Shea paused in the midst of cutting the chicken and raised her eyes to find everybody staring at her. She swallowed the food already in her mouth and brought her cup up to take a cool drink of mead, using the time to turn the reasons over in her head.
"Almost nobody was on the streets on my way home," she said, finally able to figure out what had been bothering her on the walk home. "It was nearly dinner time but even so, how many times have those streets been totally empty? The one person I saw made it a point to avoid looking at me."
She paused to meet the men's eyes to see that they were listening. Or some of them were anyway.
"The elders have been stalling since we got here. It doesn't take ten days for a simple trade agreement. All we had to do was trade the tali for the wheat. They're waiting for something. Something big and we're not going to want to be around when that something arrives."
Dane's head tilted as he considered her words. Her observations had merit. They'd all felt the tension in the town over the last few days.
"We'll stay the night," he decided. Shea pressed her lips together as Paul smiled smugly. It wasn't her place to argue further. They asked for her opinion. She'd given it. On the trail her decisions carried weight, but in town it was the expedition leader's show. "First thing tomorrow we'll talk to the elders again, and if they continue to stall, we'll leave."
Shea felt a weight lift off her shoulders.
"But Dane-" Paul's argument ended when Dane lifted a hand.
"I'm the expedition leader. Me." His face was deadly serious.
Shea couldn't help but feel a bit of respect for the normally easy going Dane. Since their return from Edgecomb, he'd changed. He was less likely to spend his time flirting and actually listened before opening his mouth.
"While in town, my decisions go. If you're not happy with the way I lead, you can take it up with the elders when we return. Until then, keep your mouth shut and do your job." To the others, he said, "Pack everything you can tonight. I don't want any delays when it's time to leave."
There were a few grumbles, but they faded as Dane stared each man down. No one challenged him.
Shea tried to be happy with the decision. She really did. It was very close to what she wanted. They would be leaving one way or another tomorrow.
Her eyes turned to the window.
A feeling in her gut said tomorrow would be too late. That whatever everybody was waiting for would have arrived.
When she was finished, Shea carried her plate to the kitchen and scooped the scraps into the garbage before placing the plate in the sink. Chairs scraped across the floor as the others rose and began to clear the table.
"Guess you're pleased that the boy is dancing on your strings," Paul said, shouldering her aside. He looked her up and down, his eyes lingering at her breasts and hips before curling his lip in disgust. "You must have a cunt of gold to influence the ladies' man of Birdon Leaf. And here we all thought you were some type of ice princess."
Shea blinked at the man in disbelief. Before she could say anything, much less act. Witt grabbed Paul by the back of the neck and slammed him face first into the wood countertop. There was a whine of pain as Witt leaned close and ground the man's face further into the wood.
"You must be some kind of stupid, boy, to be pulling this shit on a pathfinder. The very person responsible for getting us through rough country. If she wanted to, she could lead us into a beast's nest and leave us there. Nobody would ever know what happened to you." There was another groan as Witt picked him up and slammed him back down. "The amount of disrespect for both our pathfinder and the expedition leader that I just heard come out of your mouth infuriates me. I hear something like that from anyone else in this party, and you won't have to worry about what she does because I'm going to rip the tongue from your head and present it to your mama so she has something to remember you by."
Shea's mouth hung open as Witt stepped back and shoved Paul in the direction of the stairs. It was the most she had ever heard the man speak at one time.
And it seemed he wasn't finished.
"I'm tired of the bullshit you lot pulled on the journey here." Witt pointed to where the rest, with the exception of Dane, watched with gaping bewilderment. "When a pathfinder tells you how it's going to be, you listen. You don't question; you don't argue. Same goes for when it's coming from an expedition leader. You got issues with an order, you shut your mouth and take it up with the elders when we get home. The next person who steps out of line, I will put back in it. I guarantee you won't like how I do it."
Having said what he needed to say, Witt gave Shea a firm nod and strode out of the room. Silence fell as the men looked from one to another as if to ask what had just happened. Shea, for her part, stared in bemusement after him.
She started when Dane appeared beside her.
"I'm sorry for what Paul said."
She blinked up at him and then scowled. "Why? You're not the one who said it, and I know you never insinuated anything like it either."
He gave her a small smile. "Still, it was out of line."
"That seems to be happening a lot lately," Shea muttered, massaging her neck with one hand.
"The elders don't like you, and the rest of the village follows their lead."
"I just don't know what I did to cause this much hostility."
He shrugged. "You're a woman, and they were expecting a much different sort of pathfinder. It doesn't help that you're the type of person you are."
Shea's head lifted, and she shot him a dark look. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're quiet. You say something and expect what you say to be followed but don't explain why." He held up his hands when she opened her mouth to defend herself. "I know. To you, it's obvious. To them, it's anything but, and they need that explanation. Both the elders and the villagers fear anything outside Birdon Leaf's walls. That's not the case for you. You understand what's out there and don't fear it. For them, it's this scary place where danger lurks. They don't like that, and they hate admitting they're afraid. Then this little slip of a girl tells them how things are going to be but doesn't explain why they're going to be that way. It freaks them out." He smiled slightly. "The women don't like you because you're pretty. They think you'll try to take their men."
Shea frowned and then rolled her eyes at that last part. He waited patiently as she processed what he just told her. "And you? Are you the same?"
He sighed. "Before? Yes. I was exactly like the elders. Now, not so much. Edgecomb changed things."
He didn't have to explain. She understood. That place had changed all of them.
She didn't know how she felt about Witt coming to her defense as he did. She thought it made her seem weak. That was something she couldn't afford while on the trail. These men needed to respect her and having someone ride in to the rescue made that difficult.
It was kind of nice, though. It had been so long since anybody defended her.
Dane clapped her on the shoulder. "Witt and I have your back. Now these men know it, and they'll think twice about giving you lip. That's not a bad thing."
The corners of her lips tilted up as she decided to be grateful rather than angry at the assistance. Changing the subject, she ventured, "Can't say I'm happy about staying another night."
He sighed. "I know. Me neither, but it's almost nightfall. With these laze-abouts, we wouldn't be ready to leave until well after dark. Just made more sense to stay the night and get a start tomorrow when there's more hours of daylight."
She shrugged. He was the boss while they were in town. Her eyes slid back to the window as twilight deepened outside. It was probably a good call. Still, she would have much rather have been sleeping out under the stars then spending one more night in this town. Even with the comfy bed awaiting her.
"Get some sleep, yeah?" Dane told her. "Tomorrow's a big day."
She looked back at him and nodded once. With the table cleared, the men gathered around it with a deck of cards.
Shea excused herself and headed upstairs to her small bedroom. A bed took up half the space, leaving just enough room for a chest to store her gear.
She crossed the floor, the wood creaking under her weight, to light a lamp. With night falling, it would be her only source of light until the moon was high enough to lend its glow.
She carried the lamp over to the chest and knelt, setting it beside her. The smell of lavender drifted up as she lifted the top and pawed through her pack until she found a clean shirt to wear to bed.
Once changed, she pulled out a map and climbed between the sheets, placing the lamp on the end table.
Since they were definitely leaving tomorrow, she wanted to look it over one last time. It was ritual more than anything else as she had already decided on the return trip's course early on in their forced stay.