Ziva clutches her skinny arms around herself. She begins to shrink, but then she peers at her father and stands back up. She pushes her chin-length curls behind her ears, looking more like the fiery girl I chased to Sawtooth Mesa.
“I’m not a child!” she shouts at the ornery old woman. “I’m thirteen. And I know how strong my father is. He will retaliate against the empire, once he’s able. I also know that running to Lutaar City is futile. The imperial governor feeds people one day, then executes them the next. It isn’t a long-term solution.”
“We don’t havelongto wait!” Azamat calls.
Ziva purses her lips. “When did I say anything about waiting?”
“Do we have another choice?” Serik asks.
“We go to Namaag,” Ziva says, as if it’s the simplest, most obvious solution in the world. And maybe it would be if it wasn’texactlywhat Temujin predicted King Minoak would do when we sat and speculated on this very subject in Kartok’s false Eternal Blue. The Shoniin and Zemyans could already be lying in wait along the route.
I shake my head, but Ziva continues, her voice growing with conviction. “My aunt Yatindra is married to the vice chancellor. Relations between our countries are strong, and Ashkar’s presence has always been minimal in the marshlands, so there’s little threat of being caught. If you help me transport my father to safety, I’ll convince the Namagaans to join us in our march against the imperial governor.”
For the first time since we entered the caves, the shepherds aren’t yelling. I can see them turning the plan over in their brains: Food. Shelter. Protection. Reinforcements. It’s only a weeklong trek to Uzul, the Namagaan capital. One week, and their suffering could be over. It’s a good plan—essentially the same as mine, only we’d be recruiting the Protected Territories in a different order. And the shepherds aren’t outright saying no, which is a victory in itself. But when Ziva looks at me with a wide smile, I shake my head.
“It won’t work.”
“Why not?” She leaps down from the boulder and plants her hands on her hips.
“Because you could use us to transport you and your father to Namaag, then cast us out.”
Ziva recoils, her dark eyes glassy with hurt. And beneath the hurt, a quiet, simmering rage. “Do you honestly think I would abandon the people of Verdenet? My father is theking!I am the crown princess. I’ll return to fight for my country with or without this group.”
“Don’t take her cynicism personally, little princess.” Azamat throws a venomous look my way. “That one thinks we’re all traitors—accused me of stealing the food she set me to guard.”
“I don’t—I never …” My voice takes on a desperate edge. “We must also think of her family’s ties to Namaag. Scores of assassins are hunting King Minoak. They’ll surely be waiting along the caravan route.”
“Enebish refuses to believe any of us are capable,” Lalyne, the tracker, says to Ziva. “She accuses us of insurrection and incompetence, no matter that she set us with an impossible task. We never would’ve found you or your father—not while you were hidden beneath the cover of night.”
“Which isexactlywhy we don’t have to worry about assassins or Shoniin scouts spotting us as we travel to Namaag!” Serik jumps in. “Now we havetwoNight Spinners to conceal us.”
“What?” I demand.
“We all know how exhausted you are, En. Ziva can help.”
“You can’t be serious!” I retort. “She doesn’t know the first thing about Night Spinning.”
Ziva jerks back as if I’ve slapped her. “I knew enough to steal food out from under your nose!”
“I didn’t know how to wield my power either,” Serik continues. “But you learn quickly when you’re thrust into the fray. And you can teach her, En. Mentor her. She’s already shown promise. She concealed King Minoak all this time.”
The shepherds whisper and nod more eagerly, pulling away from me like the threads of darkness at dawn.
“Do you realize what you’re suggesting?” I ask Serik in a low, dangerous whisper. Ican’tjust mentor Ziva. Ghoa destroyed me. I want nothing to do with another relationship like that. And if I allow Ziva to help, I won’t have complete control of the night. I won’t be able to ensure everyone’s safety when she inevitably makes a mistake. Or purposely sabotages us.
“Loosen your hold on the reins and stop being so suspicious,” Serik says. “We can do this, but only if you trust us. We need to use every advantage at our disposal, and Ziva’s offer is a good one.”
Behind him, the shepherds nod. Ziva raises her chin, a challenge in her eyes.
“What if my power flags?” I persist, even though I know it’s pointless.
“What ifmypower flags?” Serik says solemnly. “Every day, I burn closer to the end of my wick, and when I reach it, we’ll all freeze to death.”
“But—”
“If you have a better plan, let’s hear it!” someone shouts.
They know I don’t. Without proper treatment, King Minoak will die. And we can’t invade Lutaar City without him. We need the Namagaans to join our rebellion eventually anyway. I’d just hoped to recruit them later, when our numbers were more impressive.
