Leith knelt by Blizzard and laced his fingers together. When Renna placed her boot into his hands, he boosted her into the saddle. She scooted back until she sat on the folded blanket. Leith reached for the saddlehorn and placed his foot in the stirrup. As he swung on, he had to crimp his right leg to avoid kicking Renna as he swung it over the saddle.
As he found the stirrup with his right foot, Renna wormed her arms around his waist. He caught his breath. Her body pressed against his back.
He gave himself a severe shake. Friends. Just friends.
Blizzard shifted, and Renna’s arms tightened into a strangling squeeze. He patted her hands. “I won’t let you fall.”
He glanced at Brandi and Jamie. Brandi hung onto Jamie with one hand and waved at Leith with the other.
Jamie’s eyes were wide, his shoulders moving in tiny shudders as if he were afraid to breathe.
Breathless and girl-shocked. Leith could relate.
20
Renna held her breath as Blizzard set out at a walk. Sitting nearly on the horse’s rump as she was, each stride tipped her one way, then the other.
She tightened her grip around Leith’s waist. The hilts of the knives strapped to his belt dug into the insides of her arms. She wrapped her fingers around the leather straps crossing his chest, though the straps across his back scratched against her face.
Still, this was an improvement from earlier. At least her stomach and ribs no longer bashed against the saddle.
“Stay as quiet as you can.” Leith’s voice rumbled in his chest.
She peeked over his shoulder. He held Blizzard’s reins loosely, mostly letting the horse choose their path along the sloping side of a mountain. Leith sat straight in the saddle, his left hand resting on his thigh. She would’ve thought the posture casual except for the feel of his muscles tensing in time with Blizzard’s strides.
Closing her eyes, she leaned her forehead against Leith’s back. Her father had ridden like that. Comfortable in the saddle. On their trips to visit Walden, she’d ask to ride double with him so she could relax in his steady, safe guidance of his horse.
Would her father have liked Leith? Considering Leith had played a role in his death, probably not. But without that?
She sighed and clung to Leith as Blizzard lunged up a steep section. It didn’t matter. Her father wasn’t here, and Leith probably didn’t see her as anything other than a friend. Was she even that? Maybe he only saw her as a burden.
Had he noticed how she’d leaned against him when he’d pulled her from Blizzard earlier? He’d probably wondered why she’d taken so long to stand on her own two feet. She should’ve leaned against Blizzard. That would’ve been the smart thing to do. But when she’d stumbled from the saddle, unable to see or open her mouth, he’d been so solid she’d soaked the feeling in.
As she was doing now.
Leith’s elbow knocked against her arm. “Look.”
Renna raised her head. To their left, the mountains fell away into a wide, grassy meadow surrounded by oaks and maples. A stream sliced through the center. Far below, a herd of elk grazed the grass, some lying down, some standing. The mountains rose around them in rocky cliffs and stands of juniper, cedars, and pines, stretching as far as she could see into the gray distance. A wild, lonely land.
The size of the place drummed through her, as if here the sky stretched bigger, the rivers deeper, the trees stronger, and the earth more alive than anywhere she’d seen before. With the mountains gnawing at the sky around her, it seemed impossible that the flat roll of Acktar’s prairie still existed somewhere to their south.
“This is beautiful.”
“Yes.” Leith nudged Blizzard, and the horse eased into a walk once again.
“How do you know where you’re going?” Renna peered over his shoulder. While there might’ve been a faint worn spot in the gravel and rocks that Blizzard followed, it couldn’t be called a trail.
“Shad gave me the directions I need to head to find the campsite he’s setting up for us, and I’ve travelled through here before.” Leith shrugged. “In those early years, Respen had us track down the Rovers, and Martyn and I spent a lot of time wandering the Hills in search of Rover hideouts.”
She’d heard of the Rovers. Her parents had told stories about the times the bands of rustlers and outlaws had plagued Acktar. But Martyn wasn’t someone Leith had mentioned before. “Martyn?”
“My best friend in the Blades. He’s now the Third Blade.” Renna felt more than heard Leith’s sigh. “He’s loyal to Respen.”
“More than he’s loyal to you?”
Leith’s shoulders sagged. “I’m not sure. Years ago, we pledged we’d watch each other’s backs. I don’t know if that pledge will hold once he learns what I’ve done.”
Renna squeezed her arms to give him a hug. She hadn’t considered what joining the Resistance would cost him. Only what it’d cost her if he didn’t. Leith stood to lose more than just his life. If the truth ever became known, he’d lose a friend.
He’d made that choice. For her. For Brandi and Shad and all of them.
What had she ever sacrificed like that? Any sacrifices she’d ever done hadn’t been her choice. Her parents, her safety, her home. They’d all been ripped from her against her will.
Blizzard’s stride covered the miles along craggy ridges, down into wooded gorges, and across gurgling streams. Leith gave them a few short stops to allow the horses to rest, graze, and drink, but the stops weren’t enough to stretch the aches from Renna’s legs and back. After a few hours, even the novelty of the landscape and the herds of elk and bison wore away with the pain shooting through the insides of her legs.
The rhythm of Blizzard’s hooves lulled her eyes closed. She rested her head against Leith’s back. A weight pressed at the space between her eyes. She yawned.
The swaying rhythm stopped. Renna blinked and shoved herself upright. Somehow, dusk had settled across the mountains. “Why are we stopping?”
“You’re falling asleep.” Leith turned in the saddle and balanced sideways. Laying the reins across Blizzard’s neck, he reached an arm around her waist and pulled her onto his lap.
“What are you doing?” She stiffened.
“Relax. I’m just making sure you won’t fall off when you fall asleep.” He tucked her against him, his left arm supporting her back.
Perhaps she should’ve protested. But her eyelids couldn’t resist the weight pressing against them any longer. She leaned her head against his shoulder. One of the knives strapped to his chest poked her side. This would be a lot more comfortable if he wasn’t a Blade.
Blizzard set off again. His gait rocked her. She tucked her fingers against Leith’s chest.
She was warm. Almost comfortable. Tired.
And protected.
21
Renna woke to the grating sound of a crow cawing somewhere above her. Shivers prickled along her arms.
Brandi lay beside her, sprawled on her back, mouth open. A snore battled with the crow for the most obnoxious noise. A network of branches and poles laced above and around them.
She pushed herself up. A wool blanket wrapped around her, but under that, a layer of pine boughs protected her from the ground. She must’ve been tired last night.
Pulling the blanket around her shoulders to ward off the morning chill, Renna crawled from the lean-to shelter and stood. The shelter leaned between two trees at the edge of a small meadow set in a bowl of cliffs along two sides.
Across from her, the meadow dipped into an especially thick patch of trees, a faint gurgling and whooshing sound coming from that direction.
In the center of the meadow, five horses wandered between their favorite patches of grass. Short lengths of rawhide hobbled their front hooves to prevent them from going too far.
“Good morning.”
She whirled and spotted Shadrach perched on a log next to a small fire a few yards away. A swathe of needles and leaves had been cleared away from a ring o
f rocks beneath the thick branches of a pine. The smoke from the fire curled through the branches, scattering into nothing but hot puffs of air.
Renna walked over and sank onto a log on the opposite side of the fire. A breath of smoke washed against her face along with the rich scent of frying cornmeal. “That smells good.”
“Figured something hot might be appreciated after that long ride.” Shadrach flipped one of the flat cakes. The grease in the pan spit and popped. “Leith scouted the area this morning and didn’t see any signs of Blades, so he said a small fire would be fine.”
Renna spread her fingers toward the fire. The heat tickled her palms. “Where’s Leith? And Jamie?”
Shadrach motioned toward the trees at the far side of the meadow. “There’s a stream and small waterfall in that direction. They’re washing up.”
Renna drew her fingers through her hair. Flakes of dried blood rained onto her blouse and divided skirt. “Do you think Brandi and I could at least wash our hair later?”
Shadrach grinned and raised his eyebrows. “You’d better before someone does mistake you for something dead.”
“At least it should be easier to wash out than the paint you poured on my hair when I was eight. Both Lydia and I had streaks of blue and green in our hair for months.” Renna matched his smile. How long had it been since she’d felt comfortable enough around Shadrach to tease him? The past four years of hiding at Stetterly and fooling herself into thinking she was attracted to him hadn’t helped matters any.
Shadrach speared a corn cake, put it on a tin plate, and held it out to her. “Father made the vegetable garden my responsibility shortly after that. Kept me so busy I didn’t have time to get into any more trouble.”
As Renna took the plate, Brandi crawled from the lean-to. Her red-blond hair frizzed into a ball around her head, except for the places matted down with dried blood. “Is that breakfast? It smells good, and I’m starving.”
Shadrach reached for a stack of tin plates next to him. He dumped a corn cake onto a plate and handed it to Brandi.
Voices drew Renna’s attention. She turned and spotted Leith and Jamie strolling towards the fire from the direction of the stream, their hair still damp. Jamie’s hair stuck out in all directions while Leith’s was semi-straight, as if he’d tried to finger comb it.
Leith took a seat on a log to Renna’s right. When he glanced in her direction, their eyes met. She jerked her gaze away, but not before she glimpsed Leith’s smile. What should she say to him? Should she say good morning? Ask how he’d slept? She’d been fine talking to him on their ride yesterday. Why couldn’t she talk to him now?
That ride made it worse. She’d spent a whole day with her arms tucked around him. She’d fallen asleep with her head against his shoulder. Should she apologize for that? Pretend she hadn’t noticed his heartbeat and the way her own pulsed in response?
She gripped the plate in her hands tighter. She’d taken too long. If she said something now, it’d sound strange.
Whatever her thoughts over the day before, Leith didn’t seem affected by it. He grinned at Brandi and accepted his plate of food from Shadrach. “I’d forgotten how convenient it is to travel with a lord’s son. They do all the cooking.”
“That’s because Blades never seem to stop long enough for a hot meal.” Shadrach handed Jamie a plate before dishing the last corn cake onto a plate for himself.
Renna grimaced and shifted her aching legs and rear end. All they’d had yesterday was hard corn bread and dried meat on one of the times they’d stopped to rest the horses.
Shadrach prayed for all of them, then they bit into the meal. Brandi inhaled hers and scraped her plate clean with sand by the time Renna finished.
Once Renna finished cleaning her plate, Renna and Brandi gathered clean underthings from their packs. As Renna exited the tent, Leith leapt to his feet. “I’ll walk you to the waterfall.”
“Thanks.” Renna followed him across the meadow, Brandi skipping beside her. Skirting the horses, they eased down a rocky slope to the stream. The waterfall gushed between two rock ledges in a white fury, plunging several feet into a wide pool. The sun glinted on the pine needles, skimmed across the wet rocks, and prismed through the white foam.
“It’s beautiful.” Renna halted on a ledge.
“One of many like it in the Hills.” Leith sat on a rock with his back to the stream. A stand of firs screened the waterfall from his perch. “I’ll keep watch here so you aren’t disturbed.”
“Thanks.” If she or Brandi screamed, he’d be there in an instant.
Brandi gripped her arm. “Come on!”
Shoving through the fir trees, Renna approached the waterfall. She set her stack of clothes a safe distance from the spray floating in the air around the falls. She peeled her dress away from the blood that still stuck to her skin and underclothes.
Down to her underthings, Brandi jumped into the pool. Her head submerged for a moment before she popped back to the surface, flinging her strands of wet hair out of her face. “I have just decided I love waterfalls.”
Renna tiptoed to the edge. “It looks cold.” She touched the water with a toe. The water had to be about fifty degrees. Maybe less. She shivered and stepped back.
Brandi clambered out of the water. “Come on, Renna. It isn’t bad once you get used to it.”
“Maybe I’ll just sit here and wash—” Brandi hugged her and flung both of them off the ledge. A shriek tore from Renna’s mouth as she slapped into the water. She clawed to the surface, sputtering. Brandi popped above the surface a few feet away. Renna shoved a wave of water at her. “Brandi!”
“Are you all right?” Leith’s voice called from his perch.
“We’re fine!” Renna glared at her sister. “See what you did? You nearly had him walking in on us to see if we were being attacked by a mountain lion or something.”
Brandi smirked. “You’re the one doing all the screaming.”
“Only because you tackled me. I couldn’t help it.” Rolling her eyes, Renna undid her braid and finger-combed her hair. Dried blood glued chunks of it together.
Grimacing, she swam to the waterfall and dunked her head under it. While the water pounded onto her head, she scrubbed at her hair. She and Brandi took turns rubbing at each others’ hair until the last of the encrusted blood pounded away with the waterfall’s current.
Teeth chattering like rabid squirrels, Renna rolled out of the pool and lay on a sun-warmed rock. She closed her eyes as the sun played over her face and arms. How long had it been since she could relax and enjoy the sun on her face without worrying about dying or Blades or war? If only they could live in this meadow forever.
Nearby, Brandi’s feet splashed and squished against the rocks. Cold water dripped onto Renna’s face. “Brandi!”
“Are you just going to lie there all day?”
“Guess not.” Renna rolled to her feet. After she dried herself off as much as she could, she changed into fresh underthings. She pulled the blue bodice over her head and tugged on her divided skirt. She laced up her knee-high boots and strapped the knife Leith had given her to her ankle. There. Much better.
Renna gathered her pile of soiled clothes. She turned to Brandi. “We’d better—”
Perched on a limb above the creek, a huge, tawny cat stared down at Brandi with yellow eyes, its tail twitching back and forth. It padded an inch forward along the branch.
Renna’s heart galloped around her chest. Her fingers trembled so much she barely managed to draw the knife from its sheath. “Brandi, don’t move.”
Brandi placed her hands on her hips. “Why not?”
“Please, just don’t make any sudden moves.” Renna glanced at the mountain lion crouched over her sister’s head. She tightened her hold on her knife. Not that she could do anything if the mountain lion decided to attack.
Brandi’s eyes flicked to the knife and widened. “All right. I won’t move.”
Renna gritted her teeth. Her knee
s wobbled. She couldn’t do anything, but surely Leith could. “Leith? Can you come here?”
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted him round the stand of firs, a knife already gripped in his hand. He eased into the space between Renna and Brandi, his eyes fixed on the mountain lion. “Brandi, walk to Renna slowly.”
Brandi tiptoed forward. When she passed Leith, she glanced over her shoulder, squeaked, and walked faster. Renna stepped forward and hugged her. Somehow, everything was better when they were together.
Leith held his arms out from his sides. His black clothes made him look big and menacing. He stepped forward, brandishing his knife and holding the cat’s gaze. The mountain lion stood up and backed along the branch.
Renna’s heart pounded harder. What if the mountain lion attacked Leith? It’d sink its fangs deep into Leith’s throat while its claws ripped his body apart. How much defense would Leith’s knife be?
Leith broke a twig off a scrub bush growing out of the rocks along the river. With a yell, he threw the stick at the cat, bouncing it off the mountain lion’s face and front paws.
Yowling, the mountain lion scrambled backwards, leapt down from the tree, and dashed away into the woods. For several minutes, scratching and cracking sounded from the slope of the mountainside.
When the noise faded, Leith relaxed and turned back to them. He sheathed his knife. “It’s gone.”
Renna’s legs collapsed beneath her. Her knife clattered to the stone next to her. Her whole body shook. “We could’ve been killed.”
Leith knelt next to her. “You’re safe now. Mountain lions are normally shy and wary of humans. They don’t attack unless you wander into their territory or near their young.”
“So why did this one get so close?” Renna hugged her knees.
Leith glanced at the pile of ruined clothes she’d dropped on the ground. His mouth quirked. “I suspect because you smelled like a dead goat.”
Renna gaped at him. Behind her, Brandi snorted and burst into a fit of giggles. “He must’ve thought we were funny looking dead goats.”
Deny (The Blades of Acktar Book 2) Page 12