Ash was beginning to feel dizzy and weak from loss of blood. He needed to do something about that before he was too far gone. He sat down on the hearth, his healer’s kit next to him. Look on the bright side, he thought. At least poison’s not a worry. It would have been washed out long ago.
Ash cleaned the wound one-handed, then packed a poultice of herbs over it. He was in the process of trying to wrap it again when there came a tapping at the door.
It was Lila, dressed in clean, nondescript clothing, saddlebags over her shoulder. She’d scrubbed the blood off her face and hands, too.
Dropping her bags by the door, she gripped Ash’s elbow and led him back to the hearth. “Here, let me help with that. We’ve got to hurry, and I can’t have you falling off your horse.”
She sat next to Ash and began wrapping, but not without wrinkling her nose at the smell of the herbs. “At least maybe the stink will keep those bloodhounds off your scent,” she said.
“Are you sure Arden’s in on this?” Ash asked, leaning his head back against the fireplace. “Odd that it was a wizard who ordered the kill. Our family has enemies at home. It could have been one of them.”
“Maybe,” Lila said, clearly humoring him, “but I don’t think so. I think Renard Tourant found out who you were somehow, and sent word to Arden, along with your handkerchief. Somebody set up the kill with the Darian brothers. Tourant threw a party to empty out the dorms, but he knew you wouldn’t come, so you’d be here alone.” She gave him a hard eye. “That’s what you get for being boring.”
“What tipped you off?”
“They turtled my ale. I knew something was up, so I hurried back here.”
“If they were in on it, why didn’t they stop you?”
“I swapped ales with Tourant, so he was down for the count,” Lila said. “Arden doesn’t want the academy on their necks, and I’m sure they’d like to keep training soldiers at the Ford. They were likely hoping that if things went wrong, the Darian brothers would take the blame for breaking the peace and not them.”
Ash knew Lila had edited something out, something she didn’t want him to know. “Why would your turtled ale send you rushing back to the dorm to check on me?”
The cadet shrugged. “I came back here for weapons,” she said, “not to check on you. When I saw blood in the hallway, I thought I’d better take a look around. You’re lucky I did.”
“It’s an interesting theory, but there’s quite a few maybes and mights,” Ash said. “I’m not in line for the throne in the Fells. They had no reason to target me.” Unless his secret life had somehow become public.
Lila shrugged. “Maybe they don’t understand the Fellsian rules of succession. Or maybe they just don’t care.”
“Or maybe King Gerard is still working his plan to destroy my mother’s family and eliminate the Gray Wolf line for good. He finally found one of us that he could get at.” The anger that always smoldered in him flamed up again. “That means that the queen and the princess heir may be next.” Assuming it hasn’t happened already. That thought was like a knife to the gut.
“I’m sure they’ve been targets all along,” Lila said. “There’s nothing you can do about that.”
Yes, there is, Ash thought. Something I should have done, or tried to do, before now. For four years, I’ve been lopping legs off the spider when I should have gone straight for the heart.
“Ash? Are you listening to me?”
Ash looked up to find Lila scowling at him. “Oh. Sorry. What did you say?”
“What we do know is that they know you’re here. So it’s not safe here, not anymore. If it ever was. Which means we’ve got to get out of here.”
We? A traveling companion did not fit into Ash’s plans.
“Lila, listen,” Ash said. “I don’t want you to change your plans. Go to your posting in the Fens. I’ll just go on to Freetown tonight. Problem solved.”
Lila looked pointedly at the body on the floor, then the body on the bed. “Right,” she said with a sour grin. “How many people here know about your plans to go to Freetown? How long before those bloodsuckers are hunting you there?”
“I can take care of myself,” Ash said stiffly. “They won’t catch me by surprise again.”
“No.” Lila shook her head. “Now that your secret is out, the safest place for you is back in Fellsmarch. And that’s where I’m going to take you.” She gave him a sideways look. “It’s worth it to stay out of the swiving Fens.”
“So what’s your interest in this? What makes you think we should partner up?”
“I’m not talking about being partners,” Lila said. “I’m hoping there’ll be a reward in it for me. As soon as I collect, I’m gone.” She rubbed her fingers and thumb together. “Now change your breeches. We won’t get far if you look like you’ve been the guest of honor at a bloodbath.” Lila folded her arms and stood, tapping her foot, like she planned on supervising.
She had saved his life. Now it seemed there would be a price to be paid for it. Until he got his game going, as his father would say, it was better not to leave this loose end hanging.