Evangeline swallowed. Looking at the orphan girl, whom Natalya had loved so much even though she wasn’t Natalya’s own, broke her heart. They had lost five, and it surely would be more if this war continued. For Skywalker and Rue to lose their whole family-well, that was just cruel. Unfair, Evangeline thought. The girl had come to idolize her and Mabbit. Evangeline had taught Rue how to track. Just for fun at first, quickly it grew into a hobby and skill for Rue. She was nothing short of a true natural. Evangeline’s throat ached. She’d gone into battle normal, then near the end, now she had a starry pelt.
Thank God for Queen Lucaya, or they might still be fighting and dying.
Eve would never get over this injustice. Phobus, Beartooth. The deaths of her best friend and her mother and brother, of Jack and Onai. She stepped up just after Skywalker did. “Nattie, you were my friend. I remember taking on Rue when you couldn’t. I remember us laughing together, you randomly bringing me gifts of flowers. You were the sweetest thing. It is a great loss that we’ve suffered today.” She stepped back. She’d said all she needed to. All that she could.