“I’m sorry, Rayner. I heard King Callan tell Princess Eva you were coming back, and I didn’t want to be away from you. The bad men always come when you’re gone.” Eliza could hear the wobble in her voice, and when she finally lifted her chin, there were tears pooling in her baby blue eyes. “The dark is scarier when you’re gone,” she added in a whisper. Rayner sighed, his anger almost immediately dissipating as he scooped her up. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and legs around his waist, and he brought his brow to hers.
