He tutted, the sound filled with impatience, and lifted the stone once more. “Try.”
I tried. I truly did. I focused on the stone, attempting to find that place inside me that would make them freeze. Lorian threw the stones up again and again, until I was so exhausted, my hands shook. But nothing happened.
I was a failure. My power was my only bargaining chip—the only way I could keep myself safe—and I couldn’t wield it.
Lorian picked up the stone. And this time, he threw it at me.
I ducked out of the way. “What in the—”
Another stone. Slightly larger this time. It bounced off my right breast.
“What is your problem?”
He looked bored. But his eyes glittered with amusement and something darker. “If you need to feel afraid, I can make that happen.”
“By throwing rocks at me?”
This was useless. He was useless. And I was the most useless of all.
I turned and stalked away.
As much as I usually enjoyed being out in the wild, away from my brother’s expectations, traveling with a woman was a new and entirely unwelcome experience.
She’d insisted on bathing in the freezing river that morning, almost turning blue. Her body was so slight compared to ours, even Galon had scowled at her shivering when she’d returned. If he’d had another cloak, I had no doubt that Galon—the man with one of the highest kill counts of anyone I knew—would have tucked it around her shoulders himself.
Then there were the endless questions. Always, always the questions.
Why the wildcat seemed to think she was owed answers to those questions was the biggest mystery of all. Finally, when she’d worn herself out, she’d fallen silent, likely sulking.
I frowned down at her. It had taken her entirely too long to realize we hadn’t turned off to travel east to the city. Her head lolled, and for a moment, panic slammed into my gut. Was she…dead?
We needed her power at the city gates.
And…if I was being honest with myself, the thought of her dying was…disconcerting.
The back of my neck itched at the thought.
Oh, she was good.
The only reason I cared was likely because she’d been continually poking at me, implying I was the worst kind of man for leaving her by that river.
I surveyed her. No, she’d fallen asleep in my arms. What an unusual creature she was. Likely, she’d exhausted herself with useless fantasies of her revenge against the cruel mercenary. People were, after all, entirely predictable. I’d spent enough time traveling across this continent to know that much.
She began to slip sideways. I debated letting her fall off the horse. It would do the woman some good to have her bones rattled. Already, she was taking up far too many of my thoughts, when I needed to concentrate on our own plans. Her body leaned some more, and I sighed, tightening my arms around her. If those bones broke, it would only slow us down.
She nestled her face into my chest, and Marth threw me a wide-eyed look as his horse drew even with mine.
He opened his mouth, and I shot him a warning glare. I wanted to enjoy the precious silence for as long as possible before the harpy woke up and realized we weren’t going directly to the city.
A bird shrieked, and Prisca jolted in my arms.
I sighed. Perfect.
Her eyes flew open, and for a moment, they were clear, dazed with sleep. Those strange eyes met mine and immediately filled with rancor.
She pulled away. “Sorry.” She cleared her throat. “I didn’t get much sleep.”
Sitting up, she gazed at the forest around us. Then she looked up toward the sun. “Why are we traveling south?”
“We have something we need to do before we go to the city.”
She let out an interesting hissing sound. My horse’s ears pricked. “This isn’t what we agreed to. I don’t have time to go run your errands. I need to get to the city and—”
Her mouth clamped shut. I just shook my head. Did she really think we didn’t know her plan? Her only option was to get on a ship and flee.
“You’re breaking our agreement,” she growled.
No one annoyed me like this woman. The urge to dump her off my horse struck again. Rythos cleared his throat and gestured at his own horse, silently offering to ride with her.
I ignored him. “Our agreement was for three meals a day, a horse—” I gestured to my mount “—and lessons to help with your power. Your side of the agreement is to use that power when we cross into the city. No time frame was ever specified.”
“Let me off this fucking horse right now.”
My mouth twitched. There were few things more amusing than seeing this woman riled.
“We made a deal. You’ll uphold your side of it.”
She struggled, pushing at my arms. I pressed my mouth to her ear, loathing that her scent was so intriguing. “Continue to annoy my horse, and I’ll tie you to the saddle and make you walk behind us.”
“You’ll pay for this,” she hissed.
I just shrugged. We rode in blissful silence for several hours. Finally, she turned her head and scowled at me. “What is it that you have to do anyway?”
“None of your business.”
“Of course. A mercenary’s gotta mercenary, right?” Her upper lip curled, and she turned to face forward once more.
My hands itched to wrap themselves around her neck and squeeze. Her pale throat was tempting me enough that my hands tightened on my reins.
Now, I was the one annoying my horse.
CHAPTER SEVEN
The days flew by.
It was strange—I was inarguably in the worst situation of my life. I could die at any moment if we were discovered. And yet, for the first time in twenty-two winters, I felt…free.
It was as if I were a puppy, gamboling through the forest. We were heading in the opposite direction of the city, a fact that terrified me. But Marth had pointed out that taking such a route could help. It was likely that the northern gates were more heavily guarded.
I had a feeling Marth was telling me what I needed to hear. But I’d accepted that I had no control over this situation right now. At least, that was what I told myself.
The mercenaries were still closed-mouthed about where they were going and why. But they certainly weren’t on a mere errand, as I’d assumed. No, from their hushed conversations and the tension that seemed to radiate from all of them—especially Lorian—wherever they were going and whatever they were doing was significant. I itched to know what it was.
I was also desperate to know more about their power. I knew they had more magic than I’d ever seen before, but they rarely talked about it, even when encouraging me to use my own. Although, one night–after drinking too much ale by the fire–Marth had told me a few details about his magic.
While Mama’s visions could strike at any time, Marth could control his, specifically looking into a target’s past.
A very helpful skill for a mercenary.
I’d asked him exactly how far into the past he could look, and he’d shrugged. Obviously, I wasn’t to be trusted with that information.