“They ran into some trouble. Some idiot mistook Breakfast for an Outlander and picked a fight. Of course Tristan jumped right in,” Rowan said, looking very much like he wanted to strangle the both of them.
“They better hurry,” Una said under her breath, picking up on the situation as quickly as Lily did.
They were swept up into the line leaving the city. Unfortunately, it was a short line, and they found themselves facing the guards before Tristan and Breakfast had joined them.
Tristan. Breakfast. It’d be great if you showed up about now.
“That’s some willstone you got there, Outlander.”
One of the guards had singled out Rowan. His eyes flicked over to Lily and Una, inspecting their stones. Una had a medium-size smoke stone. It wasn’t huge, but it was almost black in color. She was obviously strong.
“You.” Another guard approached Lily, looking quizzically at her rose stone. It was medium-size like Una’s, but rich in color and complexity. “I’ve never seen a stone like that.”
“I’m weird,” Lily retorted.
“What happened to your shoulder?” Both the guards were flanking Lily now, drawn to her.
Lily reminded herself that these were soldiers. They’d probably felt the Gift from their witch, most likely the Lady of Baltimore, and they could sense that Lily was even stronger than she was. Their eyes were hungry and their faces hopeful. They were craving the Gift. Lily felt unsafe.
“We ran into some Woven last night. Came into town to buy med supplies for our tribe,” Rowan answered for her. His tone was quiet and he was positioning himself between Lily and the guards. So was Una. Lily could feel too many eyes resting on her. “Our tribe is waiting for us,” Rowan said evenly.
The guards couldn’t keep noncitizens inside the walls. The city guards had plenty of rules about which Outlanders they let in, but they were generally more concerned about getting all the Outlanders out. City law required that all noncitizens be outside the wall by nightfall. They didn’t like it, but unless the guards had a reason to arrest them, they had to let Lily’s group pass.
As soon as they were through the gates, Una let out a gusty breath. “I thought we were going to have to fight our way out,” she said.
“Another minute or two and we might have had to,” Rowan replied.
“What did they want from Lily?”
“Power,” Rowan replied simply. “Think about it, Una. Since Lily claimed you, how often have you craved her strength?”
Una’s gaze dropped and she frowned, troubled.
“It’s okay,” Rowan continued. “You learn to recognize it for what it is and control it, like any other kind of desire. Only people with weak character allow it to control them, like those guards.”
Rowan suddenly stopped and put a hand on Una’s shoulder. It was the first time Lily had ever seen Rowan touch Una outside of their sparring sessions, and for a split second Lily was worried that Una might push his hand off, but she didn’t. She trusted Rowan.
“Remember, Una,” he said, “we receive the Gift to defend our witch, not for our own pleasure. It’s a privilege, and it should be a rare one. You have enough character to control yourself—I have no doubt about that. Or about you.”
Una smiled up at Rowan gratefully, and Lily couldn’t help but be moved by how much love and respect had grown between them. Rowan was like a brother to Una now. He’d earned that right. As Lily watched this touching exchange between a mentor and his student, she couldn’t help but adore Rowan even more. Nor could she help but remember with a pang that he had probably learned the skill of compassionate leadership from his father.
As they moved across the large field that separated the walls of Baltimore from the surrounding forest, Rowan and Una grew silent and tense. Woven could be anywhere. They found a small clearing, and Rowan instructed Una to build a fire.