Mist's Edge (The Broken Lands Book 2)

by T. A. White

  “You frightened Mist and damn near created an incident that could have left several dead. Even if you’d been right about me abusing her, there are a dozen different ways you could have handled it that didn’t lead to bloodshed.”

  “We’re Trateri, darling. Bloodshed is what we do,” the man lying on the ground drawled.

  Shea lifted an eyebrow, utterly unimpressed with his charm. “And scaring little girls until they cry, is that also what you do?”

  Bax frowned, his blue eyes flicking to the little girl and then back to Shea. “That wasn’t my intention.” To Mist, he said, “Little one, I meant you nor your protector any harm. Please forgive me.”

  The smile he flashed her would have decimated anyone over the age of sixteen. It was charm personified. Shea was willing to bet Bax had ladies lined up just begging for his apologies.

  Mist peeked at him before burying her head back in Shea. “No.”

  Bax’s smile faded and he looked slightly irked. Shea had to fight against a smile. It would be many years before a smile like that would work on the little girl.

  The woman at Zeph’s side broke into peals of laughter, the sound cutting through the gathering tension faster than a knife. “Finally, someone capable of ignoring that oh-so-slick charm that you’re known for.”

  “Shut it, Holly. No one asked you.” Bax shot the woman a glare.

  “No one needed to. As the only other woman in this camp who ever saw through that phony façade of yours, I must show her my appreciation.” Holly came forward, taking a knee in front of Mist. Shea didn’t move, watching with interest this other woman dressed in the same simple garb as the men. While the Trateri allowed their women to serve in the army and carry out tasks traditionally seen as duties only suited to men in Highland and Lowland society, it was still rare to see one who actually fit in that world.

  “Hello, little one. On behalf of the numbskulls behind me, I sincerely apologize for the fright you took.”

  Mist hands squeezed Shea’s pants a she regarded the other woman with a frown.

  “They didn’t mean any harm in it. They really thought they were trying to help.” Holly’s face was open and kind, her expression soft and her eyes warm.

  Mist looked up at Shea as if asking permission. Shea smiled back at her. The little girl looked back at Holly and gave a nod, her eyes focused on the ground the entire time.

  If nothing else, this incident had at least gotten Mist speaking again. Shea was grateful for that, even if she would have wished the circumstances were different. She kept her happiness at Mist speaking to herself, not wanting the little girl to become self-conscious and retreat back into her shell.

  Holly slapped her thigh and stood. “That settles it then. The idiots back there will refrain from any more heroic actions that don’t suit them, and you and I will become friends.” Holly looked at Shea. “So, you’re the Telroi I’ve heard so much about.”

  “My name is Shea.” She wasn’t quite sure what to make of this woman who looked friendly and had charmed Mist where her friend couldn’t. “Not Telroi.”

  Shea didn’t enjoy being referred to by the role she played in Fallon’s life. She was a person, damn it, with dreams and struggles of her own. If they’d called her scout or pathfinder, that would have been one thing. The term Telroi made her feel like an appendage of Fallon’s.

  The skin at Holly’s eyes crinkled as her smile lit up her face. “Very good. I will remember that for future.”

  Holly turned to Daere, offering her right hand in a warrior’s greeting. Daere took her arm, clasping it right below the elbow. “It’s been a long time.”

  “A few years at least,” Daere said with a smile.

  Their body language said they were friends and had been for a long time.

  “Can you tell your watchdog to ease up?” Zeph asked, his expression set to rueful.

  Shea eyed Trenton where he still stood with his blade pressed against Zeph’s neck. He met her eyes with unhappy ones of his own. She jerked her head. He frowned but obeyed, withdrawing the blade and stepping away. Zeph pressed a hand to his neck, his fingers coming away with blood.

  “You were a little overzealous, don’t you think?” he asked.

  Trenton gave him an implacable look Shea swore was part of the training the Anateri had to go through. She’d seen the exact same look on more than one Anateri’s face.

  “What are you doing here?” Shea asked before anything else could be said that might jeopardize Fallon’s relationship with the Ember clan. Shea was already trying to figure out how to explain to him why Trenton had held a knife on their clan leader and why she’d kicked one of them while they were down.

  “Darius’s suggestion. My vanguard and I will be accompanying you and Fallon on your trip into the Highlands. Darius thought you could set us up with a few lessons so we’ll be better prepared,” Zeph explained with a slight quirk to his lips.

  Shea arched an eyebrow. “I don’t know why. Clark and Charles usually host the classes on beasts. I help out sometimes but that’s really more their thing than mine.”

  “But you’re the expert on all things beast and Highlands related,” Zeph said smoothly. “My men and women deserve the best training they can get. You’re the best so you’ll train them.”

  Shea gave him an incredulous look. Did he really think he could order her to train his men? Especially after the whole affair with Mist?

  “Am I now?” she asked.

  “The class is also full,” Holly said, with a reproachful glance at her clan leader. “Clark said you might be able to help us.”

  Shea shut her mouth and stared at the other woman in thought. Clark and Charles would have to be overwhelmed with new recruits for them to pass off this lot to Shea. They’d been trying to grow the concept of the beast class and get more clans participating in it under the assumption that more people meant more information, which meant a more complete picture of what they faced. For them to pass people off to Shea, things had to have gotten out of control.

  Shea stared at the five Trateri from the Ember Clan standing before her. It would be so easy to turn them away. Despite their apology, Shea had to wonder if they would have leapt to the same conclusion had she been Trateri. It was one thing to know you were an outsider and another to have it thrust into your face.

  Still, could she afford to turn them away knowing that their deaths due to ignorance would be on her head? When such a simple thing as sharing a little of her knowledge would keep them alive? Could she justify withholding that knowledge for any reason?

  The answer was no. She couldn’t. Even if they had been enemies she would feel compelled to help them. It might not be the pathfinder way or even the Trateri way, but it was her way. If she could give such a simple thing, she would.

  She sighed. “I’ll see what I can do. You do know that it took me almost an entire lifetime to gather this knowledge. There’s no way I can impart all of it in just a few hours.”

  “Give us what you can. You never know when something will come in handy.” Zeph sounded distracted as he noticed several men heading their way. The head of the Rain clan was at the front of the group.

  They all eyed the newcomers with varying levels of suspicion and distrust.

  “Ember,” Gawain said with a nod so slight that Shea wasn’t sure she’d imagined or not “I see you had the same idea as us.”

  “Rain.” Zeph’s face relaxed into smooth lines, all suspicion wiped away.

  Bax climbed to his feet and stood with his legs spread and arms held slightly bent at his sides. He looked relaxed, but Shea suspected he could explode into movement at any time.

  Gawain finally graced Shea his regard. “The Hawkvale’s Telroi. I have been looking for you.”

  Shea didn’t miss the dismissive glance that Gawain swept over Mist or the way the child wedged herself tighter behind Shea as if afraid to draw more attention to herself.

  “It seems you’ve found me.”

  The s
mile he gave her was amused and polite and held the kind of goodwill that almost made Shea question her previous impression.

  “I believe we got off on the wrong foot,” Gawain said, stepping closer. Wilhelm tensed at her back and even Trenton eyed him with a degree of suspicion usually reserved for Lowlanders. “I will admit I lost my head yesterday and said some regrettable things. We lost some good people. I’m afraid I let it get to me. I apologize for any words that may have offended.”

  Pretty words, but Shea wasn’t sure how many of those were sincere. He seemed earnest, his expression open and containing a friendliness that had been lacking yesterday.

  She just didn’t quite believe it. Something kept her from trusting him entirely.

  She could see how the confusion and attack might have led him to being a tad more hostile than he would be normally. For that reason, she was inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt despite her reservations.

  “I understand. Yesterday was a trying day for all involved.”

  He held his hand out to her to clasp. “I hope we can put this behind us for Fallon’s sake, if nothing else. We were as close as brothers growing up. I would hate to have harsh feelings between myself and the woman he has chosen to have by his side.”

  Shea stared at his hand, not liking how he was forcing her into accepting his apology but also not seeing a way to gracefully decline. She clasped his hand, grasping his forearm in much the same way Daere had clasped Holly’s. Her nod was grudging.

  “I’m told you have much to share regarding the beasts and terrain we might encounter in the Highlands,” Gawain said stepping back. “My men and I would appreciate any guidance you might be able to give.”

  Both Ember and Rain were accompanying Fallon into the Highlands? Shea would have thought he’d want some of the men who were familiar with the Lowlands. They at least had some idea of what to expect.

  She eyed both sets of Trateri, wishing not for the first time that she had undertaken this journey alone. Keeping all of these people alive was going to take a miracle.

  “Of course, I’d be happy to share what I know.” Shea looked down to where Mist was still burrowed into her. “Perhaps we can pick this up tomorrow. There are a few things that need my attention today.”

  Gawain looked at the girl attached to Shea. “Hello, lalu. Could you spare your friend for a few hours today?”

  Mist didn’t answer, though Shea could feel her body shaking.

  “She must be shy,” Gawain said, aiming a smile at Shea as he stood.

  “Something like that.”

  “I’m afraid we’ll need your help today,” Gawain said. “As the Hawkvale intends to ride out tomorrow.”

  What? Shea hadn’t heard that.

  Gawain looked sympathetic to the surprise clearly written on her face. “You hadn’t heard? He made his decision this morning. Those with orders are preparing even as we speak.”

  She’d seen Fallon at the midday meal. He could have told her then. Why hadn’t he? Was he afraid to trust her for fear of the information getting to the pathfinders? That couldn’t be it. He may have just been distracted. There could be a million reasons for why he hadn’t told her.

  “I’m sorry if this is a surprise. I assumed you knew.” Gawain really did look apologetic.

  Shea’s smile held a thread of tension. “I’m sure he just got caught up in preparations. Anyway, if that’s the case I will need to prepare as well. We have several weeks of travel before we reach the Highlands. I can start teaching Ember and Rain the basics on the trail.”

  It’d give her more time and also real-world examples to draw from.

  Gawain clasped his hands. “Perfect. We will find you then.” He turned to Zeph. “Is that an acceptable plan to you, Ember?”

  Zeph eyed him with an odd expression on his face, one Shea couldn’t quite decipher. Holly, at his side, also looked displeased at Rain’s presence.

  “That is an acceptable compromise for Ember,” Zeph said. “We will find you on the trail.”

  Shea gave them all a look that said she looked forward to it. Or at least that was what she hoped it said. In reality, she was dreading the encounter already.

  “It is good to see you again, my fierce one,” Gawain told Daere as she fell into step with Shea.

  Daere was reserved as she gave Gawain a nod. “And you as well.”

  “I had hoped to spend more time getting reacquainted with you,” he said to her back.

  “There will be time for that later,” Daere said. Her smile was awkward. She clasped Shea’s elbow and steered her away from the group, reaching down with her other hand to tug on Mist’s arm.

  “What was that about?” Shea asked.

  “Nothing.”

  Shea snorted. She wasn’t that dumb. “Nothing, my ass. Why did I sense a vague threat behind his words?”

  “Because you did,” Daere said.

  “Is he a danger to you?” Shea asked, her eyes locked on Daere’s face. If he was, Shea didn’t care who he was or how much Fallon needed him. She’d put a stop to him herself, even if she had to lead the man into a beast’s nest to do it.

  “Not in the way you mean.” Daere didn’t look at Shea, her gaze turned forward.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Gawain is mostly harmless. He’s always been jealous of the attention Henry gives Fallon. It’s one of the reasons he broke off to form his own clan.”

  Shea shot a look at Trenton and Wilhelm who kept pace with them. Their attention was directed to the area surrounding them, but Shea would have bet anything that they were listening to every word.

  “And how is he not harmless?”

  “He’s very good at manipulating people. His ambition has a way of blinding him to everything but what he needs to get what he wants. That ambition has hurt many people along the way.”

  Shea took her words to mean that Daere was one of those who fell victim to Gawain’s ambitions.

  “So, I shouldn’t trust him.”

  Daere huffed out a laugh. “You shouldn’t trust anyone but Fallon and your guards. Haven’t you learned anything in the weeks with me?”

  “I don’t remember that being one of the lessons.”

  Daere gave Shea a sideways glance. “It was in the subtext.”

  “Ah, well. There’s your problem. You’re relying on me to catch the subtext. I’m a straightforward kind of person.”

  “I’m beginning to understand that.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  SHEA LOOKED up at the grey cliffs that towered over them, the Trateri warband Fallon had gathered stretched for half a mile behind her. It had taken two weeks to get to this point. Saying goodbye to Mist had been difficult. The little girl had seemed so alone and small when Shea had told her she would be staying behind with Daere. It was one of the few times Shea had regretted leaving.

  Now, they stood at the base of Bearan’s Fault looking up at cliffs that would be impossible to climb unless they left the mounts behind. Even if they did, it would be a difficult and time-consuming journey since the cliffs towered over them by several hundred feet.

  She took a deep breath as she stared up at all that separated her from home. When she’d first thought of coming back here, she hadn’t realized how nostalgic she would be or how much she’d missed the Highlands. It was like an old, crotchety friend that probably hadn’t even noticed she was gone. Still, it felt like a piece of her that had been missing was suddenly back in its rightful place.

  “You came down that?” Clark asked, his voice hushed and shocked.

  Shea nodded.

  “I always knew you were crazy,” Buck said, his mount coming up on the other side of Shea’s horse. “No wonder you have no problem jumping off things.” He had a look of consternation as he looked up at the cliffs.

  “I’d like to say it’s not as high as it looks, but it really is,” Shea told them. “On the Highland side, approaching the fault is like walking off the edge of the world—scary, and exh
ilarating, and oh so fun.”

  Buck gave her a look that said she was proving his point.

  “Since meeting you, I feel my life has gotten increasingly more interesting,” Eamon said from the other side of Buck. “I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not.”

  “Have any of our people ever been up there?” Clark asked. “I don’t remember anyone claiming raider’s rights.”

  “I’ve never heard of any stories,” Buck said, still staring at the cliffs like they were something that had been put there to purposely thwart him. “All of our tales deal with the Lowlands and the Badlands. I don’t think our oral history even acknowledges this place.”

  Shea wasn’t really surprised. Highlanders kept to themselves. Their home’s inherent isolation made that easy. The only time they came down the fault was when they were trading, which wasn’t often. The trading expedition where Shea had gotten caught by the Trateri was one of the few.

  “How are we going to get up there?” Clark asked the question everyone was thinking. “How are we going to get the horses and our supplies up that?”

  “There’s a way.” Shea spurred her horse on, steering it toward where Fallon and Caden had stopped.

  She pulled on her reins, bringing the horse up beside them. Both men spared her a glance before turning to observe the cliffs blocking their way.

  “It looks bigger than I imagined,” Caden said, his face set in a frown.

  Fallon grunted. He’d faced the cliffs before when he’d calculated the chances of a successful campaign in the Highlands. Edgecomb, the town where he’d first met Shea, wasn’t far from here either.

  “What’s the plan?” Caden asked.

  Fallon held up his hand and gestured. From the ranks behind them, two Anateri rode forward shadowing the figure that walked between their two horses. Reece looked up at the three of them.

  “How do we get up it?” Fallon asked, authority ringing in his voice.

  Reece smirked at Shea. “What’s the matter, Shea? Don’t you remember the way?”

  Shea took a deep breath. “It’s been over eight months since I left. I assumed your superiors would have changed the code in that time.”