The Source (Creasan #1)

Chapter 10

The next morning, Merek helped Thea check her gear in her bedroom. Unlike what Thea imagined the king's or prince's rooms to look like, Thea's room was very minimal. A thin mattress laid on the floor behind her. A desk to the left with some paper and a quill. A bar just below the ceiling held Thea's clothes and beside it stood a mirror. There were no decorations, no physical signs of personality. Thea couldn't afford such luxuries.

In preparation for the trip, the Council had debated heavily about whether or not they should wear armor. They'd ultimately decided against it. The climb up the mountain would be difficult enough without the added weight of all that metal.

Merek pulled the sheath on her back tighter then dropped her sword into it. She reached down and looped the strap of her crossbow around the other shoulder. Two daggers were holstered to each of her thighs. Merek was dressed similar with the sword at his back and daggers around his waist.

Maerwynn handed Thea her quiver of arrows. While her mother hadn't argued further about their journey, it was clear from her somber expression that she did not support it. Even though Thea knew Lief would have agreed that the plan was a good one, her heart ached for her mother.

"Merek," Thea said, "would you mind checking on the others?"

His eyes moved between Thea and Maerwynn, knowing what Thea was really asking. He nodded and left.

"Mama?" Thea gestured to the mirror. "Would you mind helping me with my hair?"

Maerwynn smiled warmly. "Of course."

Thea dragged the chair from the desk to the mirror and plopped down on it. Her mother ran her fingers through Thea's strawberry blonde hair, and Thea savored the way it felt, the memories it brought back.

When she was a child, Maerwynn used to braid Thea's hair every night before bed. It was the only time they were truly alone in their tiny house, and it was when Thea could pour out her secrets to her mother without fear of being overheard. Whenever Maerwynn did this...it felt like home.

Maerwynn started at the top of her head, gathering even the tiny wisps of hair from around her face.

"I know you're scared," Thea whispered. "But I promise I'll be careful."

"I understand why you're doing it. Truly I do." Maerwynn collected more hair as she moved down Thea's head. "It's just...with your father...it's an impossible quest, Thea."

"Nothing is impossible," she recited.

Her mother's lips turned up at the corner. "That's a nice sentiment. I've always thought so. But this journey—"

"I'll be all right, Mama." Thea smiled at her mother in the mirror. "Papa went alone. I am taking my best warriors. There is nothing this world could throw at us that we can't handle."

"Fine, then I'm coming."

Thea shook her head. "Absolutely not."

"I am not sending you out there when I have no idea what could happen to you." Maerwynn reached her neck.

"If anything were to happen to me—which it won't," Thea quickly said as her mother's eyes seared into hers in the mirror. "But if anything does, The Source will need you. They respect you. They'll listen to you. You have to watch over them."

Maerwynn worked in silence for a time, braiding the rest of Thea's hair and then twisting it into a bun at the base of her head. She set her hands on Thea's shoulders and met her gaze in the mirror. "I will watch over them. Until you come back."

Thea smiled and stood, facing her mother. "Thank you."

Maerwynn pulled her into a tight hug, pressing her cheek into her daughter's bound hair. Thea held her just as tightly, burying her face in her shoulder and inhaling her scent. "Please," her mother whispered, "please, be safe."