Meena felt her chest tighten. For all his charm, she had to remember that Jules was a minion of Gareth. As delightful or charming as he and Ezra might seem, they were still the enemy.
She hoped they did not know about the chaos magic and Gareth’s cruelty toward the Majis. Jules and Ezra seemed like genuine and kind people, but she steeled her heart against them.
Though Jules kept up a constant chatter as their cart slowly rambled up the cliff side road, Meena had difficulty hearing the words he said.
Sol remained stony and silent at her side.
Ezra occasionally spoke a word or two, but only when her husband called on her to affirm his facts and stories.
The fort loomed overhead as they criss-crossed their way up the cliff side road. The uneven sandstone gradually transformed into a carved brick wall. Long, thin slits made up the windows of the lower levels of the fort, and short, pointed triangles lined the upper wall.
“Was the fort builtintothe cliff oroutof the cliff?” Meena wondered, not realizing she’d asked the question out loud until Ezra answered her.
“Both, I presume,” Ezra said. “Anywhere you see individual bricks, such as the towers or battlements, were added to what the cliff already provided.”
“I’ve never seen triangular shaped battlements before,” Meena said. “Are those a Falqri tradition?” Meena nudged Sol, who sat at her side.
When he looked down at her, she blinked twice, slowly. It was the communication they had agreed upon for warning the other when they were discussing parts of the plan.
Sol’s gray eyes appeared a shade darker as he furrowed his brow.
“I have not been in Falqri long enough to know,” Ezra responded to Meena’s question.
The wagon bounced as they rounded a corner. Meena grabbed at the wooden bench she sat on. The uncomfortable feeling she’d had been trying to forget snaked its way back into her stomach. Ezra was from Chendas, not Falqri.
“The triangle shape seems as though it would be a poorer choice for defense,” Sol said slowly. He bit his lower lip and twisted his neck back to stare at the fort as the wagon finished turning around the tight corner. “A rectangular shape would provide more coverage.”
“You seem very interested in the fort’s defenses,” Jules said. “Are you looking for its weaknesses?” He glanced over his shoulder at Sol. “Are you planning to attack it?” His mouth was smiling in jest, but his eyes appeared uncomfortably sharp.
“No,” Sol sputtered, he looked to Meena. He blinked, furiously.
They had not agreed upon a meaning for that many successive blinks, but Meena knew he was asking for her help.
“You are really in command of this entire fortress?” Meena directed her question at Jules. It was not difficult to fill her voice with awe and respect.
She saw Jules’s chest puff out as he inhaled. “A tremendous responsibility,” he said. His words were modest, but Meena could hear the pride in them.
“Interesting.” Sol gave Meena a sidelong glance. “Interesting that a soldier from Chendas should oversee the largest port city in Falqri.”
Jules glanced over his shoulder again. Meena could see one of his eyebrows suspiciously raised.
She nudged Sol with her elbow. That was too pointed of a question to ask.
“Not surprising at all.” Jules responded more slowly than he usually did. “Falqri is known for its great warriors, and Chendas for its great strategy. It only makes sense that we would combine our strengths.”
Sol scooted a touch further away from Meena. It seemed he did not like her warning jabs in his side.
“The soldiers here must really respect you, then.” Meena directed her words to Jules, but sent a glare toward Sol. She blinked once. Once meant they were simply making conversation.
“They do,” Ezra responded for her husband, slipping her arm into his and nudging his shoulder with devotion and pride.
Staring at the gentle contact of Jules and Ezra’s upper arm, Meena suddenly felt very cold. She could feel the ocean breeze blowing freely in the space between her and Sol. She let the conversation dwindle.
As they finally entered the city gates, two guards stopped them on the way in. “Oh, it’s you Captain,” one said, standing up stiffly and nodding his head in a salute. “Sorry to stop you.”
“Thank you, Rivard,” Jules replied kindly. “You are supposed to stop everyone who comes through these gates, even me.”
The cart rode through and Meena let her attention turn to the small city that comprised the fort.
