"Sorry, this one was harder to convince than I thought she’d be." Fiona tilted her head at Eva. "You would have thought escaping setting up camp would have been incentive enough, but she's surprisingly stubborn."
"Stubbornness isn't always a bad thing," Eva pointed out.
The trait had saved her life a time or two. The inability to give in had gotten her to the Trateri. It had enabled her to create a place for herself. Stubbornness was why she was standing here instead of rotting in the ground.
Fiona shot her a considering look. "I never said it was. You'll find most of us are stubborn in one way or another.”
"Some more than others," the stranger remarked.
Fiona swatted at the woman's head without looking. The other woman ducked.
"Someone will likely have something snide to say about my absence," Eva said. "I had to carefully weigh whether this jaunt was worth the trouble it'll no doubt bring."
It was the curse of being considered a throwaway. Everything she said and did was weighed and judged.
"Don't put too much stock in what the nags say," the stranger advised. "The people who run their mouths the most are usually the ones with the least of import to share. Sometimes you only need to let them talk. They'll wear themselves out eventually."
The other woman examined Eva. Her face might be sweet-looking, but her eyes were watchful. This was a woman who didn't trust easily if at all.
Eva was used to such reactions and didn't let them bother her. The Trateri were suspicious of anybody who wasn't them. Her life was one successive instance of having to prove herself over and over again.
This woman would eventually decide whether Eva was worth knowing or not, of being kind to or not. She'd decide what she would. It meant Eva was free to be herself. She'd treat the woman with the caution she deserved until her mind was made up. Eva would then be the one to decide if the woman was worth getting to know or not.
"What are we doing down here?" the woman finally asked, her attention returning to Fiona, dismissing Eva.
Eva mentally shrugged. Being ignored was better than the snipes and jabs. She'd take it.
"I thought this was a good bonding opportunity," Fiona said with an easy smile. "As some of the only women on this expedition, it's important to get to know one another."
"You're forgetting Hanna and Jane," the stranger pointed out.
"I forget nothing. Jane is busy guarding us from above and Hanna isn’t important."
The stranger rolled her eyes. "You're still hung up on this? When will you let it go?"
"When my body has burned until nothing is left," Fiona shot back.
"That would be an interesting sight. Please let me know when you decide to take the plunge so I can watch," an amused voice said from behind them.
Eva twisted, startled at the newcomer’s presence. She hadn't heard anyone approach.
A woman, more beautiful than any Eva had ever seen, stood behind them. Her features were delicate and refined, her eyes bright, and her expression amused. Her hair was long, shiny, and without a hint of wave—a fact Eva was jealous of, considering her own hair tended to be unruly and wavy when it wasn't in its customary braid. The only thing that seemed amiss was the fact the woman’s head was shaved on each side, the hair on top creating a long sheet. If it was tied back, it would look like a horse's mane.
Like the other two, she was dressed as a warrior, and moved on silent feet down the hill Eva had stumbled over.
"I saw you sneak off with the herd mistress and wondered what you were up to," Hanna said, her lips curving up in the slightest smile as her eyes sparkled with glee. "So, I followed you."
"Of course, you did," Fiona muttered.
Eva stayed quiet even as her curiosity rose. These two had a history, if the animosity wafting from Fiona was anything to judge by. The other woman was harder to read.
A pleasant expression concealed the woman’s real thoughts and feelings, even as amusement glinted in her eyes at Fiona's obvious dislike. Eva recognized her at last. She'd been with Darius the day Caden had taken her to the Keep for the council meeting.
Hanna's gaze shifted to take in Eva, curiosity filling her expression. "I see you've taken another broken dove under your wing."
Fiona narrowed her eyes at the insult.
Eva didn't particularly appreciate it either.
