She nodded in gratitude and did, obviously warmed the second the tower’s welcoming air wrapped around her. Henry’d felt it the first night Theo brought him here.
“Captain Tourmaline, yes?” More relaxed now, she smiled at him. Smiled in a way Henry recognized as attraction, and perhaps even a bit of awe.
That recognition made him wonder if he’d regained the charm he thought he’d lost. Or if he’d somehow become an object of hero-worship for the younger students, the children who’d never gone to war. Either way, it was flattering, if also a bit disconcerting.
“Yes.” He smiled back. Her cheeks flushed. “That’s me.”
“Then this is for you.” She handed him the small object she’d been attempting to keep dry.
A letter, evidently. Well, that was ordinary, if unexpected.
Henry looked at his nam
