The trip home was quiet. Alaric followed a few steps behind Erin, just to give her space. He found it to be more difficult whenever she would turn quiet. In all honesty, he preferred her much more to be loud and angry at him, not disappointed and angry at mostly herself.
Maybe the old man really was just a product of wishful thinking. Maybe not. Either way, he had to admit that Erin was the closest that he had to a family in Ashen City— and even if she had her faults, he couldn’t blame her for not believing his stories. After all, she was a product of the untrusting world she lived in, and if he were in her shoes, he would probably think that he was spouting nonsense as well. It was already a miracle that she even held out a helping hand in the first place— a bigger miracle that she hadn’
