I breathe in, out, in again. Looking for just a few seconds of courage to say what I want to say.
“Would you have helped me get out of the mayor’s house if you didn’t know I was one of you?”
Now that it’s dark, I can barely see his face. His shadowed hand lifts, and a finger gently traces the white scar on my earlobe.
“Aya, I knew you were like me. That’s why I crossed that stream in the first place.”
A stick snaps some ways away. It’s only a twig on the forest floor, but it’s enough to shatter our privacy. I jerk back, and Kiran lets me, though his movements are slower, like he’s thawing from a swim in a freezing river.
It’s Lorcan, and Daphne with him. They’re both riding, and Dell’s tethered to Lorcan’s saddle. At the very sight of my supposed father, anger boils up inside me.
“Oh good, you’re alive,” Daphne says to me. “Thanks for the update.”
I back another step away from Kiran.
Lorcan dismounts, returning my wary stare.
“I suppose he wants to come, too,” I say under my breath.
“He’s got an idea,” says Kiran.
“I have my own idea,” I counter.
“We’re going to make jewelry for Clover to sell on Trader’s Day,” says Daphne. Her words make me stand a little taller.
Kiran’s brows raise. “Where’d you get the credits to pay the booth fee?”
I fidget.
He gives me a half smirk. “There’s only two reasons the Watchers let a Driver into the city: If we’ve got a team of fresh rentals, which we don’t. Or if we’ve got enough credits for a booth license to sell goods on a Trader’s Day.”
He pulls a small leather pouch from the back of the saddle and gives it a little shake. Something jingles inside. Coin. From his days working at the rental barn, no doubt.
“We’ll have enough to worry about without sneaking past the Watchers.”
I nearly throw my arms around him, but stop just before I get there and awkwardly pat his arm. My face feels like it’s on fire when Daphne snorts.
“There’s one more thing,” says Kiran. “Your father’s seen your family.”
I freeze. Turn slowly to face Lorcan.
Kiran continues to translate. “He went there to look for you. He never saw you, but he found your cousin in the Merchant district. He knows where she works.”
I am rooted to the spot, unable to move.
“And the twins?” My voice is weak.
Lorcan shrugs, mouth a tight, thin line.
“He never saw them.”
“You looked for me?” I ask Lorcan.
After a beat, Kiran answers again. “Aran wouldn’t let him into the barn, I guess. He is an outcast. Had he gone inside, he might have seen you in the solitary yard.”
I nod; it’s all I can do. I can’t decide if it makes me feel better or worse knowing my father has been to the city.
Lorcan reaches into the inside pocket of his long jacket and retrieves a woven rawhide bracelet, embellished with a glowing copper crystal. I recognize the work. I’d made it, years ago. It surprises me that Lorcan kept it. I guess it didn’t sell.
It seems we’ve had the same idea.
Daphne holds her hands out expectantly, and Lorcan drops the bracelet into them. “Ooh, that’s pretty! I’ve never seen anything like it. What is it?”
I gulp. She’s looking expectantly at me.
“It’s…” I hesitate, but I know I need to answer because now everyone’s looking at me.
“It’s a kiran stone.”
Before anyone else can say another word, I grab the palomino’s headstall and head back towards camp. I’ve got four days until I’m going back into the most dangerous place in the world. It’s time to prepare.