Tatum glanced in her direction. ‘It’s both.’
A red kite passed overhead, its long wings flashing into view. Blackmane’s horse sidestepped, and Alveye’s emitted a low whinny.
‘Easy,’ Blackmane said.
The other horses seemed to feed off the nervous energy, their heads and tails lifting. Eda stroked the silky neck of her horse in an attempt to calm him.
The red kite appeared again, lower this time, swooping past Hadewaye. His horse stopped, front legs lifting off the ground. Blackmane reached for his bow, loaded it, and pointed it at the sky.
‘He’s probably hungry,’ Alveye said. ‘He’s seeing if we have anything he might want.’
‘Better put your hood up, Suttone,’ Tatum said with a smirk. ‘You’ll be in trouble once he realises he can lift you.’
Eda glanced in his direction. ‘And here I was thinking it would fall to me to provide comedic relief.’ Still, she tugged the hood of her cloak up.
It was another hour before the ground evened out and trees appeared on the horizon. There was no visible path into the forest, so Roul forged one. They moved in single file through the trees, Roul at the front and Eda behind him, then Tatum, Hadewaye, Alveye, and Blackmane at the back. He had finally relaxed enough to put his bow away. Nothing moved in the trees, the occasional call of a bird the only sign of life.
It was almost noon when they emerged on the other side of the forest. The cloud had finally lifted, so they could see what was ahead of them now: long grass and weeds all the way to the horizon. They had yet to encounter a person outside the walls they had built.
‘We’ll stop here for a bit,’ Roul said, pulling his horse up and dismounting. ‘Do your business, stretch your legs.’
The men dispersed to relieve themselves. Eda led her horse away from the group in search of privacy. She stopped when she stepped on something hard. When she looked down, she saw she was standing on a large bone. There was an identical one beside it. They led to more bones, and her heart sped up as she recognised a human skull with an arrow through it. She took a quick step back.
‘That’s what happens to people who are too proud to piss in front of an audience.’
Eda whipped her head around at the sound of Roul’s voice.
‘What did I tell you about leaving my sight?’
‘Sorry.’ She turned her horse, heading back in the direction she had come. ‘I can hold it.’
Roul caught her arm when she stepped past him. ‘We’re not stopping again until we make camp.’
She looked down at the large hand holding her, the memory of those fingers tangled in her hair still fresh in her mind. Roul let go.
‘I’ll watch your horse,’ he said.
Eda shook her head and continued past him. ‘I’m fine. Let’s go.’
CHAPTER19
Roul watched Eda squirm in the saddle for nearly four hours before he could not take it anymore. They were travelling through open land with nothing but animal carcasses for cover.
‘Dismount, Suttone,’ Roul said. ‘The rest of you, eyes west.’
For once, Eda did not object. Swallowing her pride, she slipped from her horse and danced around while she unbelted her trousers. Only when she climbed back onto her horse did Roul look at her.
‘Next time you go when the rest of the group goes.’
Her cheeks coloured. ‘Yes, Commander.’
They reached the forest late in the afternoon. Roul was thankful for the cover of trees once more. It was better than spending the night out in the open, which would have left them vulnerable. He looked up at the long-reaching sequoia branches as they rode beneath them. It was not uncommon for rebels to drop from the trees, tackling riders to the ground and then riding off on their horses.
When they came across a stream, Roul veered his horse left, heading alongside it until he found a clearing big enough for their tent.
‘We’ll set up camp here,’ Roul said, pulling up his horse and looking over his shoulder at the others. ‘If the rain gets heavy overnight, at least the tent won’t flood.’
The light was beginning to fade as the group dismounted. They tethered their horses to nearby trees and took a moment to stretch. Eda stifled a yawn as she unbuckled her saddle and dragged it off her tired horse. It almost weighed as much as her. He had to stop himself from going to help her.
