He Signed the Exile Order, So I Took the Wards North novel · Chapter 15 of 24

Chapter 15: The Letter

I broke the wax with my thumb and read it by the lamp, wrapped in Ronan's blanket.

My father wrote the way he talked, plainly, with no ornament.

My Catriona.

If Ronan Hask is giving you this, you came north, and you are no longer in a hurry to go back. Good.

I have heard you married the Beta's son and that Greyfell is quiet and strong. I know why it is strong.

I taught you to lend your blood through a bond, and I have thought about it every night since.

I taught it because I was afraid for you. I thought a man could carry what you could not, and nobody would look at you.

I was wrong. A bond that only gives is a leash. You will give until you forget which strength was yours.

Stop lending it, my girl. Not to him, not to anyone who has not earned it back.

Your wards were always better than mine. Let them be seen.

I am sorry I will not be there when you do. Ronan Hask has sat with me through the worst of it, and he is a better man than the Concord that sent me here. I have made him promise to hold this letter until you arrive of your own will. If I send it, you will come north in anger, and the Concord will take you too.

There is a cairn on the ridge above the hold. I chose it for the view. It faces south.

I was proud of you at seventeen, and I am prouder now.

Your father.

I read it to the end and then I read the last line again.

I did not make any sound.

The tears came without anything else, and Ronan sat on the edge of the bed and did not touch me until I reached for him.

← Chapter 14 · All chapters · Chapter 16 →

Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend