That seemed to satisfy him, but I turned away before he could ask anything else, heading back to the horse. I ran a hand down his neck, feeling the tremor beneath his skin.
“Told you we’d find somewhere,” I murmured.
He huffed softly in response. Around us, the camp began to take shape, not comfortable or really safe, but functional enough for tonight, and that was all we needed.
I lifted my head, listening past the wind, past the shifting snow, past the low murmur of men settling into uneasy rest, wrapped in their cloaks as someone tried to start a fire.
Nothing moved beyond the trees. Nothing that I could hear, but that didn’t mean anything.
I pulled my cloak tightly around me and stepped back into the hollow's center, already planning tomorrow. Because this wasn’t actual rest. Not really, not for me.
It was just a pause before the next fight to stay alive.
Before I found the next trail.
Chapter 7
For a group of trained soldiers,they bitched more than a bunch of women talking about their husbands.
They rotated watch during the night, two on each side of the hollow, and the whole time, they spoke among themselves.
It didn’t seem to bother the other soldiers. I was sure the captain had a lovely, cozy night, as he was the only one who didn’t rotate.
Not that I could complain, they never asked me to stand watch either. But maybe that was because they were content to keep me awake most of the night with their constant jabbering.
I wasn’t sure they noticed, butIdefinitely noticed that one of the mercenaries kept watch too. Their rotations were longer than the others, and Baxley was the only one who sat up, his back to a tree, during his watch.
I saw him shake Larana awake as he went to lie down, and she merely shifted into a semi-reclining position. I wasn’t sure she’d be comfortable, but I’d traveled with enough soldiers over the past few years to know they could sleep anywhere they found a moment.
The one called Nicco never changed his position at any time, and I doubted that he was doing his turn, until halfway through the darkest part of the night, I realized I was being watched.
I hadn’t moved, but my eyes had darted everywhere, until the only one that I thought was awake would be him.
It was on the tip of my tongue to challenge him, but unlike my companions, I respected the time to sleep and didn’t want to disturb anyone who was actually sleeping.
I tried to sleep, but I could feel the weight of his stare, and only by forcing myself to focus on my breathing did I drift off.
When I woke up at the next shift change, the area the mercenaries had chosen for their night’s rest was empty.
I sat up slowly, my eyes already scanning the horses and the wagons. Nothing was out of place. Where had they gone?
I stood, not drawing attention to myself, but I knew one of the soldiers noticed and turned, rather obnoxiously in my opinion, to watch me. They probably thought I’d run when they were sleeping. I didn’t blame them. It’s something I may have done, but I’d taken the coin, and after seeing how so utterly unprepared they were for a journey north, my conscience wouldn’t allow me to walk away now.
The next town? Maybe.
I’d been sleeping near the horse. He was gentle, and there was some residual heat from him. I’d helped brush him down, and both the soldier who looked after the horses and I were jealous of the thick blanket that the horses had.
The horse nickered as I approached, then I scooped up some snow, held it for a moment, ignoring the cold in my hands as I let my body heat melt it a little. I gave it to him to drink. It was more slush than water, but it was better than nothing.
I still could see no sign of the three mercenaries.
Maybe I had misunderstood the dynamics of them after all. Maybe she was a bedwarmer, and they’d slipped away for some privacy?
With that thought making my cheeks flush, I moved closer to the fire and saw that the watch hadn’t done a good job of keeping it going.
Only some of the wood they’d collected was any good. How in the name of the gods had they thought they could march to the north of Crystallese when they didn’t even know how to collect firewood properly?
“They seem a bit green.”
