“We were, but then we learned that one of ourscouts showed up soused. He couldn’t even put his shoes on theright feet.”
“Ah.” The sentry fought to hide a smile.
“I had to beg Landry for another scout toround out our numbers, and all he could spare was a junior just outof his apprenticeship. One who obviously can’t tell time as he’s anhour late,” this last was said with a dark glower at Shea.
She realized he meant her. He’d mistaken herfor someone else. She didn’t know if that was a good or badthing.
The sentry followed Eamon’s gaze to Shea. “Helooks young.”
Eamon frowned at her again. “Damn it. He gaveme the runt of the litter. He said he was giving me one withpotential.”
“And you believed him?”
Eamon sighed. “This whole mission has beenone clusterfuck after another. Everybody’s running behind tonight.What’s going on?”
“You didn’t hear?”
“Obviously not.”
“They found that ghost woman. You know, theone everybody has been looking for over the past few months. Only,get this, she’s up and disappeared again. Camp’s on high alertuntil she’s found.”
Shea froze, wanting desperately to fade intothe steadily deepening shadows. Even as they spoke torches werebeing lit to provide light against the encroaching darkness.
“Great,” Eamon said. “It’s going to be abitch trying to get past the final perimeter if that’s thecase.”
“Good luck,” the sentry called to Eamon’sback as he dragged Shea behind him.
Eamon held one hand up in acknowledgement.Shea followed without protest. It couldn’t be this easy, could it?They barely noticed her once Eamon started talking.
“What’s your name?” Eamon barked at Shea.
In the waning light, Eamon’s face was mostlylost in shadow, but she could feel his irate gaze pressing down onher. She was so startled she almost let her real name.“She-ane.”
“I’m Eamon, the second in command.”
Shea nodded, forgetting he couldn’t reallysee her. This must have been enough for him because he facedforward.
He dropped her arm as soon as they were pastthe sentries, but she tagged along behind him, hoping she could usehim and his party to slip past the final perimeter.
The rest of his group waited next to thecorrals, their horses saddled and packed. Ten men watched them withvarying degrees of interest, touched with a lot of impatience. Bynow the sun had fully set, and the evenly spaced torches cast smallpools of orange tinged light.
Eamon walked up to a tall man who hadcompletely ignored their approach.
Not waiting for acknowledgement, Eamongestured at Shea, “I’ve found our second scout. His name’sShane.”
The tall man looked her up and down, his eyesflat and unfriendly. A scar ran from ear to jaw, and his mouth wasbracketed by permanent frown lines.
“You’re late, boy,” the man said.
When everyone just stared at her, Shearealized they expected some kind of response. “Yes, I gotlost.”
As if, pathfinders didn’t get lost.
“How can you expect to be a scout if you getlost?” the man with a green jacket similar to Shea’s asked, lookingher up and down.
It was a fair question, and if she knewexactly what a scout did she might have an answer. She had a vagueinkling that it was similar to a pathfinder.
“Alright, enough talking,” the first man saidcrossly, losing patience. “We’ve already lost enough time tonight.Saddle up, we’ve got a ways to go before we can stop.”
