Chapter 40

As the night fell, we made our way to the harbour, guided by one of Tarion’s companions, who knew how to pass through the streets unnoticed. Aki took my hand as we walked, and I gently squeezed it in reassurance.

It was only now, as the commotion had settled, that I realised that she would leave us soon. She would be back with her family, and we would continue to Doria by ourselves. Despite what I’d thought of her in the beginning, I had grown fond of her and would miss her company.

Tarion stood waiting as we reached the harbour, and he gave us a nod as we halted before him.

“May Goddess bless your path.”

Karim put a hand on his shoulder, and Tarion gestured at the small rowboat in the water that would carry us across the river. Once on the other side, we would be in Aki’s land and in a few days, we would meet her family. As I stepped onboard, I saw Tarion stopping Aki. He leaned over and whispered to her and then placed something in her hands before patting her back. I wondered what it was, but the wobbling of the boat reminded me to focus.

I grabbed the edge as we pushed out. It was different from sailing a ship, and the boat wobbled from side to side in the strong current as the crew pushed against the waves. When the boat finally hit the shore, the leader nodded to us and whispered,

“May Goddess guide you”

We clambered out, and the crew pushed the boat back into the water, and we were alone on the riverbank. It was a moonless night, and in the darkness, all I could make out was the faint shapes of the others. I wondered how we would make our way through the forest, but Aki didn’t seem to be bothered by it, and only whispered,

“Are you ready?”

She gestured for us to follow, and we stumbled towards the forest further up the riverbank.

“We will rest when we get deeper inland”, Karim whispered, reminding us about our plan.

I’d decided to continue to walk barefoot, and the soft sand against my soles was soon replaced by the rough forest ground. It didn’t take long before I began to fall behind. I had never imagined I would walk through the wilderness at night, and doing it without shoes only made it even worse. I struggled to catch up and almost stumbled back when Aki materialised in front of me in the darkness.

“Rina… Put your hand on my shoulder”, she whispered.

“What?”

“Do it, it will be okay”

I did as she instructed, and she began to walk. It took me a while to get used to it, and I bumped into her several times when she halted unexpectedly. But after a while, I found the rhythm and even though it was strange to walk without seeing where I was going, at least I didn’t get lost.

After a while, Aki halted and announced that we would make camp. I slumped down on the ground. My feet hurt worse than I’d thought, and I only hoped I would get used to it.

We didn’t dare start a fire, so even though the night was cold, it was decided to huddle together to keep warm. Aki stirred, squeezed between me and Karim.

“You cannot sleep, either?”, she whispered.

I shook my head, only to realise that she couldn’t see it, and instead put my arm around her.

“I wish Father was coming with me….”

She sobbed, and I wrapped my arms around her.

“I am sorry”

“I miss him…”

For the first time, I wished I was who they hoped so I could take away her pain.

“Aki…”

I stroked her hair, and she buried her face in my neck. It wasn’t fair, and I wished I could do something for her. In the end, she fell asleep in my arms, her body small and fragile as I tried to shield her from what would come.

She was still snuggled up against me when we woke up the next day. She stirred and then turned to me. I could see her eyes glistening with tears, and I wished I could stay with her, but the sun was already high in the sky, and we had a long journey ahead of us.

“We need to get up”, I whispered.

She nodded and gave me a sad smile before getting up. I sighed and followed. The others were already awake, and Uruk passed me a chunk of bread as I sat down next to him. Aki was sitting on Karim’s lap, eating quietly.

I sighed seeing her, but Uruk put his hand on my shoulder and gave me a reassuring nod. Not long after, Selene gestured for us to get up, and we set out once again.