His laugh vibrated through her back where it was pressed to his chest.
“You like trouble,” he said in a voice that had gone deep. “A girl from Toam. How could you not?”
Before she could answer that insult, he pressed a kiss to the side of her neck and let her go, dancing back away, leaving her breathless and glaring at the stupid smile on his face.
“Once you’re engaged in a fight, it’s harder to run,” he said. “More likely that you’ll be caught, especially if you’ve drawn spectators, which you will if you’re anywhere out in public.The lesson is you’re going to wear yourself out just chasing me around swinging that knife like that. Unless you’re in a tight space, I’ll always get away from you. If you can’t run, let your attacker come to you. Make him do the work. Tomorrow, I’ll teach you how to break a hold.”
She could still feel where he kissed her neck. It was warm and tingly, and she wanted to rub her hand over the spot. To seal it in or erase it, she wasn’t sure.
He straightened from his crouch and waved a hand at the horses. “You ready to go?”
She nodded and looked past him at the ridge in the distance. Drew a slow breath, and let it out.
“We need to turn east.”
He looked at her sharply. “Away from the river?”
She nodded.
“You said the fort is to the south, along the river.”
“Yes. I haven’t forgotten.”
He searched over her face. “Why east?”
Because I talked to the trees last night and we all agree that there’s something wrong with the trees to the south. There’s a darkness there, seeping like ink into the soil and the water and poisoning everything within reach. And that reach is growing, day by day, stretching out roots and vines, drifting in the air like pollen or mold. All of the trees say so. All of them except for the willows, but you know how they are.
She bit her lip. “Can’t you just trust me?”
“I still want a reason.”
She nodded. Fine. This was the way it would have to be. Still, it hurt just a little to look into his eyes and spit out the lie she’d prepared last night while she’d watched him sleep.
“I don’t know where your men came out of the swamp, and I’ve lost the trail. There’s a ridge in that direction that lets yousee for miles. There’s a good chance we’ll catch a glimpse of them from there.”
Once they made it to the ridge, she’d think of another reason for them to keep moving east. Another lie and another until they found his men. Then she’d bring all of them to the fort. It would probably be time to go fetch his reinforcements by then. Together they’d kill the witch. Get rid of the rot in the woods. The trees could heal.
She couldn’t lead Casrian to the fort where he’d have to fight the witch alone. He needed his men, and they weren’t going to find them if they continued moving south.
He frowned. “We could follow the river to the fort. That’s the most likely direction for them to have gone.”
It certainly would have been easier if they’d gone that way. “I need to get my bearings.”
He hesitated, his blue eyes sharp and calculating. It was like he knew she was lying. But how could he know that? She was good at it. Unless he had some sort of truth-telling relic hanging about him she didn’t know about. She wasn’t even really lying. The ridge was a good lookout, and she did hope to see his men. She was lying about the trail, yes. But it was a small lie. The rest was true.
After a moment he nodded. “You’re the guide.”
Less than an hour later,they stood staring up at the ridge.
“It’s close to seventy feet.” Casrian’s hands rested on his trim hips as he stared up at the cliff. There was no other way up it without circling back around. They wouldn’t get to the top before dark that way, and she wanted to see if she could spot his patrol before the sun set.
“I like to climb,” she told him as they stared up the craggy limestone face. It wouldn’t be bad. The rock angled back fromthe base at a slight incline. There were lots of hand and foot holds. “Do you have a rope? If it makes you feel better. I can find something to tie it to up top before I come back down.”
“I fucking hate heights.”
“You? Afraid of something? The fearless Captain Dain? So shiny and perfect and brave.”
“Stop that. It’s not flattering.”
