“I’m sorry, Brea.”
She watched him in her steady, impassive way. “Thank you,” she whispered, then added, “Don’t tell anyone.”
“They don’t know?”
“Only Isla and Vayden. And they wouldn’t dare betray me.”
Thom frowned. “Would you be in trouble if they found out? Would the Alliance retaliate?”
She immediately shook her head. “No, they would never punish love. I simply don’t care to have my heart inspected. This is personal, not political. I wish to keep it that way.”
“I understand,” Thom said. “And I wouldn’t betray you either.”
“Good,” Brea said softly, though a cunning smile came to her lips. “Because if you do, I’ll gut you with my dullest knife.”
An amused snort burst out of Thom. “Dearest Lieutenant Lohen, you and your dullest knife will haunt my dreams for eternity.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
40TH OF CHRONOS, 1547
After their second day of travel, Brea took Evylin and Ethenn a short distance from camp to train. Their exercise that morning had thoroughly worn Evylin out, Ethenn not far behind her. Somehow, Brea had managed to make Hewitt’s workout regimen seem light. The lieutenant had started them with a short jog before pushing them to their limits with calisthenics. Evylin wasn’t so sure she looked forward to the combat training.
Walking through the trees, Brea quizzed them on their training history. “What weapons do you have the most experience with?” she asked.
Ethenn deferred to Evylin. “Most of my training was in swordplay,” she said. “Though I’m also good with a dagger and basic hand-to-hand for self-defense.”
Brea looked at Ethenn expectantly.
“I grew up as a hunter,” he said. “So I’m trained in archery and skilled with a hatchet and dagger, but it wasn’t until I joined the army that I had any training with a sword.” He paused, then added, “I’m also good in a fistfight.”
A dry grin pulled at Brea’s lips. “So I’ve heard.” She surveyed him. “You have a well-rounded background, even if it isn’t highly trained for combat. How long were you in the Ephrian Army?”
Ethenn considered it. “I joined somewhere around four months ago, I think.”
“So short a time?” Brea asked with evident surprise.
Evylin’s thoughts went in the entirely opposite direction.
Four months. Had she and Deckard really been married for half a year? That didn’t seem possible. Though she supposed it was the end of Chronos, so it hadn’tquitebeen four months since they’d left Whickam Village.
“And how long have you been training?” Brea asked her.
Evylin blinked away her thoughts, trying to mentally calculate. “Well, Hewitt started training Ry—” Her voice caught over the name, then she forced herself to regroup. This was what caused her so many problems with Deckard. If she’d opened up about Ryen from the start, she might have been able to let go of her fear.
Clearing her throat, Evylin started again. “Hewitt started training Ryen and me when we were seven,” she explained. “Though it was the basics, and only when he was on leave. My true training didn’t start until I was thirteen. So I suppose it’s been almost fourteen years.”
Brea nodded while Ethenn watched Evylin with interest.
“That’s a good long time,” Brea noted. “And if your uncle’s interrogation of me last night was any indication, he was an impressive trainer as well.”
“He was exceptional,” Evylin said, and Ethenn agreed.
Finding a small clearing in the woods, Brea brought them to a halt. She bore a formidable figure with her staff hanging from her back, a hunting knife strapped to her thigh, and her short sword hanging on her hip. Despite her lack of height, she was not diminutive, and her fierce stare made her all the more intimidating.
Unhooking the staff, Brea let it drop to the forest floor. “Though I’m not much of a swordsman, I’d like to get themeasure of each of your skills.” She held her hand out toward Ethenn, who carried the training swords. “We’ll start with Evylin, shall we?”
“You can call me Evie if you’d like,” she said, taking the second blunted sword from Ethenn.
