Chapter 48
Jane
Dawn gave way to the searing afternoon sun by the time they reached the edge of the Badlands. They had weapons, food, water bags, and several Protectorate uniforms— very little of which would help them cross the parts of the Badlands that belonged to the Ferals. The cracked red hills stretched out as far as they could see.
“Well, this is going to be fun,” Saffron said. “Think they erected statues in our honour?”
“Definitely. And at least one festival day,” Jane said, smiling despite herself. “Certainly a rousing folk song.”
“What did you two do now?” Roarke asked.
Saffron shrugged. “We burned down their gardens.”
“And possibly the entire village,” Jane added helpfully.
“And see how I exhibit no surprise,” Roarke murmured.
“They started it.”
“Is there a way around?” Saffron asked Caradoc who stood squinting in the sun. “Which will piss me off, by the way, since that would have been helpful information the last time we were here.”
“There’s a Directorate road,” Caradoc replied. “But it would add two weeks to our trip. And even with the soldiers mostly called back for the Trials, I wouldn’t like our odds.”
Jane wiped sweat off her forehead. “Hoods, maybe? Or some kind of disguise?”
Saffron’s smile was slow and sharp. “I have a better idea.” Roarke groaned. She turned her shoulder to him pointedly and addressed Caradoc. “We need more fighters.”
“Always.”
“Ferals, I have to point out, are damned good fighters.”
“But they’re not mercenaries,” Caradoc reminded her.
“But they hate the Directorate as much as I do. So I know I can change their minds.”
“How?”
“I have something they want,” she explained. “Me.”
“Saffron, no,” Jane said, horrified. She remembered vividly Saffron lying unconscious on her pallet, and the light glinting off Shanti’s spear.
Saffron just shrugged. “They want a Green Jill.”
“You’re not just going to give yourself to them,” Roarke said harshly.
“Of course not. I’m not a martyr, or an idiot. But I can trade a visit or two to sit in the garden, in exchange for some of their warriors.”
Caradoc looked intrigued. “The soldiers wouldn’t know what to do with Ferals.” He looked at Jane. “Do you agree with her assessment?”
Jane blinked, not accustomed to being consulted. She thought of Elisande, of Shanti and Anya and the angles of their bones under their skin which could only come from hunger. “Yes,” she said reluctantly. “They’ll do anything for a Green Jill.”
“What does she know?” Livia broke in. “She’s just a--.”
“She knows people,” Caradoc cut her off. “While we posture, she watches.”
“So here we go then,” Saffron declared. Caradoc caught the back of her jacket, pulling her to an abrupt halt. Her arms flailed.
“We send messengers first,” he said. “With terms. And then we set out at first light.”
“We don’t have that kind of time!” Saffron protested impatiently.
“We don’t have the time to be ambushed and skewered with spears either.”
“I’ll go,” Jane offered quietly. Saffron’s eyebrows snapped together. “They’ll recognize me.”
“Yeah, I’m not so sure that’s a good thing.”
“But it will make them more likely to believe that you’re here and willing to negotiate.”
Saffron didn’t look pleased but Jane knew she didn’t have a counter-argument. Caradoc pointed at her. “You stay here. If they see you, they might fight first and talk later. You have that effect.”
“Fine.” She plucked a long purple thistle from the mask, wrapping it in dandelion leaves and handing it to Jane. “Bring this.”
“That could be from any plant at all,” Livia pointed out.
“It’s the same cuttings I left after the fire,” Saffron explained curtly. “Anyway, once they bring it to their gardens, they’ll see soon enough that it’s not like regular weeds. It might not be as good as leaf mask, but it still has some power.”
“I’ll go with Jane,” Nico offered.
Jane shouldered her pack, the water bags inside sloshing reassuringly. “Thank you.”
Saffron hovered next to her. “Don’t let them take you to the Underworld.” Jane just snorted. “And don’t trust that little brat.”
“I know.”
“And don’t be too polite.” She turned to Nico. “Don’t let her get killed.”
“Are you kidding?” Nico checked his taser, and then pointedly adjusted the sword strapped to his back. “I might still need her help with Freya.”
“I’m telling Will you admitted you needed help with your love life,” Jane said.
He pulled her hair lightly. “We have been a bad influence on you, girl.”
She sincerely hoped so.
The Greencoats were silhouetted in a line, watching them leave. The walk along the spines of the clay hills was quick but demanded concentration and care. The sun was a relentless companion. Nico was alert and intense, unlike the casually confident person he was at camp. It was partly reassuring, partly distracting. She stopped thinking about it the moment she saw the first coyote. “On your left,” she said softly. “Coyote.”
He turned, swore under his breath. “Two more on the other side.”
“We’ve reached the border,” Jane said, adrenaline flooding her so quickly she felt her heart pounding in her teeth.
Green Jack Page 48