Khairrim did not even greet Eoghan. He could not wait to say what he wanted to say. It was too urgent. He had asked Eoghan to meet him in the Stone Chamber where they had all their secret meetings.

"She ages every minute she spends out of the forest. The forest and your magic protect her. It keeps her young. I did not notice it at first. It was too subtle, but you have noticed it too. Every time she returned, she was different; more human. You have to keep her from leaving the forest. Your daughter is dying."

Eoghan considered what Khairrim had said for a moment before answering carefully. "I cannot do that. She is too great to be hidden here. She will not stay here. She has always longed for the world outside the forest. This has never been enough for her. Aedan is content with it all and even Faolan longs to return here. She is a wanderer. She searches ceaselessly for a home, but she will not find it here. She senses that this is not where she belongs."

Khairrim only half-listened to what Eoghan said. "You have to keep her here. I beg you."

"If what you say is true, I will try. Old friend, I told you, many hundred years ago, that you have to make peace with yourself."

"And I told you that I will, but not now," Khairrim snapped back.

"You are haunted."

"Keep her safe. Do anything to protect her." He was desperate, and irritated at Eoghan for not understanding the urgency that drove Khairrim here.

"There is nothing I can say or do to force her to stay. You know our traditions and unspoken laws." Eoghan pondered a thought for a moment: "However, there is one condition that keeps a lady in the forest, one where she is not allowed to leave. Aylissa has not left the forest since we married, nor has any other wife."

Khairrim did not show any facial expression, but his eyes showed a flicker of anger. "You are suggesting marriage."

"That is the only way to achieve what you are asking of me. That is the only way to keep her here."

"Then she must be wed. Do you have any one worthy to add to your family?" Khairrim said decisively after a moment.

"I never considered any suitors. I knew that you were her protector and always assumed you would make the choice of her husband. However you know my dear wife, and her ambition. She has always talked about uniting Laelia and someone from the Strongwind family. They are our biggest rivals. She thought it would be a very wise way to ensure their support for Faolan."

"And it would ensure that Aylissa has a grandchild worthy of her blood," Khairrim said sarcastically.

"You know her as well as I do," Eoghan said with a slight laugh in his voice.

"Tell Aylissa she can arrange the marriage."

"Are you sure, Khairrim Cadeyrn? You cannot change your mind once you have finalised your decision."

"I would rather see her married to someone else than see her die," Khairrim said with a voice that rung with finality.

"Who is she?" Eoghan asked.

"She is everything that keeps me alive."

"You love her."

"I love her with my whole heart, my whole mind, and everything that I am and am not."