Chapter 16 - Epilogue

Sharnellynn sat, perched at the edge of the driver's seat of the wagon, looking at the fire pit as if she could imagine the flames flickering. They hadn't bothered to set a fire, being in the city. Matner had found them cooked food instead. It had been a nice treat after all the meals on the road. She had never felt so relieved to be out of the company of other Elves before. Matner seemed the only friend she had. Sometimes she wondered if there couldn't be more between them. She would never presume anything, however. She had stopped making assumptions a while ago. But a part of her wanted him to see her as more than just a promise he had made. It frightened her, but she trusted him. She wanted to see where that led.

She thought about her life and what lay ahead. It seemed like there were so many possibilities. She wondered if they would find a home in Jundra or if Ahriender would still be rejected there. Were there any others like him out there that had been allowed to grow and thrive. If she had borne a child by a human then others could too, which meant it was possible. A part of her was hopeful, wanting Ahriender to find someone else he could relate to better. She had never thought her own kind could be so hateful. She had to hope that there were some who could be more open-minded.

She knew they would have to continue the pretense of being Matner's slaves until they were out of Callest. It troubled her, having her son play the part of a slave for so long, but she'd seen that Ahriender was stronger than she'd expected. He was brave, and she knew now that he'd make it through. Not just through the injuries that were healing with remarkable speed, but from the pain of the Elves rejecting him. He'd wake up angry, but she knew that she and Matner could show him that there was hope. It seemed strange, but she had more hope now than she ever had before.

She looked up to the sky, where a few light clouds rolled lazily under the stars. Long ago, her father had shown her different constellations in the sky, just before he had sent her here, to this city she sat in now. The city looked different this time, but the constellations were the same. And they would be in Jundra too. The stars know everything, Sharnellynn, her father had told her. Sometimes they show us what the Gods want us to know.

Somehow, as the stars winked knowingly back at her, Sharnellynn knew. She was going to a new, strange land, where her son would be free, but it would be home. She was going home.

The End