by Shae Ford
Jonathan let go of Clairy just long enough to give them all a hug goodbye, then his arms went back around her waist. When Kyleigh saw how they grinned at each other, she knew they’d have many happy years ahead of them — though she cringed to think about the sort of mischief they might get into.
Declan emerged from one of the barns with a small clay pot in his hands, and he went straight for Aerilyn. “I planted one of the seeds from Noah’s tree in here. It’ll grow better under a woman’s care,” he explained, when she looked confused. “Peaches need a gentle touch — at least, that’s what the Grovers say. I only really know horses.” He pressed the pot into her hands. “Give it to Noah’s mother … that way she’ll always have a piece of him.”
Aerilyn hugged Declan tightly, promising that she would.
They left with the sun rising at their backs: the pirates and the shipbuilders, along with Nadine, Jake, and Silas — who somehow caught wind of their plan to attack the mountains, and seemed to think that he was invited.
“Now you can finally pay me back for all of my work, dragoness,” he said as they walked along. “My mountains will be free once again!”
Some of Gilderick’s slaves were men and women of the seas, and most were eager to return to their families — though Lysander did manage to convince a small number of them to join him as pirates. Much to their surprise, Eveningwing had also insisted on becoming a pirate. Now he soared high above them, screeching happily as he guided them towards the seas. Occasionally, he’d even dip down to bat Lysander across the head.
As they left the plains, Kyleigh wore a wide smile that she could do absolutely nothing about. She didn’t know if it was the happiness in the air or her own excitement that made her heart so light: Kael walked beside her the whole way.
He listened intently as she told him about her adventure in the desert — occasionally interjecting that she shouldn’t have done one thing or the other. “You were really lucky, you know,” he said, when she told him about what had happened to the Baron’s castle. “There are so many ways it could’ve all gone wrong.”
“True — but it didn’t. So there’s no point in worrying about it, is there?”
He shrugged. “I always worry. I can’t help it. Especially when it’s …” He clamped his mouth shut.
“When it’s what?”
“No — I promised that I wouldn’t say anything else about it. And I intend to keep my promise. Now …” He glanced around them quickly, and then he lowered his voice. “You were right. I am up to something.”
Kyleigh’s stomach flipped when he broke into an unexpected smile. But she forced herself to smile back. “I knew it. And what do you have planned, Kael of the Unforgivable Mountains?”
He shrugged. The lights behind his eyes pulsed as he turned them towards the horizon. “Nothing, yet. But I was hoping you might be able to help me with that.”
And she promised she would.
Acknowledgements
I’ll never stop thanking God for this opportunity. I’ve been so blessed with family, friends, and readers who’ve given me their love and support — and I just want to let y’all know how much it means to me.
Thanks to all my family (you folks in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Indiana, Georgia, and even a few weirdos in Pennsylvania) for supporting me every step of the way. I firmly believe that the reason I’ve been able to do any of this is because you’ve kept me in your prayers, kept me in your hearts, and told me constantly how much you believe in me. A wise man once said: “You can pick your nose, but you can’t pick your family.”
Lucky for me — because I don’t think I could’ve picked a better one!
Special thanks to my beta-readers: Toby, Ashtyn, Gayle, Prudence, Sandra, and of course, Ms. Carmichael. Thanks for trudging through my rough drafts … and thanks for being gentle!
I’d also like to thank Pam Wiley and Chrystal Houston for hiring me to work that journalism job at Mays.
Pam, you taught me how to comb through my work with an editor’s eye. Because of you, I’m not afraid of a little red ink. It’s gotten me through the heartache of having to start all over again so many times, because you’d already taught me that a second draft is not an admittance of failure — just the start of something better.
Chrystal, my fellow writer and my friend: I feel like so many of my articles were made more epic by having your LOTR soundtrack playing in the background. I will never forget the day when I stepped into your office and announced that I’d gotten accepted into a business school. You looked at me and said: “Really? Huh. I always thought you’d be a writer.”
Well … fine.
I would also like to thank my friend, Molly — who took time out of her tour of duty in the U.S. Navy to send me a pair of dragon bookends from Japan. I’m sorry that this thanks is so grossly overdue. But I want you to know that both dragons are sitting proudly on my bookshelf, guarding the old tomes that I’ve rescued from antique shops. And you’ll be happy to hear that “Molly” the horse is doing well, too!
Finally, thank you, dear Reader, for going on this adventure with me. Time, once spent, cannot be reclaimed. And I thank you for spending your time in my world — walking among the characters I love so dearly, fighting alongside them in every battle, and cheering when good finally triumphs over evil. It has always been my dream to tell a story worth hearing. And you, my readers, make it a story worth telling.
So as you leave the Kingdom and head back into the real world, I want to leave you all with this thought: may your heart find joy, may your soul know peace, and may the sunlight brighten your steps.
