BooksBarbecue
Back Winterkeep Save as PDF
Chapters (63)
  1. Dedication
  2. Map
  3. A Note to the Reader
  4. PART ONE
  5. The Keeper
  6. Chapter One
  7. Chapter Two
  8. Chapter Three
  9. Chapter Four
  10. Chapter Five
  11. Chapter Six
  12. Chapter Seven
  13. Chapter Eight
  14. Chapter Nine
  15. PART TWO
  16. The Keeper
  17. Chapter Ten
  18. Chapter Eleven
  19. Chapter Twelve
  20. Chapter Thirteen
  21. Chapter Fourteen
  22. Chapter Fifteen
  23. Chapter Sixteen
  24. Chapter Seventeen
  25. Chapter Eighteen
  26. Chapter Nineteen
  27. Chapter Twenty
  28. Chapter Twenty-one
  29. PART THREE
  30. The Keeper
  31. Chapter Twenty-two
  32. Chapter Twenty-three
  33. Chapter Twenty-four
  34. Chapter Twenty-five
  35. Chapter Twenty-six
  36. Chapter Twenty-seven
  37. Chapter Twenty-eight
  38. Chapter Twenty-nine
  39. PART FOUR
  40. The Keeper
  41. Chapter Thirty
  42. Chapter Thirty-one
  43. Chapter Thirty-two
  44. Chapter Thirty-three
  45. Chapter Thirty-four
  46. Chapter Thirty-five
  47. Chapter Thirty-six
  48. Chapter Thirty-seven
  49. Chapter Thirty-eight
  50. Chapter Thirty-nine
  51. Chapter Forty
  52. Chapter Forty-one
  53. PART FIVE
  54. The Keeper
  55. Chapter Forty-two
  56. Chapter Forty-three
  57. Chapter Forty-four
  58. Chapter Forty-five
  59. Cast of Characters
  60. Acknowledgments
  61. About the Author
  62. Don’t miss any of THE GRACELING REALM novels
  63. What’s next onyour reading list?

“All right,” said Bitterblue, pushing herself up almost with ferocity. “Let’s go find someone who knows where Nev lives.” For now that she could see the truth, she was ready. Bitterblue had ample experience of forcing herself to face terrifying things.

Chapter Thirty-three

If Giddon saw one more snowflake, he was going to lose his mind.

The storm blanketed Nev’s home for two days. Two days of being stranded, getting no closer to the Cavenda house, making no progress toward learning what Mikka had learned; two days with nothing to distract him from his stupid hopes about the silbercows rescuing Bitterblue.

Hava had berated him about that, not gently. In the cold barn, with snow gusting through the windows and chickens squawking in the background, she’d thrown hot words at him. “Then where did the silbercows take her? Why haven’t we heard from her?”

“I don’t know,” he said.

“Why are you assuming they showed us something they saw? Maybe it was a story some human told them, or something they made up. Maybe they looked into your heart and got the story from you! Did you think of that? Why are you making this worse, Giddon?”

“I—” His voice cracked. “I don’t know.”

“Well, stop it!” she shouted, then pushed out of the barn into the blinding whiteness, leaving him alone.

Giddon had this hope that could apparently live, even thrive, on almost no sustenance. He wondered if he’d always had it. He supposed it might be why he’d remained at Bitterblue’s court for years, working in Estill but always basing himself at her castle, while she came to him over and over to tell him her feelings about whatever man was sharing her bed. Why had he subjected himself to that? It had been because of his dumb, stupid hope.

Nev had a grandfather, whose name was Saiet. He was a tall, slight man with bright eyes in a brown, wrinkled face. He was always making Giddon and Hava cups of tea, then going out into the storm and not coming back for hours. Nev would go with him sometimes, or sometimes go out on her own, for they were animal doctors, visiting the sick animals of their neighbors. Giddon, who found the short trek from the barn to the house harrowing and used the rope extended between the buildings to guide himself every time, was impressed by their storm hardiness.