“Guards!” I barked.
Footsteps thundered in from the corridor. The head guard appeared, eyes widening at the sight.
“Bring water,” I ordered. “And summon the physician.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
As he left, I turned back to Myra. Her small shoulders shook. “I promised Auntie,” she whispered brokenly. “I told her I’d finish before the Full Moon Festival.”
Her voice cracked on the words Auntie, and my heart splintered a little more.
“You’ll make another one,” I said quietly, brushing soot from her hair. “A better one. I promise.”
She shook her head, tears spilling again. “It’s gone. The flowers, the pattern… all gone.”
I pulled her into my arms, ignoring the ash that smeared across my clothes. “Things can be remade, Myra. You can’t.”
Her small hands fisted the front of my shirt. “It wasn
