The boots, though, were terrible.
If I ever made it up in the ranks of the Elucian military, I would change the supplier and order proper boots for their soldiers. If it were a budget problem, I would use my connections in Eluria to secure a generous donation to the Elucian Forces, with the stipulation that the funds be used only toward purchasing better footwear.
"My stomach is killing me," Codric groaned beside me. "Why did I eat that third helping?"
"Because you're an idiot who can't control himself around food or women?" I kept my voice light, but my attention was on the armed guards positioned strategically around the perimeter of the square.
The space was surrounded by terraced seating and large planters, and it could easily accommodate several thousand people if packed tightly.
"Can we stop by the apothecary?" Codric clutched his middle. "Maybe Kailin's grandmother has something that can help my stomach."
I shook my head. "There's no time, and even if there were, the herbs need to be steeped in boiling water, and we can't go back to the lodge for that. Besides, I told Kailin that we would be there early and save spots for them near the front."
He nodded. "Shovia and I talked about standing next to each other during the ceremony."
He was acting as if Shovia was his lady friend, which was a change from his regular mode of operation of sleeping with a different girl each night. But even though I was happy to see him approach this relationship with more maturity, I had to discourage it for the same reason I couldn't allow myself to get entangled with Kailin.
Any relationship would be complicated by Codric's and my true identities, not to mention my secret mission.
I chose to ignore the pang in my heart and focused on the security arrangements instead. In addition to the visible guards, I spotted several civilians whose level of alertness suggested that they were not the ordinary observers they pretended to be.
Good. The Elucians weren't taking any chances with their shaman. The blessings before the pilgrimages were the only known times of Saphir Fatewever's public appearances, and the Shedun would love nothing better than to take him out.
It would be a blow Elucia might not recover from.
"There they are!" Codric's exclamation drew my attention to the front of the square. "They made it here first."
Kailin sat cross-legged on the ground near the stage where the shaman would perform the blessing, her golden hair gleaming under the aurora lights. Shovia sat beside her, waving enthusiastically at us.
I blamed Codric and his gluttonous feasting for our late arrival. As Elurian gentlemen, we should have arrived first and saved a place for the ladies.
As I quickened my pace, Codric grabbed my arm. "Wait." He doubled over. "Drak, this hurts."
My cousin had a penchant for drama, and I was sure things weren't as bad as he was making them out to be.
"You should have thought about that before stuffing yourself." I softened my tone at his distress. "Just breathe through it. Once we're sitting down, it'll feel better."
Codric lifted a hand. "Give me a moment, please."
"A moment, but no more."
As a sharp, high-pitched bark sounded across the square, I turned to see Chicha straining at her leash, which was held by a woman who had to be Kailin's mother. They had the same delicate features, but the harsh mountain weather or maybe anxiety had etched deep lines around the older woman's eyes.
Kailin's grandmother stood beside her, and when she spotted me, she smiled and waved.
I waved back, oddly pleased by the warm greeting, then turned to Codric. "Okay to go?"
When he nodded, we continued toward the girls.
The crowd was still relatively light, but more pilgrims were arriving by the minute, and if we didn't claim those spots soon, Kailin and Shovia would have a hard time saving them for us.
When Chicha barked again, more urgently this time, I frowned and glanced back. The little dog was practically pulling her leash out of Kailin's mother's hands, but she wasn't trying to get to Kailin as I'd first assumed. Instead, she was facing one of the large planters that decorated the square. Maybe she needed to do her business, and the planter with the rosebush growing in its middle seemed like a good spot.
"Come on," Codric urged, not noticing my distraction. "I need to sit down before I explode."
I kept going while looking over my shoulder at Chicha. She was still barking, and Kailin's grandmother was frowning and saying something to her mother.
"Alar!" Kailin called, waving us over. "Better hurry. We can't hold on to these spots for much longer."
