. Had he really seen the old man’s eyes grow so dark? Were his cheeks tattooed with the white stripes? He coughed, trying to get the old man’s attention.
The old man turned and with the smile Malik had come to know announced breakfast was cooking and would be ready soon.
Malik still needed assistance to get from his bed to the table, but his body was feeling better than it had the previous times he had awoken. He ate two helpings of eggs, sausage, and bacon and drank down two steaming cups of coffee. With his belly full, he felt tired again but denied himself the sweet relief of sleep.
“We are done then?” he asked, pushing his plate away.
Everyone looked up at him.
“Done with what?” Mollie asked.
“With the relic, with the Tempre, with everything,” he said.
“Well we brought the relic back to where we decided it should be,” Mollie answered.
“So, we are done,” he pressed.
Mollie nodded her head. “With the relic, yes,” she replied.
Malik felt she left the other questions hanging. She did not commit to being done with the Tempre.
“And everything else?” he asked.
Malik just wanted to move on. He wanted Mollie to move on with him. His body was healing and soon he would be ready to go. He needed to know that Mollie would be leaving with him.
“Let’s talk about it when you can get around again,” Mollie suggested.
Malik shook his head now. “I just want to be done,” he said.
Mollie turned her eyes away. Malik knew she had not given up on the goal of stopping the Tempre. They had left Sweet Tongue for dead, maimed Minus, and heard Zimbre be killed, but that was not enough for her. Was it enough for him?
Malik thought about what Sweet Tongue had said about Abrie. Had he really been there the night Malik’s parents died? Shouldn’t Malik still find Abrie and let him speak for himself? Sweet Tongue was a known liar and there was no reason to believe him about what he said. He was just trying to destroy Malik’s will. He had done a good job of it.
“I just want to be a bard again,” Malik said.
Mollie looked back up only for a moment. “You can be,” was all she said.
In that moment, Malik knew that she gave him permission to leave. She had told him it was okay to abandon her and the others. Whatever he did after was his own choice, and she was okay with what he decided.
“When do we leave for Gray Waters?” Malik asked.
Malik thought he saw the small hint of a smile creep across Mollie’s face, but in an instant, it was gone.
“I think you should wait till you can walk to the table at least,” the old man said.
The rest of them joined in on the laughter. Malik leaned back. The old man was probably right about that. However, as soon as he was ready, he would get out of this cabin. Maybe he still had the chance to convince Mollie to run off with him. Maybe they would have no choice but to go to the city. Either way, Malik would be there beside Mollie. He had decided that much.
