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simple."
    She frowned at Dewel. "Why?"
    "Faldon lost everything because of Sorvin's greed. If not for the curse, he would still have the herd. A human caused his suffering." Dewel took a deep breath, his eyes pinching shut for a moment. Selina winced at the groan escaping when he breathed.
    "Long ago, he tried to bring the feyquin together with the human's domain, hoping we could live together in peace. For three generations, he gave his blessings to the new heir of Vastorn, after they proved their hearts. Sorvin failed in every way but demanded the blessing, for the strength of the feyquin's alliance and what that means to the people. As the leader of the feyquin, Faldon refused to endorse the White Prince. His choice was young Kemmon. Sorvin knew that."
    "Faldon, a peacemaker?" They could kick her outright and she wouldn't have believed it. "Wait... Three generations, of the fay Renald family?"
    Dewel looked ahead. "Feyquin don't age as humans."
    "All right, so he's old." The thought left a bitter taste in her mouth in light of her situation. "He should have some wisdom in that thick head." She caught a nasty look from Faldon when he turned his head aside and his ears pinned flat. She didn't care; he deserved to hear what she thought of him.
    "You do well not to insult him," Dewel said.
    "He should consider the same. I don't know why his blessing would mean anything special." She raised her voice and added, "At least he's lived his life."
    Faldon swished his tail, one ear pivoted back while the other remained forward. Without a word, he continued to the town with Bastien slightly behind his lead.
    They were odd creatures, these feyquin. For all their intelligence and power and—she dared not admit for risk of bloating their egos—beauty, they could be intolerable. Strangest to her was that the nobles of this country sought their blessing as proof of their worth.
    Selina reconsidered her earlier outburst in light of this news and felt a hint of pity for Faldon. Had he not shown such a temper towards her or led the band that chased off Doxon, she might have sided with him.
    They reached the town of Willowbrook with its neat lines of houses and shops along dusty streets. She found the only inn without trouble.
    When she entered, Beth's smile lit up from her chair at one of half a dozen rectangular wooden tables. "Selina!"
    Selina bent over and hugged her friend, mindful of Beth's leg propped up on a chair.
    "I'm so glad to see you!" Beth's voice trembled. "We were afraid, but the feyquin said they wouldn't hurt you."
    "They didn't, but they aren't very friendly either, especially Faldon." The last part came out with less derision than she expected of herself. She grabbed a nearby chair, the wood clattering on the floor as she slid it next to Beth's leg and sat down. "I hear you've been injured, thanks to them. Let me have a look."
    Beth pulled up the bottom of her brown and green dress to expose the leg resting across another chair.
    Selina fought back a grimace. Blotches of purple and blue covered the swollen, lower leg. "Try to relax."
    The power flowed from Selina's practiced hands to heal Beth's injury. The glow of the mark on her neck when she used her powers shone from beneath her chin.
    When the glow faded, a healthy color returned to the leg. Selina ignored a few gasps from people around her as she recovered from a brief wave of dizziness.
    With extra care, Beth slid her leg from the chair. She leaned on the table and stood. When she put her weight on the leg, a smile spread across her face. "I...Thank you!"
    Selina gave her friend another hug, glad to see her happy, but mostly glad to see her again. "It's the least I could do. You came this far with me." She stood back and glanced around. Several faces turned away from her when her eyes passed them, but none of them familiar. "Where's Reen?"
    Beth's smile disappeared. "That feyquin, Grem, went with him to search for Doxon. He couldn't wait. I'm sorry, Selina."
    "It's