Eva bent and tidied the blankets from last night, rolling them into a neat little cylinder she'd tie to the back of her saddle later.
"I can think of a few reasons." Ajari peeked at Eva out of the side of his eye.
Eva snorted. If he thought she was going to fall over herself to find out what they were, he could think again.
She was done playing the mythologicals' games. He could find someone else willing to humor him.
Eva finished with her bed roll and stood, pinning it under her arm as she started toward camp.
"Not speaking to me?" Ajari asked.
Eva shook her head. "There's nothing to say."
Ajari face was thoughtful as he gave a faint nod. "I'm sure there's something."
Eva threw her bedroll on the ground, fed up. "What do you want from me, Ajari? I'd like to know."
"Want?" Ajari asked, his expression showing a confusion Eva knew was fake.
He wouldn't be here unless he was up to something. The only question was what—and whether Eva would be the one who'd pay the price in the end.
Brisa hadn't been exaggerating earlier when she said favors for Ajari resulted in bloodshed. He'd been the driving force behind Eva's appointment as Caller.
And look how that turned out.
"Don't play stupid," Eva told him. "You know the Kyren have walked away from the alliance."
The confusion dropped from his face as Ajari sent Sebastian a look.
The Kyren blew out a breath before heading in Ollie and Jason's direction. I'll talk to you later, Eva.
"Now, I know you want something," Eva said in a dry voice.
Ajari didn't say anything as he frowned at Caia. The mare chewed on a piece of grass as she stared back with a stubborn look.
"Such a strange horse," Ajari said, curling his lip.
"She's a proud and noble creature and you'd do well to remember that."
Otherwise, she'd have to put her boot in his ass and neither one of them would likely appreciate the consequences of that action.
"If you say so."
"I do."
Ajari frowned at the mare. "Still, there's something to her."
"Ajari!" Eva said in a loud voice. She was quickly losing patience. "Why are you here?"
Ajari hesitated. "The Tenrin haven't had friends among the humans since long before the cataclysm."
Eva frowned, wondering where he was going with this.
Exasperation showed on his face. "No one was more surprised than I, but I consider you a friend. Shea saved me from slavery, but you showed me there's a future."
Eva straightened, not looking away from his face.
They were friends, though it felt odd to acknowledge that fact. She felt concern for him when she thought his will was being drowned by others. She worried about him the same way she would about any of the others.
