A shiv for me a shiv for you

Three more wasn’t too bad, right? But her lip and jaw was going to be aching by the end of this. Grief, what had she agreed to? But of course, she had offered to do this, and she would do it well. She snorted a laugh, almost upsetting the precision of the sharpening as her mouth moved with the sound. She couldn’t speak for the moment, only listen, as he claimed she didn’t want the answer, and about Tana’s scars. She grew more somber as that was mentioned.

She already knew in her heart of hearts that the ills of others affected her terribly. It seemed to be a trait she shared with Rhyme. She still couldn’t speak, and turned the antler a few more times, before giving up and setting it down, half done. “Tell me” she instructed, but her voice was soft, and it was clear she wasn’t giving him any orders. For that matter, she never gave him orders, only advise him on the best way he could progress the pack.

She considered him too much her equal, even if the pack had fallen on her shoulders first. He had agreed to share that load, and that meant she respected him, as an Alpha, a cousin, and a friend. So no, no orders where given, and he knew it.