“DOES SHE speak?” Daere asked, her gaze fastened on Mist as the little girl investigated the tangled ivy growing along the trunk of the tree. Mist’s gaze was fascinated as she bent closer to peer at something among the vines.
“Not much. Not yet,” Shea answered.
“Is she mute?”
Shea shook her head. “Chirron didn’t think so. I think she just needs to get comfortable before she opens up.”
Daere’s gaze was pensive as she stared at the girl. To Shea’s surprise, she hadn’t protested Mist’s presence when she’d arrived to speak with Shea about preparations for the upcoming journey. In fact, the woman had seemed all too eager to have the girl join them.
Shea had expected at least some protest, maybe Daere pointing out how it wasn’t seemly for the Warlord’s Telroi to have appropriated an orphan. Again, the other woman had surprised her.
“Have you explained that you’re leaving yet?” Daere asked.
Shea shook her head. That was why they were out here. It wouldn’t be long before Fallon and his men were ready to depart—maybe days. Shea didn’t want to disappear on the little girl, but there was no way she could bring Mist with her into the Highlands. Not when she still didn’t know what they were walking into.
Daere’s expression reflected understanding, and she turned the conversation to other matters. “With her name, I suspect she may have originated from the Rain Clan. Some among our people will give their children names that honor their clans and show solidarity with them.”
Shea nodded. She’d thought that too, but hadn’t wanted to say anything until she had proof. She had to move carefully or risk alienating certain sects of the Trateri even more than she already had.
“She won’t speak of what came before,” Shea said. “It is making things difficult.”
Daere nodded. “I’m sure you’ll track them down. You are nothing if not resourceful.”
Shea raised an eyebrow, amused. “That almost sounded like a compliment.”
Daere met her eyes with a sardonic look of her own. “Don’t let it go to your head.”
Mist drifted toward a white ivy. It wasn’t deadly, but it would leave the child uncomfortable and with a nasty rash for a few days.
“Mist, don’t touch that,” Shea said. The little girl jerked her hands back, her shoulders hunching. Her wide, frightened gaze swung to Shea. Everything about the little girl shouted fear, from the crumpled expression to the way she held her body. It made Shea’s chest hurt to see that expression on her face at just four little words.
Daere cursed softly enough that the little girl wouldn’t hear them. She kept her face arranged in a pleasant expression—a feat that Shea envied—as she said words that made even Shea’s ears burn. “When we find the people who hurt this little girl, I am going to enjoy visiting some of the tortures of the afterworld on them.”
Shea couldn’t agree more.
“I’m not mad at you, Mist,” Shea reassured the little girl. She came and knelt beside her and pointed at the cluster of leaves Mist had been about to touch. “See the white veins in the middle and the darker green on the edge.”
The fear didn’t fade from Mist’s eyes even as she looked where Shea was pointing.
“There’re usually three leaves that come to a point; like this. Do you see?” Shea used a stick to point out the different features, softly touching each feature as she described them. Mist frowned as she looked where Shea indicated. “It’s white ivy. It’s not really poisonous. At least not in the way we think of poison. There is a sticky oil on the leaves that most people are highly allergic too. That’s how it causes a blistering rash. If you see three, leave it be.”
Mist nodded solemnly after Shea finished, her eyes so serious as she mouthed the last phrase to herself.
“You know, Mist, Fallon and I will have to leave on a journey soon.”
The little girl’s head shot up, and she looked at Shea with horrified eyes. Shea’s heart clenched at the fear she saw on Mist’s face.
Mist gestured to herself and then Shea, her hopeful question clear.
Shea shook her head. “I’m sorry. You cannot come with us. Where we’re going is too dangerous to bring you along.”
Mist’s face fell, and she directed her attention down at her feet.
Shea saw that she was losing the girl and tried to console her. “My good friend, Daere, will look after you while we’re gone.”
Daere smiled at the little girl, her expression warmer and softer than anything Shea had seen before. She came and knelt beside Shea. “Hello Mist. I am very happy to meet you.”
The little girl looked unconvinced and sent a reproachful look Shea’s way. It would have been funny if there hadn’t been desperation behind Mist’s eyes.
Seeing it, Daere said, “Shea said as a treat she would teach us a little about the forest before she left, and when she gets back she will teach us about more of the Lowlands. Isn’t that right, Shea?”
Mist looked between Shea and Daere with suspicion before finally giving Shea a hopeful expression.
Shea smiled at her. “My mother used to take me on trips when I was your age, and she would teach me everything about the world around me.”
She really had. Even twenty years later Shea still remembered those trips and the patience her mother had displayed. Shea had been a curious child. Always trying to wander off and explore.
“I can teach you a little before I leave and then more when I return,” Shea said, looking around at the forest. They wouldn’t be able to go far, but to a girl who’d grown up in the Trateri homelands, this place would seem plenty wonderous.
Mist’s hand touched the back of Shea’s hand. She waited until Shea looked at her again to point to another plant, this one with a yellow flower that looked like a spiral inside.
“Do you want to know what that is?”
Mist nodded, her eyes still solemn. Shea’s mouth quirked in a half smile. “Very well.”
Daere drifted closer as Shea explained the various properties that she knew for the flower the locals called a golden spiral. An hour passed as Mist and Daere found more and more things for Shea to describe. Before long Shea was holding an impromptu beast class as she sketched out different beast footprints in the dirt.
Shea was completely absorbed in the descriptions as the three of them put their heads together to look at the current beast print Shea had pressed into the ground.
She didn’t even notice how they had become the center of attention until someone asked, “How do you distinguish between the revenant and the cackle dog? The two prints look almost identical to me.”
Shea looked up to find several Trateri dressed in clan colors that she didn’t recognize, gathered around watching. The men and one woman were all bigger than the other Trateri she’d met. Their features broader with a fierce look in their eyes that made Shea think that they weren’t used to playing nice with others.
Ember’s clan leader stood among them, his clothes much plainer than yesterday. He was missing the leather armor and the bloodthirsty look. Surrounded by those Shea assumed were his kinsmen, he almost seemed relaxed.
Daere stood up, brushing her hands against the seat of her pants. “Zeph, I had heard your clan finally joined us.”
Zeph inclined his head, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips. “It is good to see you again, little cousin.”
Shea’s eyebrows lifted. Cousin? This man was related to Fallon?
Seeing the question written on her face, Zeph addressed Shea, “We’re related on the paternal side, whereas Hawkvale shares a connection with my lovely cousin on the maternal side.”
Shea nodded, not knowing what else to say. The Trateri family bonds were important to them and resembled a thorny thicket. Though Fallon had no immediate family, he seemed to have many extended relations.
A tall man, his blond curls tamed into a bun on top of his head ventured close and crouched next to Mist. “Are you learning about these beasts that we’ve heard so much about?”
Mist ducked her head and edged closer to Shea, not stopping until she was behind her.
The man looked up a Shea, his eyes sharp and suspicious. Mist stayed where she was, her head pressed into the back of Shea’s leg.
Shea stared back at the man and his friends with no clue as to what to say. Mist’s reaction was extreme, and she didn’t know quite how to explain it to strangers. Or if she even should, given the fact that Fallon planned to find the person behind the child’s abuse.
Daere stepped into the silence. “What brings you here?”
Zeph and his man didn’t look away from Shea and the girl, their eyes focused and intent.
The blond leaned forward, trying to peer around Shea. He gave Mist a charming smile “It’s alright, little one. I won’t harm you.”
Mist burrowed deeper into Shea.
“It doesn’t look like she wants to talk to you,” Shea said, not liking how much interest he showed in the child.
She still wasn’t sure how abrupt she should be, not with Ember’s clan leader standing right there. The last thing she wanted to do was alienate another potential ally of Fallon’s. What she wanted to do was scoop Mist into her arms and leave the area as fast as possible. Perhaps set Chirron on them to investigate. The chances were the little girl had associated the man from Ember with someone she used to know, but it wouldn’t hurt to have him checked out.
“Bax?” Zeph asked, his gaze watchful.
“There are bruises on the little one’s arms and the back of her legs.” The blond’s voice remained pleasant as he relayed that information, though there was an edge to it hinting at his unhappiness.
Zeph gaze moved to Shea as the last semblance of friendliness faded from his face.
“I don’t care who you spend your nights with, but if that child has suffered abuse at your hands, I will see that you are punished to the fullest extent of our laws.” Zeph gave her a look that said he’d very much enjoy taking her apart with his bare hands. That he might not wait for justice.
Shea’s jaw dropped. Why did they immediately assume that she was the one to hurt Mist?
The blond lunged forward, attempting to grab Mist. His hand barely grazed her shirt before Shea swept her away with one hand while blocking his attempt with the other. He spun, his arm reaching up to grab her, going for her shirt. It was a technique that Trenton had used on her more than once in their self-defense training.
This man was a shade slower than Trenton and didn’t have Trenton’s creativity. Shea responded, her body reacting through sheer muscle memory. She fell back a step, grasping the hand gripping her shirt and applying pressure to the wrist while kicking at his knee. She pulled him forward, breaking his hold and pulling him off balance. He landed on his back with a grunt.
She thought she’d managed to evade him until his hand shot out to grab her ankle and yank. She hit the ground with a grunt. She kicked out, connecting with the blond’s head as she scrambled backwards. If he got ahold of her, her chances of escaping were seriously reduced.
“Leave her alone!” a small voice screamed. A small form flew at Bax. Mist attacked him with furious fists, screaming her head off the whole time. Shea was taken aback at the fury on the little girl’s face and didn’t move for a long moment, watching the unfolding violence with wide eyes and an open mouth.
Bax, to his credit, didn’t offer the girl any violence in return. He struggled with keeping Mist from hurting herself or him with only mild success. Shea winced as the little girl landed a blow above his eye.
Trenton appeared like a shadow behind Zeph, his blade a threat against the clan leader’s neck. Seeing the situation devolving to a place they wouldn’t be able to recover from without shedding blood, Shea darted in, grabbing the little girl under the arms and dragging her back as Mist kicked and squirmed in her arms. She tried like mad to attack Bax where he lay on the ground, his hands open and spread as if to say he was unarmed and harmless.
Shea soon saw why as Wilhelm appeared from Shea’s other side, blade drawn and his face an implacable mask.
So much for not offending another clan leader. Her guard had his blade at Ember’s throat and her other one looked like he was seriously considering stabbing the man lying on the ground through the stomach.
Daere stepped forward, her face flushed and her eyes glittering furiously. “Explain the meaning of this.”
For a minute Shea thought she meant Trenton.
“Ember will not tolerate the abuse of a child,” Zeph said, his face reserved as he ignored the blade at his throat. He looked with interest at Shea trying to sooth Mist by rocking her back and forth. The child’s chest heaved with the force of a bellows. “But perhaps we were hasty in our assumptions.”
Shea gave him an incredulous look as if to say ‘ya, think?’ The woman beside Zeph smothered a smirk.
Zeph’s expression was wry as he acknowledged her unvoiced point.
“I met Mist right before the eagle attack,” Shea said. She chanced straightening, not wanting to have this conversation while she was on her knees. “It wasn’t until afterwards when a healer was examining her for injuries that we discovered she’d been mistreated.”
“She’s the child you saved,” the blond on the ground said. Wilhelm shifted forward, his movement a threat. Bax held his hands up higher and gave the other man an apologetic look.
“Yes.”
“My apologies, Daere,” Zeph told the other woman. “I should have known you of all people wouldn’t serve a woman who abused children.”
Shea looked between the other two, feeling like she’d missed something. This wasn’t the first time someone had referred to Daere and a child. It was on the tip of her tongue to ask a question. She swallowed it back when she noticed the grief on Daere’s face. Shea had a feeling this story had a very sad ending. She didn’t want to subject Daere to having to explain such a thing in front of all these people. She’d tell her if she wanted to, eventually.
“Yes, you should have known better,” Daere said, not giving Ember’s clan leader an inch of understanding.
Zeph inclined his head as much as the blade Trenton held at his throat would permit. “You’re right. This was an unfortunate assumption.”
Daere’s face was implacable. “I’m not the one you need to apologize to.”
Zeph nodded, his gaze shifted to Shea. “Please forgive our jumping to conclusions.”
“You’re all idiots,” Shea declared before she could think better of it.
A choked sound came from the woman at Zeph’s left. Shea ignored her and the slightly surprised look on Zeph’s face. Did he really think she’d let this go so easily?
“You frightened Mist and damn near created an incident that could have left several dead. Even if you’d been right about me abusing her, there are a dozen different ways you could have handled it that didn’t lead to bloodshed.”
“We’re Trateri, darling. Bloodshed is what we do,” the man lying on the ground drawled.
Shea lifted an eyebrow, utterly unimpressed with his charm. “And scaring little girls until they cry, is that also what you do?”
Bax frowned, his blue eyes flicking to the little girl and then back to Shea. “That wasn’t my intention.” To Mist, he said, “Little one, I meant you nor your protector any harm. Please forgive me.”
The smile he flashed her would have decimated anyone over the age of sixteen. It was charm personified. Shea was willing to bet Bax had ladies lined up just begging for his apologies.
Mist peeked at him before burying her head back in Shea. “No.”
Bax’s smile faded and he looked slightly irked. Shea had to fight against a smile. It would be many years before a smile like that would work on the little girl.
The woman at Zeph’s side broke into peals of laughter, the sound cutting through the gathering tension faster than a knife. “Finally, someone capable of ignoring that oh-so-slick charm that you’re known for.”
“Shut it, Holly. No one asked you.” Bax shot the woman a glare.
“No one needed to. As the only other woman in this camp who ever saw through that phony façade of yours, I must show her my appreciation.” Holly came forward, taking a knee in front of Mist. Shea didn’t move, watching with interest this other woman dressed in the same simple garb as the men. While the Trateri allowed their women to serve in the army and carry out tasks traditionally seen as duties only suited to men in Highland and Lowland society, it was still rare to see one who actually fit in that world.
“Hello, little one. On behalf of the numbskulls behind me, I sincerely apologize for the fright you took.”
Mist hands squeezed Shea’s pants a she regarded the other woman with a frown.
“They didn’t mean any harm in it. They really thought they were trying to help.” Holly’s face was open and kind, her expression soft and her eyes warm.
Mist looked up at Shea as if asking permission. Shea smiled back at her. The little girl looked back at Holly and gave a nod, her eyes focused on the ground the entire time.
If nothing else, this incident had at least gotten Mist speaking again. Shea was grateful for that, even if she would have wished the circumstances were different. She kept her happiness at Mist speaking to herself, not wanting the little girl to become self-conscious and retreat back into her shell.
Holly slapped her thigh and stood. “That settles it then. The idiots back there will refrain from any more heroic actions that don’t suit them, and you and I will become friends.” Holly looked at Shea. “So, you’re the Telroi I’ve heard so much about.”
“My name is Shea.” She wasn’t quite sure what to make of this woman who looked friendly and had charmed Mist where her friend couldn’t. “Not Telroi.”
Shea didn’t enjoy being referred to by the role she played in Fallon’s life. She was a person, damn it, with dreams and struggles of her own. If they’d called her scout or pathfinder, that would have been one thing. The term Telroi made her feel like an appendage of Fallon’s.
The skin at Holly’s eyes crinkled as her smile lit up her face. “Very good. I will remember that for future.”
Holly turned to Daere, offering her right hand in a warrior’s greeting. Daere took her arm, clasping it right below the elbow. “It’s been a long time.”
“A few years at least,” Daere said with a smile.
Their body language said they were friends and had been for a long time.
“Can you tell your watchdog to ease up?” Zeph asked, his expression set to rueful.
Shea eyed Trenton where he still stood with his blade pressed against Zeph’s neck. He met her eyes with unhappy ones of his own. She jerked her head. He frowned but obeyed, withdrawing the blade and stepping away. Zeph pressed a hand to his neck, his fingers coming away with blood.
“You were a little overzealous, don’t you think?” he asked.
Trenton gave him an implacable look Shea swore was part of the training the Anateri had to go through. She’d seen the exact same look on more than one Anateri’s face.
“What are you doing here?” Shea asked before anything else could be said that might jeopardize Fallon’s relationship with the Ember clan. Shea was already trying to figure out how to explain to him why Trenton had held a knife on their clan leader and why she’d kicked one of them while they were down.
“Darius’s suggestion. My vanguard and I will be accompanying you and Fallon on your trip into the Highlands. Darius thought you could set us up with a few lessons so we’ll be better prepared,” Zeph explained with a slight quirk to his lips.
Shea arched an eyebrow. “I don’t know why. Clark and Charles usually host the classes on beasts. I help out sometimes but that’s really more their thing than mine.”
“But you’re the expert on all things beast and Highlands related,” Zeph said smoothly. “My men and women deserve the best training they can get. You’re the best so you’ll train them.”
Shea gave him an incredulous look. Did he really think he could order her to train his men? Especially after the whole affair with Mist?
“Am I now?” she asked.
“The class is also full,” Holly said, with a reproachful glance at her clan leader. “Clark said you might be able to help us.”
Shea shut her mouth and stared at the other woman in thought. Clark and Charles would have to be overwhelmed with new recruits for them to pass off this lot to Shea. They’d been trying to grow the concept of the beast class and get more clans participating in it under the assumption that more people meant more information, which meant a more complete picture of what they faced. For them to pass people off to Shea, things had to have gotten out of control.
Shea stared at the five Trateri from the Ember Clan standing before her. It would be so easy to turn them away. Despite their apology, Shea had to wonder if they would have leapt to the same conclusion had she been Trateri. It was one thing to know you were an outsider and another to have it thrust into your face.
Still, could she afford to turn them away knowing that their deaths due to ignorance would be on her head? When such a simple thing as sharing a little of her knowledge would keep them alive? Could she justify withholding that knowledge for any reason?
The answer was no. She couldn’t. Even if they had been enemies she would feel compelled to help them. It might not be the pathfinder way or even the Trateri way, but it was her way. If she could give such a simple thing, she would.
She sighed. “I’ll see what I can do. You do know that it took me almost an entire lifetime to gather this knowledge. There’s no way I can impart all of it in just a few hours.”
“Give us what you can. You never know when something will come in handy.” Zeph sounded distracted as he noticed several men heading their way. The head of the Rain clan was at the front of the group.
They all eyed the newcomers with varying levels of suspicion and distrust.
“Ember,” Gawain said with a nod so slight that Shea wasn’t sure she’d imagined or not “I see you had the same idea as us.”
“Rain.” Zeph’s face relaxed into smooth lines, all suspicion wiped away.
Bax climbed to his feet and stood with his legs spread and arms held slightly bent at his sides. He looked relaxed, but Shea suspected he could explode into movement at any time.
Gawain finally graced Shea his regard. “The Hawkvale’s Telroi. I have been looking for you.”
Shea didn’t miss the dismissive glance that Gawain swept over Mist or the way the child wedged herself tighter behind Shea as if afraid to draw more attention to herself.
“It seems you’ve found me.”
The smile he gave her was amused and polite and held the kind of goodwill that almost made Shea question her previous impression.
“I believe we got off on the wrong foot,” Gawain said, stepping closer. Wilhelm tensed at her back and even Trenton eyed him with a degree of suspicion usually reserved for Lowlanders. “I will admit I lost my head yesterday and said some regrettable things. We lost some good people. I’m afraid I let it get to me. I apologize for any words that may have offended.”
Pretty words, but Shea wasn’t sure how many of those were sincere. He seemed earnest, his expression open and containing a friendliness that had been lacking yesterday.
She just didn’t quite believe it. Something kept her from trusting him entirely.
She could see how the confusion and attack might have led him to being a tad more hostile than he would be normally. For that reason, she was inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt despite her reservations.
“I understand. Yesterday was a trying day for all involved.”
He held his hand out to her to clasp. “I hope we can put this behind us for Fallon’s sake, if nothing else. We were as close as brothers growing up. I would hate to have harsh feelings between myself and the woman he has chosen to have by his side.”
Shea stared at his hand, not liking how he was forcing her into accepting his apology but also not seeing a way to gracefully decline. She clasped his hand, grasping his forearm in much the same way Daere had clasped Holly’s. Her nod was grudging.
“I’m told you have much to share regarding the beasts and terrain we might encounter in the Highlands,” Gawain said stepping back. “My men and I would appreciate any guidance you might be able to give.”
Both Ember and Rain were accompanying Fallon into the Highlands? Shea would have thought he’d want some of the men who were familiar with the Lowlands. They at least had some idea of what to expect.
She eyed both sets of Trateri, wishing not for the first time that she had undertaken this journey alone. Keeping all of these people alive was going to take a miracle.
“Of course, I’d be happy to share what I know.” Shea looked down to where Mist was still burrowed into her. “Perhaps we can pick this up tomorrow. There are a few things that need my attention today.”
Gawain looked at the girl attached to Shea. “Hello, lalu. Could you spare your friend for a few hours today?”
Mist didn’t answer, though Shea could feel her body shaking.
“She must be shy,” Gawain said, aiming a smile at Shea as he stood.
“Something like that.”
“I’m afraid we’ll need your help today,” Gawain said. “As the Hawkvale intends to ride out tomorrow.”
What? Shea hadn’t heard that.
Gawain looked sympathetic to the surprise clearly written on her face. “You hadn’t heard? He made his decision this morning. Those with orders are preparing even as we speak.”
She’d seen Fallon at the midday meal. He could have told her then. Why hadn’t he? Was he afraid to trust her for fear of the information getting to the pathfinders? That couldn’t be it. He may have just been distracted. There could be a million reasons for why he hadn’t told her.
“I’m sorry if this is a surprise. I assumed you knew.” Gawain really did look apologetic.
Shea’s smile held a thread of tension. “I’m sure he just got caught up in preparations. Anyway, if that’s the case I will need to prepare as well. We have several weeks of travel before we reach the Highlands. I can start teaching Ember and Rain the basics on the trail.”
It’d give her more time and also real-world examples to draw from.
Gawain clasped his hands. “Perfect. We will find you then.” He turned to Zeph. “Is that an acceptable plan to you, Ember?”
Zeph eyed him with an odd expression on his face, one Shea couldn’t quite decipher. Holly, at his side, also looked displeased at Rain’s presence.
“That is an acceptable compromise for Ember,” Zeph said. “We will find you on the trail.”
Shea gave them all a look that said she looked forward to it. Or at least that was what she hoped it said. In reality, she was dreading the encounter already.
“It is good to see you again, my fierce one,” Gawain told Daere as she fell into step with Shea.
Daere was reserved as she gave Gawain a nod. “And you as well.”
“I had hoped to spend more time getting reacquainted with you,” he said to her back.
“There will be time for that later,” Daere said. Her smile was awkward. She clasped Shea’s elbow and steered her away from the group, reaching down with her other hand to tug on Mist’s arm.
“What was that about?” Shea asked.
“Nothing.”
Shea snorted. She wasn’t that dumb. “Nothing, my ass. Why did I sense a vague threat behind his words?”
“Because you did,” Daere said.
“Is he a danger to you?” Shea asked, her eyes locked on Daere’s face. If he was, Shea didn’t care who he was or how much Fallon needed him. She’d put a stop to him herself, even if she had to lead the man into a beast’s nest to do it.
“Not in the way you mean.” Daere didn’t look at Shea, her gaze turned forward.
“What do you mean?”
“Gawain is mostly harmless. He’s always been jealous of the attention Henry gives Fallon. It’s one of the reasons he broke off to form his own clan.”
Shea shot a look at Trenton and Wilhelm who kept pace with them. Their attention was directed to the area surrounding them, but Shea would have bet anything that they were listening to every word.
“And how is he not harmless?”
“He’s very good at manipulating people. His ambition has a way of blinding him to everything but what he needs to get what he wants. That ambition has hurt many people along the way.”
Shea took her words to mean that Daere was one of those who fell victim to Gawain’s ambitions.
“So, I shouldn’t trust him.”
Daere huffed out a laugh. “You shouldn’t trust anyone but Fallon and your guards. Haven’t you learned anything in the weeks with me?”
“I don’t remember that being one of the lessons.”
Daere gave Shea a sideways glance. “It was in the subtext.”
“Ah, well. There’s your problem. You’re relying on me to catch the subtext. I’m a straightforward kind of person.”
“I’m beginning to understand that.”