Page 81 of A Wayward Movement

Alina was about to protest further when a thought occurred to her.

“The travel expenses will all be paid for by the crown, right?”

“Yes.” Xavier narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Of course.”

“And accommodation in the capital, too?”

He let out a soft sigh of exasperation. “Yes, Alina, you miser.”

Alina ignored this dig. “I want Benji and Lilah to come.”

“Benji and Lilah?” Xavier was surprised. “Why?”

“I’m not leaving them for that long with no one looking out for them,” Alina said. “I’ll only go if they can come. Both of them.”

“Yes, all right.” Xavier said it like it was nothing, and to him it probably was.

But as far as Alina was concerned, she’d won a huge victory. No more careful scrimping and saving to get Benji to the capital to apply to the guild. It would all be covered. Lilah would be able to go as well.

Content, Alina leaned back against the carriage seat, pleased to surrender to her exhaustion again.

“No flirting with Lilah on the way,” she told Xavier, her eyes already closed. “There’s only so much poor Benji can take.”

Xavier’s soft chuckle chased her into sleep.

Chapter

Nineteen

“Well, Zuzu.” Xavier scratched behind the ears of the anzu perched on the horn of his saddle. “We’re home. Do you even remember it? You were a hatchling when we left.”

Zuzu’s purr seemed to indicate if not an affirmative, at least a willingness to agree. The anzu flapped her wings a little, getting her balance as the horse trotted through the open city gate.

Cheers greeted the group’s passage through the streets of Sindon, and Xavier met all the cries of admiration with a grin and a lazy wave. It was such second nature, he was barely even aware of sending a wink to a swooning girl here or an extra wave to a giggling group there. The three-day journey had felt long, and he was glad to be home. The tension of the unresolved investigation felt far away. He was as determined as ever to get to the bottom of the matter, but with the potential victim he was most concerned for riding safely in the carriage just behind him, he could afford to let the burden lift for a moment.

He glanced back at the carriage, wondering what Alina was thinking at this return to the city she’d once called home. He would have loved to see her reaction for himself, but she’d chosen to ride in a carriage with Lilah and Benji for the whole duration of the journey.

Outwardly, Xavier had been very encouraging of the precaution, knowing she was being pushed into a journey sooner than was wise after her over-exertion ordeals. But inwardly, he wished he could be sure her decision wasn’t equally about avoiding him. They’d had very little chance to speak for the whole three days, and certainly no moments for private conversation.

He wasn’t totally discouraged, though. He’d felt her eyes on him once or twice and noted the flush on her cheeks as she looked away quickly after being caught. If he knew anything of women—and he did—she’d been remembering how it had felt when he’d held her pressed against his chest with his arms around her and her face buried in his neck.

She had no need to be embarrassed, of course. However often she was reliving the sensation, it wasn’t half as often as he was. He smirked to himself. But he didn’t intend to share that information. Unlike with most women, Alina so often made him feel like he didn’t have the advantage. No need to give up any he might have gained.

They rode up to the castle in procession, through crowds that became thicker as word spread. Cheers continued to greet them right up until they entered the courtyard, the royal guards holding back anyone unauthorized who might try to follow them through the gates.

Xavier dismounted with a flourish, just as Zuzu launched herself into the air. She did a victory loop of the courtyard, clearly as pleased to be off the road as he was. The sounds of admiration from various servants and grooms who’d hurried forward to meet them turned quickly to cries of irritation as Zuzu blessed them all with her own brand of rain, apparently just for the sheer joy of it.

Xavier chuckled, highly entertained by the sight of the castle’s stately steward lifting a stack of parchments over his head as he hastened back under cover.

“That’s my girl.” Xavier held out his arm, and Zuzu came in smoothly to land on the leather bracer he was wearing. “You’re getting so good at flying,” he crooned.

“Of course you praise her flying instead of telling her off for drenching the whole courtyard.”

Alina’s voice made him turn. The carriage had pulled up just behind him, and she’d obviously been the first to alight. He grinned at her. Her words might be scolding, but there was a laugh in her voice.

“How does it feel to be home?” he asked her.

She shook her head. “This isn’t home. It hasn’t been for a long time.”