Lerek looked at her warily. “You have a friend in Thuria? When haveyoubeen to Thuria?”
Sonah shrugged, a coy smile on her lips. She made a clicking noise and her mare started walking. “I’ve been many places, Lerek. And my friend owes me a favor. Now, which way is north?”
Lerek pointed, and Sonah moved her horse in that direction.
They traveled in silence for the better part of an hour, and Sonah was glad of it. She’d learned a lot more about the prince in these last few hours on the run together than the last seven years in the White Palace combined.
What a difference being a fugitive made in one’s character.
Dusk turned the sky into a kaleidoscope of pinks, oranges, and deep blues. To the left, the sun sank beyond the mountains and Sonah glanced over at Lerek.
“We should start looking for a place to rest for the night.”
He looked over at her with a slow nod. His eyes had deep, dark circles beneath them and his shoulders were slumped. When he shifted in his saddle, she caught him wincing.
“Look,” she said with a nod, “up ahead, you see that? We’ll head for that copse of pine.”
Sonah didn’t bother to wait for his acknowledgment. She kicked her mare gently as she whispered soothing nonsense to her, and they surged forward.
As they neared the woods, the terrain sloped up, and she slowed her mount to walk uphill. Darkness descended quickly and she shivered as she looked up and around at the thick trees. It was unnaturally quiet, and Sonah braced herself as she brought her hand down to the dagger she’d strapped to her side.
“It’s so quiet,” Lerek said, his voice obscenely loud.
Sonah shot him a glare over her shoulder but didn’t respond. Of the two of them, she was the only one with experience in the fugitive lifestyle, which is why he’d deferred to her suggestions to this point. But she wished he would step up a bit. Her insides quaked and her nerves were shot.
“This is as good a place as any to stop,” she said softly. Sonah waited a moment before dismounting. Her backside was so sore, she winced with every step. There was no stream nearby to water the horses, so she walked her grey mare for a few minutes until she heard the trickle of water. Sonah called out to Lerek, then headed toward it.
Once the horses were drinking, Sonah unbuckled the saddle and pulled it off, struggling against the weight. Lerek rushed over and took it from her but was unsure what to do with it.
“Set it over there,” she said with a lift of her chin. “We’ll use them to lean against while we eat. I’ll go gather some wood for a fire.”
She set off, not bothering to look back at Lerek. Luckily, finding enough wood to burn was a quick endeavor.
Lerek came close to the fire, his face wet from the creek, and handed her his waterskin.
Taking deep gulps of the refreshing liquid, Sonah groaned. Mumbling her thanks, she handed it back to him. Crouching with a grimace, Sonah leaned back against her saddle.
A moment later, she rummaged in her saddlebags for some food. Tossing half a loaf of bread to Lerek, she grabbed a couple of apples and a stem of grapes to share between them.
“Sonah,” Lerek said in a low voice. “Tell me what happened after…”
Sonah looked at Lerek a long time before she dropped her chin. Twisting the half eaten apple in her hands, she frowned, knowing this conversation was coming, but wishing it wouldn’t.
“It’s a long story,” she said with a sigh. Glancing over at him, she shrugged. “I’ll tell you some of it, but we should really sleep as much as we can, Lerek. Our journey north will be long, and there’ll be times when we won’t be able to sleep much, if at all.”
“All right,” Lerek nodded. He shifted until he faced her. The firelight cast his face in shadows and she was thankful for it. She hoped her own countenance was hidden thus.
With a sigh, Sonah lifted her head, looking at the stars peeking through the trees. “General Peleon’s men had Terena arrested. She was on the terrace, when… well, you know that part. Anyway, Captain Cortis put me in the dungeons. They thought I was part of the… assassination plot. They sent word to Duke Ovenno of my arrest, but what they didn’t know is he’s not my father. So of course, I was left to rot in the dungeons. With Ren.”
Lerek hung his head. “How did you get out?”
“Croak. He and two mercenaries he’d hired helped us escape. But…”
“But what?”
How much to say? Gods, she wished Terena was with her.
“Look, there are many things I can tell you, but I think it best we wait until we’re all together. With Terena and the others, Imean. Much of this is not my story to tell and I don’t want to say anything she’ll?—”
