Wren's POV
He didn't come find me in the courtyard, and I spent most of that afternoon telling myself I was relieved about it; that space is exactly what I needed after watching him draw a line for me in front of an entire household like I was something worth defending. It doesn't feel like relief. It feels like waiting for a conversation neither of us has found the courage to start.
I find him an hour later on the eastern wall, the same stretch of fence Piet marked on his map, standing alone with his forearms braced against the stone and his eyes fixed on the gray, dying patch of land beyond it.
"You could have let me go," I say, coming to stand beside him, close enough to feel the warmth coming from him but not close enough to touch. "It would have been simpler. One less complication
