by T. A. White
“I’m studying a route for tomorrow. I wanted to make sure I familiarized myself with the map before we headed out.”
“Oh?” Eamon was leaving camp? After just spending the last few minutes lecturing her on branching out? “Where are you heading?” She feigned mild interest when what she really wanted to ask was if she could come with him.
Eamon didn’t look fooled. “Fallon’s due back soon. I wanted to take a group out tomorrow and meet him a few days out so we can ride back with him.”
Shea straightened in her seat. “And you didn’t bother to tell me this sooner?”
He shrugged. “I’d planned to tell you this afternoon when you were supposed to be here, but someone decided to go jaunting about camp without a care in the world.”
Shea’s mouth snapped closed on her retort. She narrowed her eyes at him. He looked entirely too satisfied with himself.
“I’m going with you.” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. She fought against a wince, knowing Eamon didn’t like being ordered. It would have been better to phrase that as a question.
He lifted an eyebrow.
“Please.” There, that was a little better.
His smile was slow in coming. “Fine.” Trenton shifted in his corner. Eamon’s eyes lingered on him. “But you’re bringing your guards.”
“Of course, I am,” Shea agreed immediately. “The best there is.”
“I don’t mean me either. My men and I don’t count.”
“What? Come on. I know you’re taking at least a dozen men. That should be more than enough.”
“Nope.” He leaned back and laced his hands behind his head. “I’m not the one who’s going to explain to the Warlord why his Telroi is wandering around without the protection of his Anateri.”
The Anateri were Fallon’s personal guard, handpicked by him and trained by a sadistic old man. They were deadly and fiercely loyal to Fallon and by extension Shea. Most didn’t make it through training, but for those that did, it brought honor to their families and clan.
Once upon a time, before her gender was discovered, Fallon had intended to have Shea join their ranks. She’d gotten a small taste of their training and could attest to its difficulties.
Trenton had been merciless trying to teach her the finer points of sword work. She rubbed one thigh in remembered pain.
“I don’t suppose I could get you to change your mind?” Shea asked. She aimed a sour look Trenton’s way, knowing that even if she did the nosy man regarding her with a placid expression would make it his business to ensure she didn’t step foot out of camp without a full complement of guards.
Eamon knew it too and shook his head. He didn’t even have the courtesy to look regretful.
She huffed at him. “I’ll remember this.”
“You do that. As long as the warlord remembers it too.”
She made a rude gesture at him.
“Hello, hello,” a voice called from the entrance of the tent. Seconds later a man popped his head through the door way. Seeing the two of them, he stepped in.
Blond, with a sly look in his eyes that said he got into more than his fair share of trouble, the man crossed the tent towards them. He had a broad forehead, an angled jaw, and moved with a dynamic energy.
“Look who it is. Our prodigal daughter come to visit the small folk.”
“Buck.” Shea greeted him with a smile as he clasped her on the shoulder. Buck’s real name was Gerard, but only his superiors and boring people—his own words—called him that. “Where’ve you been?”
“Oh, you know, about. Old slave driver there had me and my team scouting the forest to the east.”
Shea fought the wistfulness she felt at his words. She was happy for him. She was. It was a big deal to be given your own squad, and she knew how hard he’d worked for it. He deserved it, but she couldn’t help feeling left behind.
“Find anything interesting?” she asked.
Buck took a seat on a pillow next to her before setting a pair of maps down on Eamon’s desk.
“As a matter of fact, I did. A herd of giant elk nearly trampled my team. We would have been goners if we hadn’t found a nice boulder to wait out the stampede on. Craziest thing I ever saw. They came out of nowhere, and I didn’t see any predators driving them.”
“Where was this?” Eamon asked.
Buck leaning forward and gestured to the map. “A few days east of this stream. We didn’t see any sign of humans up that way, but with how thick this forest is and how good these people are at hiding, that’s not saying much.”
Shea leaned forward to look at the map. It was a strange story, but then strange things tended to happen in these lands. Until they had more information, it was considered peculiar but that was about it.
“I’ll make a note of it in my reports.” Eamon looked up at Buck. “There’s been several sightings recently that are out of the ordinary. I’ll have the men keep an eye out for similar occurrences.”
Buck snorted. “Since when aren’t there odd things about in this land?”
Eamon’s expression said he half agreed.
Buck seemed willing to let that be the end of it. He leaned back and smiled at the two of them. “It’s like old times. If we were on the trail, it would be exactly like them.”
“We’re heading out with a small group tomorrow if you’d like to join,” Eamon volunteered.
Shea blinked, not expecting the invitation. Normally, Eamon kept things closer to the vest. It made her wonder if he missed their old team.
“What? Both of you?” Buck asked, looking between them.
Eamon and Shea nodded.
“I’m in. This’ll be exactly like old times. Let’s just hope Shea doesn’t have to jump onto the backs of any shadow beetles.”
“That was one time,” Shea protested. “And it saved your worthless hides.”
Buck snickered. “I’ll never forget the sight of you free falling through the air. I was sure you were going to bounce off and get stepped on.”
“That was a controlled fall. I knew what I was doing.” That last part might have been a bit of an exaggeration. To this day, she wasn’t sure how she survived that stunt. “Besides, Eamon is making us take the Anateri. They’re not going to let me do anything even remotely dangerous.”
Buck’s face brightened. For a moment he looked like a child about to meet his heroes. “They’re coming? Even better.”
“Maybe for you,” Shea muttered.
“How can you say that?” Buck asked. “They’re the elite of our elite. I don’t know anyone who has even come close to joining their ranks.” He paused. “Well, except for you—before Fallon discovered you were a woman.”
“Shea’s just chafing at the fact that there’s somebody who questions the more reckless decisions she makes before she has a chance to act on them.” Eamon gave her a censorious look, having counseled her on similar topics when he was her squad leader.
She stuck her tongue out at him.
“You think they’ll give me a few pointers?” Buck asked.
“I thought you were happy as a scout.”
He shrugged. “I am, but if an invitation ever came to join their ranks, I wouldn’t pass it up. Besides, I’ve never seen better swordsmen. Getting tips from them might prolong my life out there.” He made a gesture meant to encompass the world outside.
Shea stood, preparing to take her leave. “You’d be better served spending your time studying the beast board. If it comes down to a fight against beasts, you’re more likely to lose no matter how skilled you are with a blade. Better to study and learn so you avoid danger in the first place.”
He blew a raspberry at her. “You’re no fun. There’s nothing to say I can’t do both. Right, Eamon?”
One side of Eamon’s mouth quirked up. “Don’t get me involved in this.”
Shea shook her head, chuckling, as she walked away.
“That means you’ll do it, right? You’ll put in a good
word for me?” Buck yelled at her back.
She lifted a hand and waved. “You’ll owe me one.”
“Just put it on my tab.”
CHAPTER THREE
SHEA STEPPED out of the tent she shared with Fallon when he was home—a tent bigger than any house she’d lived in. It had to be to accommodate his guests on the occasions when he entertained. Shea had only been present for a few of those occasions, but she was glad to have the space.
She took two steps forward and stopped.
Daere waited for her, arms folded over her chest and an implacable expression on her face.
Shit. Trenton must have informed Fallon’s cousin of Shea’s planned activities for the day.
Shea hesitated before straightening her shoulders and meeting Daere head on. She was an adult and fully capable of letting Daere know that she was riding out to meet Fallon. The other woman could argue as much as she wanted, but it wouldn’t change Shea’s plans.
“Going somewhere?” Daere asked. Her expression left Shea no doubt that Daere already knew the answer to that.
“I’m joining Eamon when he rides out this morning to meet Fallon.”
“Are you now?” Daere’s eyebrow lifted.
“Yup. That’s what I’m doing.”
“And when were you going to inform me of this?”
Shea thought the answer to that question was fairly obvious. Instead of giving a response that would have guaranteed Daere’s wrath, she said, “I’m informing you now.”
Daere’s jaw tightened, a vein throbbing in her neck. Shea waited.
“You are a stubborn, stubborn woman.”
Shea nodded, acknowledging the claim. She was. There was no getting around it. She was also hardheaded and horrible with people. She fully acknowledged her failings.
“If I didn’t know Fallon as well as I do, I would question his sanity in choosing you, of all people, as his telroi.”
Shea narrowed her eyes but didn’t respond. She wanted this over with and continuing to engage would just prolong it.
“Nothing to say?” Daere hands went to her hips. “It’s like talking to a rock.”
Shea let a brief smile cross her face. She’d been told that before.
“You know Fallon asked me to do this.”
“That’s the problem,” Shea said. She didn’t see a way out of this encounter; Daere just didn’t seem in the mood to get fed up and stalk away. Shea would have to share. “He had no right to do that. I don’t need someone to mold me into a Trateri woman.”
“You think you can fit in without my help? Become the helpmeet he needs?”
Shea shook her head, frustrated. “Of course not. That would be impossible.”
Surprise registered on Daere’s face. “Then why have you been such a pain in my ass over the past few months?”
“There’s nothing wrong with me. Nothing wrong with who I am. Fallon knew who I was when he made his offer.”
“Is that what you think?” Daere didn’t sound angry, just curious. “That he’s trying to change you?”
Shea shrugged, uncomfortable with the questions. What else was she supposed to think? He’d banned her from joining the scouts and wouldn’t let her go out with the regular army either. Eamon seemed to think that her path led to bigger things than just trail work, but she wasn’t sure if she believed that. What she did know was that she was not equipped to be someone who supported Fallon from behind the scenes. She needed something that gave meaning to her life, something that made her feel like she had purpose.
Daere’s sigh was resigned. “That’s not it. I’m not here to try to mold you into what I am.”
Shea arched an eyebrow at her. She could have fooled her.
Daere’s nod was an acknowledgement of her unspoken point. “That might have been my intention, but not Fallon’s. He believes that the more you know, the more power you will have to guide events in a direction you choose.”
Movement in Shea’s peripheral vision drew her attention. Shea glanced to the side, noticing Trenton and Wilhelm, the second Anateri Fallon had stuck her with. Wilhelm was striking in a way that had a good number of the women in camp making doe eyes at him every time he walked by.
Fallon’s Anateri were another point of conflict between them. Shea had argued that their presence would be a giant pain in her ass. Fallon had countered with that stone-faced expression he got when he thought she was being unreasonable. She’d lost by the sheer fact that he’d left before she woke the next morning and the two men wouldn’t take orders from her when those orders pertained to leaving her alone.
“Is everyone planning on coming with me?” Shea muttered.
“Despite what you might think, your station is not the same as when you were some faceless scout. You can no longer walk around the encampment unattended or venture out there without people to watch your back.”
“I’ve never had a problem before now.”
“Before, you were just one of many. Fallon has spent a lifetime accumulating enemies. You’ve helped uncover a few of them.” Daere gave Shea a meaningful glance. Shea looked away. She still had trouble thinking about her involvement in those deaths. “That was just the beginning. There are many who would strike at him through you. If you care about him at all, you won’t fight his men when they try to protect you.”
Shea didn’t have anything to say to that. Daere’s words made her feel like a willful child putting herself in needless danger.
The men joined them. Trenton’s gaze darted between the two women. He’d witnessed many of these scenes where Daere lectured Shea, and Shea steadfastly ignored it.
“Glad to see you two are ready,” Wilhelm said in an affable voice.
Shea could never tell if he felt the tension or just failed to notice. Either way, he’d broken up several stare downs between Daere and her over the last few weeks.
Shea had met Wilhelm at the same time she’d met Fallon—when she saved both from execution by a mob of angry lowland villagers who were convinced the two of them were snooping around in preparation of stealing their horses. She hadn’t known who Fallon and Wilhelm were then, just that the villagers had tried to kill two of her own men, and she wasn’t going to let them have the satisfaction of killing anyone else.
Shea was grateful for his presence. Of the two Anateri, Trenton was more likely to egg Daere and Shea on, but then, he was a sadistic bastard. She had bruises from their latest training session that could attest to that.
“We’d better get going. I don’t think Eamon will wait,” Wilhelm said.
Trenton’s mouth quirked in a half smile as he observed the two women. His eyes gleamed as he took in their tense postures.
Daere gave Shea a considering look, her amber eyes giving no hint to her internal thoughts. Shea stared back with a calm expression. It was the same one she used to give to her charges when she fully intended to ignore whatever they said and do things her own way.
“Let’s get moving,” Daere said, shocking Shea by giving in. “As Wilhelm said, the Western Wind Division’s commander is likely to leave without us if we’re late.”
She turned and strode to where Shea just now noticed a pack similar to the one she was carrying lying on the ground. Daere shouldered it and walked off in the direction of the horse corrals near the Wind Division side of camp.
Shea blinked at Trenton and Wilhelm as they lost no time in following Daere. Trenton winked at her as he passed.
What had just happened? She’d expected a much bigger argument from at least two of them.
Not wanting to question her good fortune, Shea followed in their wake. If only getting her way was always that easy.
*
The horse shifted under her, its uneasiness reflecting Shea’s own. She’d been antsy all morning, her skin feeling like a swarm of angry bees buzzed under it. It was a familiar feeling, but not one she’d ever thought to have this deep into the Lowlands.
Daere, as had become typical over the last three days, st
uck close to Shea, riding just to her left. She was always within one or two horse lengths. Shea didn’t know if it was because Daere worried she’d bolt or thought she could prevent Shea from doing something stupid if she stuck close.
The two Anateri were a little better, hanging back and giving Shea some semblance of space.
The rest of the party was spread out, Eamon and Buck somewhere in the front, and the rest of Eamon’s men bringing up the rear.
Despite the height of the horses, they were like ants next to the soul trees and the rest of the forest. Everything here grew on a massive scale—mushrooms that reached up to Shea’s shoulders, a flower that flourished in the shade of the trees and grew so high its leaves brushed the tops of their heads as the horses clopped their way past stalks as thick as Shea’s waist.
“How is everything so big?” Daere asked, staring up at the flat leaves of the flower. “It’s like it was built for giants.”
Shea agreed. “The villagers like to say that the gods were once giants and that they created this garden full of wondrous and terrible life. They fed it with their blood to help it take root and grow, then tended it by watering it with their nectar. That even when the gods left this world, their creation remained and grew, flourishing through the years.”
Daere looked over at Shea. “What do you believe?”
Shea tilted her head back, staring up into the canopy above. “That during the last years of the cataclysm, a great and terrible battle was fought near here. One that involved powerful magics that found root and affected everything nearby, causing some type of rapid and atypical growth in the plants and animals. I doubt gods had anything to do with this place.”
Daere didn’t comment on Shea’s observation, making a noncommittal sound in the back of her throat and going back to observing the forest around them.
Shea probably shouldn’t have shared her thoughts. They were the sort of thing that she had been taught from a young age to keep secret from those who weren’t part of the Pathfinder Guild. Most didn’t want to hear or believe what she knew to be true.
Since Shea had decided to make the Trateri her people in truth, she decided it would be best to share what she knew in little drops. It was why she’d taken a chance in telling Daere a bit about the history of this place. History that her people had uncovered piece by piece as the villagers shared their oral history.