Chapter 30
W e managed to get out of the estate with surprisingly little issue. After Taisiya being more outspoken than a maid should about accompanying us, and a relatively innocuous run-in with Mairi, we were on the road in no time. Maxim only mildly protested at being tethered to Rowan’s smaller mount.
Even the weather was relatively mild, as Rowan had predicted it would be. Whatever… interest she had in the weather was already proving to be useful.
It should have been a good sign, but it felt too easy, all of it.
Or perhaps that was just my general discomfort. It was a strange feeling, going from concerning myself constantly with the wellbeing of someone who was entirely under my protection, to the potential of that person being entirely out of my life. Which was, of course, why it was necessary. I had plenty on my plate without the complications she brought along with her mere presence.
It was probably a moot point, though, all things considered.
Rowan was asking about my father’s marriage casually, and I almost believed we had gotten through the day without incident when the scout in front circled back, gesturing in a sign of warning.
There weren’t many things that were more dangerous than us this deep into our territory. A bear mother would pose the highest threat, but they weren’t in the habit of taking on bands of soldiers and horses.
Then the scout made the sign for Besklanovvy .
Der’mo .
Rowan opened her mouth to continue her inquisition about my stepmother, but I cut her off.
“Be sure your hair is tucked inside your hood, Lemmikki. And stay quiet.”
She must have read something in my expression and understood the seriousness of the situation, because by some miracle, she obeyed.
Her lips formed a tight line, her green eyes going wide with panic as she quickly hid every stray crimson lock inside her hood. Then she sat rigidly and quietly in her saddle.
Small mercies.
On instinct, we slowed our horses as we crept through the ravine, each of my men’s hands already inching toward the swords at their backs or tucked into a sheath on their saddles.
Before the Summit, it wasn’t like the Unclanned to attack. However, the princess seemed to bring out the unexpected in not only the clans, but those without them, too. It was something I still hadn’t wrapped my head around.
What reason would drive them to attack now, of all times? And why would they want her?
I mentally ran through every scenario we might encounter, including which of my former soldiers might still be living in this area, how great of a threat they posed, and even the terrain and the best way to get Rowan through the ravine as quickly as possible.
Only a few minutes later we were face to face with the band of Besklanovvy . They weren’t armed like the others had been, nor did they seem particularly interested in a fight, especially since there were children in their camp.
The princess stared at them like they were wounded animals, and I wondered if she had ever been forced to make a hard choice when it came to her people. If she’d ever experienced a famine, and what it could do to the people she was responsible for—how important it was to save the dwindling food stores for the civilians who were law-abiding.
Or was the hardest decision she made each day choosing between which tiaras to match with her finest gowns?
My gaze drifted from the ‘ B’ branded into the foreheads of the men, before noticing it on the women as well. So not anyone I had been forced to unclan, then, since my father was the only duke that I knew of that branded the women as well.
I had sentenced more than my fair share of my people to a life without their relatives, access to work and food, submitting them to the mercy of the harsh winters. And undoubtedly, I would do it again.
Still, I wasn’t foolish enough to believe they were as harmless as they appeared. Each of these men had been a well-trained soldier before they were Unclanned. And far too many of them were now lashing out.
I scanned the camp and the hillsides, looking for any hidden shadows that didn’t belong. If this was a set-up, I wouldn’t be caught unaware.
Even the princess had the wherewithal to inch her deceptively delicate fingers toward the hilt of her loaned sword. At least she had some sense of self-preservation after all.
When I was relatively certain there were no Besklanovvy waiting to ambush us, I called out to the clear leader of the camp.
“We wish to pass peacefully,” I said flatly, my words seeming to add to the tension in the air.
My words seemed to startle them, and I watched as they debated whether or not to believe me. Honestly, I wasn’t even sure why I said it aloud instead of just moving along like I would usually do.
But then the princess’s shoulders relaxed slightly, and I had the uncomfortable feeling that perhaps I’d said it more for her sake than theirs and I didn’t want to dwell on that thought for longer than I had to.
“Go in peace,” one of the Besklanovvy responded after a moment and I nodded in response.
Gripping the lead between our horses, I led the princess away from the camp and deeper into the mountains.
We wouldn’t be able to reach these negotiations fast enough.