Suddenly, Kell is ten again. The very age he realized for the first time his adopted parents don't really love him. That he's not really important. Someone else is. And as much as he loves that person, loves with all of his tiny heart, it still hurts. That he's worth only as much as well he can protect Rhy. That all the affection, all the praise, all of it, is conditional, depending on how good he is at this one task.

Istredd finds himself with two eyes, one black like the moonless night, one blue like the sea, wide open staring at him in pure disbelief.

"You... do?"

Kell can't believe what he just heard. It cannot be true. Istredd must say this just to make him feel better. Because he can't mean it, can he? Nobody ever does. Only Rhy. But it's so unfair. You can't say such words and don't mean it.