"That's the sticking point, isn't it? You'd have to find it first."
"Capture one of the villages and force them to tell us," Caden said.
Shea begged silently for Witt to stop talking. This was information they shouldn't have.
"They won't know it."
Any hope Shea had that he'd be willing to help her escape disappeared. Just like that. Helping the Trateri survive in the Lowlands and not sabotaging them every moment of the day was understandable. Neither one of them was a native and had no real loyalty to the people below the cliffs. Revealing Highland secrets. Revealing guild secrets. There was no coming back from that.
Worse, he was betraying Shea. She'd counted him as a sort of friend once. She even looked for him on the rare occasions she was in camp in the hopes that she might be able to help him escape.
His fingers tapped idly against the table. After that last revelation, he very determinedly avoided looking in her direction.
"Who does?" Caden asked.
Witt didn't answer. His finger tapped faster.
Shea's chest rose on a shaky breath as her gaze darted from one end of the tent to the other. If she thought she was in trouble before, she'd been wrong. Very wrong
"The pathfinders," Fallon said, his voice as loud as a shout to Shea's ears.
Caden looked up at Shea. Her eyes were fixed on a point behind them, but sensing his gaze, she straightened her shoulders and stood taller. There would be threats. Probably pain.
"I do not envy you," Caden told Fallon.
Shea didn't hear Fallon's response, but whatever it was caused Caden to smile and rise. He clapped Witt on the back.
"Let's go. I have other tasks for you today."
Witt rose, giving Fallon a sharp nod and followed Caden towards the exit.
Shea darted after them reaching out to grab Witt's arm. She deserved an explanation. She didn't understand. Why? Why had he gone to the other side?
"Shea." Fallon's voice rang loudly in the small space. Shea came to a stop while the other two gave her small looks, Witt's slightly apologetic, Caden's amused. The amount of force Fallon put behind the unspoken command kept her in place even as her mind urged her to follow Witt and demand answers.
She turned back to Fallon, forcing herself to ask politely, "Is there something you needed, Warlord?"
His eyes burned coldly into hers. "I have not given you permission to leave."
Shea took a deep breath. Composure came slowly and was paper thin when she asked with as much deference as she could muster, "May I be dismissed?"
He advanced on her until he was just inches away, invading her space. Shea kept her eyes on a stray thread on the collar of his shirt. The anger and hurt that had been growing during their conversation was written on her face.
"Look at me," he said in a low deadly voice.
Inch by inch her eyes lifted until they trained on his forehead. His face gave no quarter and held none of the lover she'd seen last night.
"Since this is a new position with new duties, I have tried to be lenient. That may have been a mistake," he began. Shea barely managed to conceal her flinch at the ice in his voice. "For future reference, my personal guards do not ask to be dismissed. They leave when I tell them to. They also do not accost my guests in my own chambers. If this happens again, I will have you stripped to your skin, tied to a post and whipped bloody. You are not my Tolroi. You chose to throw that offer back in my face. You've chosen to be a guard, and you will act with all the décor of one. If you fail, you will be disciplined just as I would any of my men. I am the Warlord, and you will treat me with all the respect that position deserves. Is that clear?"
"Very." Shea's hands were shaking with the strength of her emotions.
"Now, you are dismissed. Inform the captain of the guards that I intend to ride out in an hour, and I want ten of my guard and one squad from Earth Clan's army and another squad from Horse Clan's to march with us."
"Understood."
Shea turned to leave.
"In case it's not clear in that thick head of yours already, you will be joining me. I wouldn't want to leave without my personal scout."
Shea's eyes closed. She'd expected as much but had hoped he'd leave her behind.
She nodded once and left.
Outside, she waited until she was out of sight of the men guarding his quarters before allowing herself to fall apart. Her body trembled, and she had the urge to curl up in a protective ball.
They were planning to invade the Highlands, and they needed her to do it. How long before Fallon tired of seduction and chose torture instead? Furthermore, Shea was about four months overdue to check in with the guild. Were they aware she was missing? Were they even now sending out a party to discover what had happened to her?
Pathfinders were scarce since most prospects died during the final test. When one disappeared, the elders usually tried to discover what happened, whether it was because of the wilds or more suspicious circumstances.
Witt had been right when he said the elder's had been known to abandon settlements to the wilds. However, the reasons behind such an act were usually more serious than a simple political disagreement. It usually involved the death of a pathfinder at the hands of villagers.
Not everybody was content to give the guild tithes for its continued help. Sometimes they took that emotion out on those responsible for acting as a link to the outside world.
The unspoken threat of abandonment usually worked, and pathfinders were left un-accosted, even as they remained outsiders in the settlements they were sent to serve.
Shea could only hope Birdon Leaf had come up with some excuse to waylay the elders. Even that hope was slim after four months. If they hadn't already, they would send someone before much longer.
From the way Fallon had thrown her refusal to be his Tolroi in her face, she guessed he wasn't as sanguine about her rejection as he first led her to believe. No man enjoyed rejection and that double for a warlord used to taking what he wanted.
He now saw her as something of a challenge. If it had been any other type of man, she might have been able to turn that to her advantage. But with a man like that? A man incapable of being influenced or led around by his dick? No. Fallon would demand any woman to follow his pace, dance to his tune.
Shea had made the right decision this morning. Best not to fall any deeper in with him.
Composed again, Shea stood. She needed to find Caden and give him Fallon's message. She might even be able to use this situation. Two squads and Fallon's ten men would be a lot easier to slip away from than a whole army.
She'd wait and bide her time.
After asking several men for Caden's location, Shea finally tracked him down at the training fields. He was in the midst of sparring with another man. They flowed back and forth across the field, their blades parrying and striking with a liquid grace. It was elegant, terrifying and amazing all at once.
Both men were masters of their craft, and it showed in the speed with which they moved and the precise blows they struck.
Shea lingered at the edge of the practice area, unsure whether she should interrupt or not. On one hand, the message from Fallon was important, and he was the warlord. On the other, Caden was technically Shea's superior and could make things very difficult for her if angered. Pissing off just one person this morning was enough.
Shea hated this indecisiveness. It wasn't like her. She wasn't used to not knowing what to do. On the trail, she rarely felt overwhelmed and always had a plan. But here? This place was a never ending maze of frustration and questions.
A loud grunt rose as the stranger saw his chance and lunged forward. Caden parried at the last moment, sliding his blade under and then over his opponents to sneak under his guard and land a blow squarely on his opponent's chest.
Caden drew back and said, "You saw victory and got careless."
"I should have known you wouldn't drop your guard like that."
Seeing her chance, Shea stepped forward drawing Caden's attention.
"What is it, girl?"
Shea related Fallon's message.
"Understood." When Shea just stood there, not knowing what to do next, Caden ordered sharply, "Return and help your master prepare for the journey."
Shea dipped her head in reply and turned to do just that.
"Is that the girl the men are talking about?"
"Yes."
"What is she doing running messages for the warlord?"
"She refused the position of his Tolroi. He made her one of his guard instead."
There was a low whistle before the stranger said, "Talk about poking a lion when it's asleep."
Caden barked a laugh. Whatever was said next, was lost as Shea moved out of hearing range.
As was her habit, Shea scanned the area for possible dangers even while lost in thought. It was why, despite being distracted, she noticed Witt coming out of a tent.