LILIA
We crept through the brush, carving a path through the trees that would put us squarely in front of Thieving Pie Man when we came out on the other side—if we timed it right. Fallen leaves crunched beneath our steps, and twigs snapped as loudly as thunder. I wanted to shush the ground. If we made too much of a racket, the men in the cart might anticipate an ambush. The patter of my heart gained ground in my ears. We were in the Isles, where peace reigned, not conquerers hell-bent on oppression. Here, we were a community, a gathering of souls who yearned for a better world. None of this should be happening.
I slowed, my hands clenching. Ragnar continued onward until he’d noticed I’d stopped. He backtracked, his brow furrowed. When he stepped in close, my pulse somehow managed to quicken and steady itself at the same time.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m just wondering…what are we about to walk into right now? I don’t want to fight anyone, Ragnar. Like you said yesterday, it’s just ale. Is it worth all this?”
He tucked a finger beneath my chin. “You know I would never put you in danger, don’t you? If Ivar and his friends want to fight when we reach them, we can just walk away. And we won’t look back. All right?”
“And what if they won’t let us walk away that easily? What if they attack?” I whispered up at him. “The Isles are supposed to be safe, but they don’t feel that way right now.”
“You just leave that to me.” His gaze implored mine. “But if you want to go now, just say the word. I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to do, Lil.”
Lil.He spoke my name as if he’d known me for twenty years.
A tankard’s worth of courage suddenly came over me. “No, it’s fine. We should at least check things out. Like you said, if anything seems off, we’ll just walk away.”
“You certain?”
I steadied my breathing, then said, “I’m certain.”
With a nod, he led us deeper into the trees. We moved more quickly now. The sound of the cart was growing louder, and we only had a few more moments to reach the path before it passed by us. Between the growing tension and the hike, I was sweating.
At long last, we reached the tree line. A pockmarked dirt road wound past us, snaking up the side of a hill toward the distant mountains. Soft tufts of grass hissed in the light breeze, and eagles soared through the sun-swept morning sky. The jagged peaks were dashed with snow, glittering like diamonds. It was a glorious sight. But the ever-growing rattle drew my attention away from the beauty.
Ragnar edged in front of me just as the cart drew over a slope in the road. Two human men walked shoulder-to-shoulder. They were lugging the cart behind them, their faces red from the effort. A couple of others trudged along beside them—a man and a woman, both shadow demons. When they noticed us standing in the middle of the road, they all stopped and openly stared.
“Good morning,” I tried to say chirpily, but my voice sounded more like a squawk than anything else.
One of the men released the yokes and eyed me warily. He had wild, curly blond hair, piercing blue eyes, and a stocky build that suggested he’d seen his fair share of hard work. The wind tussled his curls as he walked toward us, his faded leather boots barely making a sound. The others stayed right where they were.
“Morning,” the man drawled. He stopped a few feet away and eyed us from head to toe, likely wondering where we’d come from. “Everything all right? You’re not lost, are you?”
“We’re fine,” Ragnar answered. “Just being curious, what do you have in your wagon back there? Looks heavy. Need any help?”
The man’s eyes narrowed. “We’re managing just fine.”
My companion suddenly strode forward and stuck out his hand. “Name’s Ragnar. Nice to meet you.”
Still squinting, the man shook Ragnar’s hand. “Ivar. Is there something you two need? If not, I’ll have to ask you to move off the road. We need to pass. Days are shorter, you know, and we have a lot of ground to cover.”
“You have anything to drink back there?” Ragnar lifted our empty canteen and tipped it sideways. “We didn’t come prepared, and my lovely friend back there is awfully thirsty. You know what would go down really well right now? Some ale.”
I pressed my lips together. Subtle. Very subtle.
“No,” Ivar said, taking a step back. “All we’ve got is pie.”
“Pie?” I tried to crane my neck to see into the back of the cart, but the three others blocked my view. All I could spot was a lumpy blanket protecting the contents beneath it—or hiding them.
Ivar continued to back up. “You two must be the ones who stopped by my house. You’re here about the flour, eggs, mushrooms, and venison, aren’t you?”
I blinked. “The what?”
“All the food we took from the festival wagons during the storm. Aren’t you here to take it back?” He folded his arms. “I’m afraid you’re too late. What we didn’t sell to the ship that just passed through, we used to bake these pies. Now move out of our way, or I’ll have to ask my shadow demon friends back there tomakeyou move.”
“Wait. You didn’t just take our ale, but you stole all the food, too?” I asked, my voice rising to almost a shout.
