Page 96

The big stallion shifted uneasily at the sound of our sharp voices.

Don extended a hand. “Come out of there. Clearly, we need to talk.”

I ignored his hand, and after a moment, he dropped it. I followed him past the stalls and out into the chilly sunlight, stopping for a moment to check on the little mare and retrieve my battered satchel.

We found a secluded spot behind the stable and faced one another.

Don ran a hand through his shaggy blond hair. “Pollux arrived here a few days ago with the news that you had tricked him and lied to him. He says you led him to a small village in the middle of nowhere and then left him there alone. You and Ismene ran off to a secret destination you wouldn’t tell him about.”

The wind was cold, and despite my cloak, I shivered. I was still so tired. “That’s not— Of course that’s not what happened. I mean, not exactly. I didn’t leave him there. He was gone when I got back.”

“But part of it is true? Was there a secret place you didn’t tell him about?”

My face reddened. “I can’t say. But I had no intention of leaving him there.”

He looked incredulous. “You went miles out of your way, when the journey was already dangerous, kept your plans concealed from your fellow traveler, and you can’t say why? That’s a fine way to treat someone who risked his life to help you.”

“I had a good reason.”

“Then what was it?” he demanded.

Hadn’t I had a good reason? His brusque summary of events made my confidence waiver. It was so hard to think clearly in this cold. My teeth chattered.

We stared at one another in silence.

Finally, he sighed. “You look like you’re about to drop. Come with me—Pollux and I have taken rooms down in the city. I don’t understand what happened, but I hope we can figure it out.”

He turned to go.

I grabbed his massive arm. “If you’re staying down in the city, why were you sent for to see about a stranger in Capitan’s stall? Why didn’t Sebastianus come to the stables himself, when he’s right here? Where is he now?”

The tips of his pale ears reddened. “I believe he’s occupied and doesn’t want to be disturbed.”

I let my hand fall. “You mean, occupied with a woman?”

“Anna, you have to understand,” he said uncomfortably, “we all thought you had fled, that you were gone.”

“And that’s it? Without so much as seeking to understand what happened, you all just gave me up for lost?” I pulled my dingy cloak tight around me.

“I think—I think there are some complicated threads here that we need to unwind. Come on.” He bent and put an arm around my shoulders.

I planted my shaky feet. “It doesn’t seem complicated. Sebastianus has already moved on. He’s like every other man who visits this place. Don’t make excuses for him.”

“Have I ever made excuses for him to you?” he asked gently. “For the sake of our friendship—yours and mine—we need to untangle this. Please come with me. No matter what, we’ll figure out together what to do next.”

The fight went out of me, and I sagged against his huge frame.

DON HALF CARRIED me through the quiet streets until we came to a small apartment over a dressmaker’s shop. He opened the shop door with a small key. As we went up a narrow staircase I caught a glimpse of the first floor: a crackling fire, a wooden dress form, and bolts of cloth strewn across tables. At the top of the steps he led me through a creaky door and into a small but clean room with a low couch, a table with two stools, a set of shelves, and a trunk for storage. Beyond it, a second room was mostly taken up by a large bed.

Pollux had been dozing, but he woke up as we came in, smiled affectionately at Don, and then, as his eyes landed on me, he leapt to his feet in surprise.

Don shut the door firmly. “The three of us have to talk.” He dragged the two stools over to the couch.

Pollux sat down on one of them. I dropped sullenly onto the other. Don took a seat on the couch and crossed his arms. Silence settled over the room.

I broke it first. “You abandoned me in Mareus. I had to make my own way here on foot, alone, through the mountains.”

Pollux was as tense a coiled spring. He leaned forward. “Do you think I’m simple? Because I drive a chariot, my mind is no good?” He tapped his temple with two fingers. “You think I can’t see what’s right in front of me? You two were plotting from the moment we left Panpirion. Do you deny it?”