d the Count followed, and Spyder and Shrike rode at the rear.
"What went on back there?" asked Shrike. "Did you have words with Count Non?"
"He had words with me. And thats not why Im tweaking. Listen, can you hurt those things back there? Those memory ghosts?"
"Tell me what happened. "
"I had a run-in. With myself. It got out of hand. I might have killed him. "
"I dont think you can kill those spirits. Do you still have the memory of the part of yourself that you fought with?"
"Yeah, I think so. "
"Then its still alive back there. The only one you hurt is yourself. Theres so much pain in your voice. "
"He was just a kid. I was just a kid. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to wipe him out. "
"Thats not how youre going to get rid of him, you know. "
"What is?"
"Learn to forgive him. "
"Did you forgive the guy who betrayed you?"
Neither of them said anything for a while. His hand had stopped bleeding, so he wiggled his fingers to see if they worked properly. They did, but moving them was agony. "Dont tell the others about this, okay?"
Shrike leaned to him in the saddle. "Kiss me," she said. Spyder was happy to oblige.
"Are you cured?" Shrike asked. "Back home, at the Autumn Encomium-its a lot like Christmas-members of the royal family must kiss any ill or injured person who asks. The kiss was supposed to cure all maladies. "
"Did it work?"
"Tradition says Yes. As far as Im aware, no, not even once. "
They stopped to water the horses at a spring a few hours later. Berenice was long out of sight and
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