The wheel tracks stood out in a path pockmarked by the numerous trampling feet of sheep and cattle driven this way at any given time. A spark of hope lit inside him. “Why would someone try to drive a wagon over such difficult terrain? Loaded down, it might end up with a broken axle at the first rut it hit. Empty, and it will bounce in every direction.”
His companion nodded. “And the direction these tracks are headed in promise an even harder drive for no good reason. She glanced behind her. “That’s the way to the closest baling station, where the road is smoother and meant for wagon traffic.”
Brishen tried not to let burgeoning excitement send him on the wrong path. “Maybe the driver lives nearby or was deep in their cups and got lost.” It was a possibility, but his gut and Dendarah’s expression told him otherwise.
“It isn’t just the choice of paths, Herceges. The track on these wheels tells its own story. The framing gear is narrower and shorter than that of a hay wagon built by the Kai. This is of human design.” His eyebrows rose, and she gave a sheepish shrug. “I wasn’t born a royal guard. I grew up a farmer’s daughter. I baled plenty of hay and loaded many a wagon before I took up the sword. And I know the differences between a haywain built by one of us and a haywain built by one of them.”
Brishen’s heart began to race. “Then the question isn’t so much who would bring a haywain down a drover path but what is a human doing driving one through the heart of Kai territory?”
“Exactly.”
His thoughts raced with even more questions. “If the haywain was used to transport Ildiko and the queen, someone would have seen them, yes? Aren’t these just simple carts with decks built across the wheels so hay can be stacked?”
Thank the gods for farmers’ daughters turned soldiers and trackers. Dendarah was quick to answer. “For the most part, but some have sides, and tarpaulin can be stretched across the deck and attached to the sides to protect the load in bad weather.”
Fear and hope threatened to set fire to his heels. Were he a more impulsive, less reflective man, he’d be on his horse, racing toward a hint of a notion as to where Ildiko and Tarawin might be. But this mission required thorough observation and patience he was trying his best to hold onto despite his terror.
“While it may lead to nothing, I think this spoor is worth following.” Dendarah’s eyes gleamed like small suns in the waning night.
Before he could give his agreement, the faintest sound—a sigh on a whisper—teased his ears. It came from the beginning of the treeline to their right. He raised his bow, nocking the arrow in place even as Dendarah eased her sword from its scabbard.
“You might want to adjust your hoods better,” a familiar, much-beloved voice called out. “I spotted your eyes a league off. Why not just wear lanterns on your head?”
Dendarah didn’t move, though Brishen had no doubt her surprised expression mirrored his. He lowered the bow a fraction and peeked around the horse’s head, spotting another rider approach. Like them, the newcomer was cloaked, but the hood had been pulled far forward, hiding any eyeshine.
“And what is agamezadoing roaming about harassing decent Kai folk?” he called out, stepping around the horse made shield. Beside him, Dendarah swallowed a gasp at his insult.
The rider laughed, a deep, feminine chuckle with a surprising touch of sensuality to it. “Keeping watch over a useless prince of no value.”
This time the royal guard gasped loud enough to make both horses swing their heads toward her. Brishen grinned, awash with relief and a touch of joy. He strode toward the woman who had dismounted to meet him halfway.
A soft grunt sounded in his ear when he yanked Anhuset into his arms and squeezed hard. He grunted as well when she returned the embrace before shoving him away from her. This close and her eyes were no longer hidden from him, a pale yellow that hinted at her anger. This was no chance meeting. She’d learned something about the events at Saggara.
While he no longer thought a watcher kept an eye on them, he chose his louder words carefully. “You’re a fair distance from High Salure.”
Never one to let her guard down at any time, Anhuset followed his lead. She gave a careless shrug. “Out hunting.”
“So are we.”
Her half smile carried a wealth of meaning. “I figured such. I thought I might join you.”
“Is the margrave hunting as well?” To most ears, this was idle chitchat between friends. Between him and Anhuset, it was a field report.
She nodded. “He’s leading a patrol now. Raiders thieving cattle. Absolute pains in our arses.” She saluted Dendarah who returned the gesture. “So, where are we off to?”
He updated her while Dendarah continued her tracking. “Whoever took Ildiko also took Tarawin.”
Her soft “Lover of thorns, they abducted the queen as well?” encapsulated all the fear he felt, not only for his daughter’s safety, but for the kingdom’s stability.
“There are thirty of us working in teams. Of those, only the trackers know we’re hunting for two people instead of one. I assume you came across a team while looking for cattle thieves?”
Anhuset’s gaze flickered toward the treeline and then behind them, much as his had. “Aye. I think they would have been close-lipped were it someone other than me, but two of the three I talked to served under me before I left Saggara and sent me this way.” She scowled. “Don’t even think of refusing my help, Herceges.”
Fierce, dour Anhuset, whose devotion was unwavering but always served with a heaping of nettles. There wasn’t a day that passed since she married Serovek that Brishen didn’t miss her presence at Saggara. “I wouldn’t dare. We could use a second cover guard.”
“Have there been ransom demands?”
He wished there had. If it were greed that motivated the abductors, the easiest and safest way to resolve this would be to pay them what they wanted to get his wife and child back, then hunt them down later. But something told him greed played no role in this abduction, and that frightened him the most. “Not yet, but Mertok will send a scout to find me if one comes in. I think this is about something other than money.”
