His Emberish is more thickly accented, and I recognize the voice immediately. Captain Sen Domo. If he comes down from the parapet, he’ll know me in an instant. If I were on Mercy in my usual armor, he’d know me right now. My heart kicks.
“Yes,” calls Malin. “I’m supposed to be at the Crystal Palace by nightfall.”
“Then you’re not going to make it, Officer. It’s another five hours, and there’s deep mud through the woods from the storms. You can put him in our hold and bunk here.” It sounds like a reasonable offer, but then Captain Sen Domo chuckles darkly and adds, “I know a few of my soldiers wouldn’t mind taking care of a traitor Truthbringer for the night.”
No. That absolutely cannot happen.
I inhale sharply, but Malin reaches out and grabs hold of my bound arm andtwists, and I’m not sure what he does, but the pain is sharp and immediate and I yelp, then growl profanity at him before I can help myself.
“I already took care of that,” he calls loudly, a note of amusement in his voice. “Now I’ve got to tie him to the saddle to sit upright.”
Both Captain Sen Domo and the female guard laugh from the parapet.
Ha. So funny.
Malin adds, “I earned a reprimand for it, though. I’m not looking to earn another one.”
The captain calls, “Go ahead then. There’s rocks in the mud south of Briarlock.” He laughs like they’re co-conspirators. “Good for dragging if your prisoner were to take a fall.”
“Thank you for the advice!” Malin calls. “I’ll be looking for those rocks in case his horse ‘stumbles.’ ”
“Walk,” I growl under my breath, but the horses are already striding forward. I want to speak to Malin, but I’m keenly aware that they might have lookouts among the trees, so I wait.
All the while, the distance grows, and so does my tension. I keep thinking about the threat in their voices, how they would have tortured a prisoner. Maybe they’re not working with the Truthbringers after all, but I’m not sure it’s good news in the other direction. I doubt Lia Mara would like it.
I wonder if they still would have done it if they’d known it was me. Therewererumors of me working with the Truthbringers, and if I showed up bound in a uniform from Emberfall, with a soldier claiming I was guilty, that might have lent credence to them.
That could have gone very badly.
My wrists flex against the bonds involuntarily. Those sparks and stars haven’t stopped flickering in my eyes, and I take a long breath. I know it was part of the act, but I don’t like that Malin grabbed me.
Once we’ve gone a quarter mile, his voice is easy when he says, “Do you want me to drag you through the mud? Really sell it?”
He’s teasing, but I’m still too tense, and my thoughts are too jangled. “No. Untie me.”
Maybe he hears the urgency in my tone. He draws his dagger and slices right through. As soon as my hands are free, I rub at my wrists and shake out my shoulders.
I can feel Malin watching me, but he only says, “Are we riding on to the palace?”
“No.” I finally look up. We’re less than an hour from Briarlock. I might not have a safe house, but I do know of a place whereno onewould expect me to go—especially not right now. “I know where we can find shelter for the night.”
CHAPTER 19
TYCHO
I tend the horses while Malin catches, then cooks, dinner. Callyn’s bakery and Jax’s forge will be sold in the coming months, but for now, they’re both deserted and set away from the main road. The bakery is boarded closed, and it’s nearer to the road anyway, so we ride on to the forge instead. The main house is also boarded up, but the forge itself is more of an open-sided shed, so we’ll have shelter with the horses—and plenty of warning if anyone ventures back this way.
While Malin is cooking, I haul water from the well for the horses, then for us, then rinse the dirt from my hair. The cold is a shock to my senses, a relief and an assault all at once, and I shiver when a few drops run down my back.
I’ve made this trip a thousand times, but I can’t remember when it’s ever seemed to take so long. I don’t know if it’s leaving Jax, or if it’s the heavy weight of everything going wrong, but every step we take seems mired in quicksand.
I flex my shoulders, my muscles aching from so much riding, my skin a bit raw from the armor. I’ve been mindful of saddle sores on the horses,but days in the rain haven’t done much for the constant friction of my own gear. I stride across the courtyard to join Malin by the fire, and then, against my better judgment, I unbuckle my weapon belts and lay the sword and dagger in the leaves beside my bow. With swift fingers, I unbuckle the breastplate and jerk it over my head.
Malin watches me with raised eyebrows. “Yeah?”
I nod. “Go ahead.”
He doesn’t hesitate. He leaves his greaves and bracers in place like I did, but the heavier pieces drop in the dirt beside the fire. He roughs up his sweat-stiffened hair and goes back to the rabbits he was turning on a spit. “For a while there, I thought we were going to push on for the palace.”
