THORNE POINT OF VIEW

The pain in my leg was dull , l I was trying to sit through it, breathing slow, when the door burst open.

Cairn rushed in.

He was panting, his hair was damp with sweat, and his face pale in a way I didn’t like. He didn’t bow. He didn’t even close the door behind him.

I straightened as much as I could. “What is it?”

He didn’t answer.

“Cairn,” I said again, sharper this time. “Speak.”

He stood there, fists clenched, eyes fixed on the floor like the ...