“This would be a very precise throwing blade,” I say, handing it back to him.
Enzio nods and grins like a rogue. “Why do you think my people are known throughout the forest as the Black Blades?” Faster than my eyes can follow, the blade disappears, and I know Enzio has hidden it in his sleeve again. “We should set up camp before full dark.”
Golmarr peers back at the sheer, inky edge of the forest. “Let’s get as far from the tree line as we can while we still have the light. The farther the better.”
When the sun has set, and the sky has turned a brilliant, deep purple, we rein in the horses. Golmarr quickly dismounts, and without giving it a second thought, I swing my leg over the horse’s hind end and gracefully hop down. My legs are like stone when they hit the ground, and I lean forward with my hands braced on my knees to keep from falling.
Golmarr laughs. “I warned you that you’d be stiff. Let’s eat and then see if we can work some of that stiffness out. What do you say?”
“In the dark?” I ask, peering up the starry sky. “Are we going to light a fire?” I rub my hands over my arms. With the sun down, the breeze has a cool bite to it.
“No,” Enzio says. “No fire this close to the border. It will be like a beacon for every cutthroat watching the grasslands.” He holds something out to me, and when I hold my palm up, he puts a piece of stale flatbread into it.
Golmarr offers me a water skin. “Enzio,” he says, “when are we most likely to be attacked?”
“In the dark,” Enzio answers. “At night. That way the attacker has the advantage. He can sneak up on you and…” He pretends to throw a knife, and then gasps and presses a hand over his heart.
“I agree. Night is a good time to practice fighting because not all of your foes will be considerate enough to attack in broad daylight. Didn’t you ever spar at night, in the dark, Princess Sorrowlynn, when you were being taught to fight at your fancy cliffside castle?” The sarcasm in his voice makes me bristle. I shove Golmarr’s shoulder to quiet him, but he grabs my wrist and twists my arm behind my back, pinning it where it causes me nothing more than mild discomfort. He drops my arm, though, and leaps away from me like he’s been burned. “One rule I need to mention.” He leans forward and taps my hunting knife. “No blades allowed. I don’t want a repeat of what happened when I did that to you in the cave.” He rubs his chest in the very spot where my blade rested when he fake-attacked me before.
“Fair enough.” I unbuckle my belt and hang it over the horse’s saddle. The moment I set it down, Golmarr is behind me, pinning my arm against my back again, his other arm around my throat.
“Do you know how to get out of this?” he asks calmly, hugging me to him.
“If I had a weapon, I could just—”
“But you don’t have a weapon. That’s the point,” he says, tightening his hold. “I’ve seen you fight with your staff and your knife, and you’re going to be very good with them once you’ve gotten stronger. But do you know how to fight unarmed?”
I struggle for a moment, feeling the tension in his body, gauging the angle at which he is restraining my arm, and then I elbow him in the ribs with my free arm, duck under the arm holding my throat, and try to lunge out of his grasp. When my shoulder joint strains to the point of pain, I yelp and stop struggling. And then, without even thinking about it, my body knows exactly how to break free. A small, sly grin finds its way to my mouth.
“It looks like I’ve caught a princess,” Golmarr murmurs, his mouth beside my temple. When he talks, I can feel the fresh scruff on his chin rub against my skin.
“I believe you are mistaken,” I say, and thrust my elbow into his ribs again, then step to the right to relieve the tension in my shoulder, twist around, and break free. “There,” I say, thinking the lesson is over, but Golmarr lunges for me. Without a thought, I swing my forearm against his reaching hands, knocking them away. He chuckles and tries again, but instead of grabbing for me, he ducks beneath my arm and tugs on the end of my braid.
“Hey, no hair pulling,” I say.
“Sorry, Princess, that was not in our previously agreed-upon rules.” He lunges behind me and tugs my braid again, and I stiffen with frustration. Enzio, watching us while he eats, laughs, which frustrates me even more.
When Golmarr tries for a third time to tweak my braid, I dive away and roll through the grass, swinging my foot toward his ankles before I come to a stop. He jumps out of the way a split second too late, and my heel catches the bottom of his boot, knocking him off balance. His arms flail, and he stumbles backward, and I hop to my feet and leap at him, knocking him onto his back. He lands with a thud and groans, and I land on top of him, pinning his wrists by his ears. My braid falls forward over my shoulder.