She stopped walking, placed her hands on her hips, then looked him up and down. “What makes you think I’d want you? A farmer is of no use to me.”
He bit his lip, wracking his brain. “I can do more than tend crops. A life of farming has made me strong. Since you don’t have a horse, I could carry your belongings.” He eyed the pack she carried, containing her food, water, and bedroll. “And I’ve used a bow before,” he tapped the top of the weapon slung beside her pack.
She tilted her head in thought. Was she actually considering his desperate plea?
“I’ll teach you to handle a dagger once you’re healed,” she offered. “If you show no promise of skill, you must vow that you will not try to follow me after we reach the burgh. I will not be slowed down.”
He nodded eagerly. “Just give me a chance. That’s all I ask.”
“Fine,” she sighed, then immediately turned to continue walking.
He hurried after her, determined to prove himself useful. A sliver of hope had blossomed in his chest. Perhaps there was life after servitude. If he could learn to use various weapons . . . well, he wasn’t sure just what he could do with such skills. Anna had hinted at mercenary work, although from what he understood, mercenaries traveled in groups. Anna traveled all alone. He suddenly found himself wondering if she put her weapons to more nefarious purposes. Perhaps she was a thief or assassin. She certainly dressed as he’d imagine a thief or assassin might dress.
As his thoughts spun out of control, his mood darkened. He’d simply have to see what the next few days would bring. Once his wounds were healed, and he’d acquired some skill with a blade, he’d be fully prepared to run the other way.
Chapter 3
Anna
Anna had noticed the footprints in the muddy path over an hour prior. Normally, footprints would be nothing to gawk at, but these were far from the main road, and seemed fresh since the edges were yet to lighten as the moisture in the soil seeped downward. Sometimes hunters used the forest path, or sometimes others not wanting to draw attention to themselves . . . like her, but there were too many imprints in the mud to belong to a simple hunting party.
“Why are you staring at the ground?” Kai questioned, tearing her away from her thoughts. “Shouldn’t we be keeping an eye on our surroundings in these parts?”
She turned to scowl at him as he walked happily beside her. He tried to smile at her scowl, then winced in pain from the bruises decorating his stubbled jaw.
“Look down,” she growled, gesturing to the prints they were both stomping over.
He glanced at the prints, then back to her face. “So?”
She sighed, flicking her gaze around the forest, straining her ears for hints of other voices. When she heard nothing, she replied, “So, why would such a large group travel so far from the main road? I’d guess there are at least twenty of them, maybe more. Mostly men, but some women.”
He raised his brows at her, then stopped walking to observe the prints more closely. “How can you tell?”
She sighed again and stopped beside him, trying to remember just why she’d agreed to let him travel with her. “Look at the sizes of the prints, and how they overlap,” she explained, gesturing down to the prints. “Some are small enough to be women’s feet, but they have mostly been obscured, as if they were walking ahead of some of the others.”
He nodded, then continued walking. “Well, I don’t see how it’s any of our business regardless.”
Fool, she thought. Out loud she said, “It may become our business when the group of bandits takes us hostage, or worse.”
“Who said anything about bandits?” he questioned.
Could he really be this dense? “Think about where we are,” she hissed. She began to say more, then cut herself off. She halted in her tracks.
Kai continued walking, not noticing the voices that had piqued her ears.
She hurried forward and grabbed his arm, then raised a finger to her lips to silence him before he could complain.
He blinked at her, wide-eyed.
She tapped her ear with her free hand, hoping he would understand.
He seemed to listen, then his eyes grew wider.
The voices weren’t far ahead. Their owners had likely stopped for a meal on the trail, granting Kai and Anna the chance to catch up to them. Silently, she tugged Kai back a few steps, then off the path and into the trees.
“We’ll creep around them,” she whispered, standing close enough for him to hear. “We’ll keep off the path until we’re far ahead, then we’ll keep walking through the night. That should place us far enough ahead of them.”
“Do we really need to go to all that trouble?” he whispered back.
She scowled. It would be risky, but she needed to teach this boy a lesson. “Follow me,” she instructed.
Without waiting to see if he would obey, she crept forward, careful to remain concealed within the shadows of the dense trees. He followed after her, nearly as silent. He might make a good thief if he weren’t so naive…not that she had time to train him, and she was better off on her own. She always had been.
The voices grew louder as she continued to creep forward with Kai following close behind. Soon enough, she spotted the first of the men, then another, sitting beside him on a fallen log, eating cured meat and hard bread. She took a few more steps, and more of the men came into view.
Anna tried to keep her breathing even. Her assumption had been correct. These men were bandits, or perhaps hired mercenaries. They wore rough leather armor and weapons at their belts. Not the finely made weapons of the Gray Guard, but the shoddy iron weapons of lowly criminals. She continued silently forward, keeping an eye on the men, then her mouth grew dry as the women came into view.
There were six of them, all weighed down by heavy irons at their wrists. They wore the dresses of simple townsfolk, and all appeared to be under twenty. She hated to think what the men had planned for them. That they were all alive meant they were likely to be sold into servitude, but that didn’t mean the mercenaries wouldn’t do horrible things to them along the way.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and continued walking. This had nothing to do with her. If she were the one in irons, none of those women would stop to help her. She was sure of it.
An arm wrapped around her bicep. She tensed, reaching for her dagger, then relaxed. She had nearly forgotten about Kai. She turned her dark eyes to glare up at him.
He released his hold on her, then gestured silently to the woman, a distressed expression scrunching his face.
Her heart gave a nervous patter, but she shook her head. She turned to continue walking, then flinched as he grabbed her again. She turned, and he once again gestured to the women.
Sighing, she gestured to the armed men. Fifteen of them, if her initial count was correct. Shaking her head, she continued creeping along.
After a moment, Kai followed, though she was quite sure the silent argument was far from over.
* * *
Kai
Kai was practically trembling by the time they were well out of sight of the men and their prisoners. He clenched and unclenched his sore fists as Anna finally made her way back to the path. He followed, but every step felt like there was iron weighing down his boots. His entire body ached, he was exhausted, but that was not what held him back. How could they simply leave those women to their fates? They couldn’t be any older than his middle sister.
“I know what you’re thinking,” Anna said as he moved to walk at her side down the path. “But there is nothing that we can do for them. I might be skilled with a blade, but I could not face that many men and survive, and you’d be all but useless.”
His face burned at the useless comment, because it was true. He’d proven himself useless to his family, and now he was useless to Anna. He was more than useless to those poor women back there.
“We could at least alert the Gray Guard,” he suggested. “They could stop them.”
S
he snorted. “Yes, they’re sure to believe a runaway slave and a thief.”
“Thief?” he questioned, stopping in his tracks.
Her face grew red, but she didn’t take her words back. “I do what I need to survive. The Gray City was never kind to me. I’d think you of all people would understand.” She turned and continued walking, hiding her blush.
He hurried to catch up to her. “While I cannot criticize you, I cannot condone you stealing from poor folk struggling just as much as you or I.”
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t steal from poor folk. What would they have that I’d want? It’s not worth the risk for a few measly coins. The money lies in being hired by others to steal the things they want. Petty Lords stealing from their rivals. Smugglers stealing from ships and storehouses.”
He felt his shoulders relax. Perhaps there was humanity within her yet. He still didn’t like the idea of stealing, but really, what might he do if he was desperate enough. He was pretty desperate right now.
“If you care for the poor folk,” he began anew, “then how can you leave those women behind?”
Her eyes darkened as they scanned the path ahead. The path leading them further and further from the women who needed their help. “As I’ve already explained,” she muttered. “There is nothing you nor I could do for them. We would both lose our lives, and the women would still meet their fates. I will not die in vain, not after all I’ve done to stay alive.”
He grabbed her arm to stop her. He knew she was right. He knew it, but he couldn’t let it go.
She stopped and peered up at him with her dark, unwavering eyes.
“What if that was you back there?” he questioned, gesturing with his free arm to the path behind them. “What if that was your sister, or someone you cared about deeply? Would you risk your life then?”
Her eyes shot daggers at him, and he knew he’d overstepped.
“I have no one to care about,” she said blandly, “and no one cares about me. That is why I’m still alive.”
He dropped his hand from her arm, shaking his head. “Well I’m going back. I cannot enjoy my freedom while those women have lost theirs.”
Her expression didn’t alter. “If you go back, you will die.”
“So be it,” he huffed, then turned to walk back down the path. He had no idea what he was going to do. Perhaps he could silently follow the party and await a good opportunity. This far into the woods, most of the men might sleep easily in the night. With the element of surprise, perhaps he could fell whoever was left awake to watch over the women, then he’d be able to help them escape to hide in the woods.
“In that case,” Anna said to his back, “I’m sorry I wasted my time saving you.”
He stopped in his tracks, shaking his head as he turned to her. “What is the point of walking forward, when you stand for nothing?”
Some hidden emotion flashed through her eyes, then was gone. She turned and walked away.
He stared after her as she left. If he didn’t try, he would always regret not saving the women. Unfortunately, part of him might always regret not saving Anna too.
Chapter 4
Anna
Such a fool! Anna thought, anger clouding her mind. To throw his life away for strangers. He was so young, and she’d offered him a way to survive…She scowled. How could he just throw it in her face like that?
Distant memories pushed their way into her mind as her feet thudded down the shaded path. Growing up on the streets of the Gray City, her teenage friends, screaming for their lives as they were carried away by guards. There was no way to save them, there never was. It was understood that if the guards caught you stealing, no one would come to your rescue.
She stopped walking, lifting a hand to rub her tired eyes. She was still that same girl, powerless against those who would make her a victim. She was fast, smart, deadly, yet she was still powerless. Now she couldn’t even save Kai. Those mercenaries would skewer him the moment they saw him. His young life would be over.
She turned in her tracks, then shook her head. What was she even thinking? There was nothing she could do for him except die by his side. She would not risk her life now after all she’d survived.
She took another step down the path, back in the direction she’d come. Her instincts screamed at her to run away, but a tiny voice in her head told her to go back. It was a tiny voice she’d learned to ignore long ago. In fact, she’d thought she’d squashed it out altogether, but Kai had somehow awoken it.
She didn’t know whether she wanted to thank him, or strangle him
Regardless, the tiny voice cheered her on as she took another heavy step, then picked up her pace down the path toward the mercenaries. The voice echoed in her mind, What’s the point of moving forward, when you stand for nothing?
As she left the path and crept back into the trees, she became quite sure she’d lost her mind. It was a frightening thought, but just as powerful was the feeling that while she’d lost her mind, perhaps she’d found something else. Something equally important.
* * *
Kai
What in the blazes had he been thinking? He was such a fool. He’d crept back into the trees just in time, as the mercenaries had finished their meal to continue on down the path. These men were criminals, trained killers. They’d strike him dead before he could even blink. How had he ever hoped to even stand against one of them?
“You are an absolute fool,” a voice whispered beside him, echoing his thoughts.
He whipped his gaze around to find Anna, crouching not three paces away. The corner of his mouth lifted into a crooked smile. “If I’m so foolish,” he whispered, “then what are you doing here?”
She glared at him. “I spent an entire night rescuing you. I don’t like wasting my time.”
His grin widened. Anna was only one woman, but she was a trained fighter, at least according to her. His loose plan might actually work with her by his side.
“Whatever you’re thinking,” she whispered, “stop. I’m not going to follow whatever fool plan you have in your mind. If we’re going to do this, you will do exactly as I say, exactly when I say it.”
He nodded eagerly. “I am at your command.”
“Ye gods,” she muttered to herself, shaking her head. “How did I end up here?”
With the mercenaries now out of sight, they both straightened and walked further from the path. Though Anna’s face was set in a scowl, Kai felt hopeful. She might be a thief, but she still had a heart.
Once they were a good distance away from the path, shielded within the dense trees, Anna stopped walking and turned to him. “We’ll track them until nightfall,” she explained. “It will be easier to strike while most of them are asleep. We can sneak in, pick them off one by one—”
“Wait,” he interrupted, his heart lurching into his throat. “You intend to kill them in their sleep?” He’d never killed anyone before. Perhaps he’d occasionally daydreamed about besting one of the Gray Guard in a duel, but even then, the man would run off in shame. Kai couldn’t imagine actually sticking a knife in someone.
Anna raised a dark brow at his horrified expression. “Yes, how else did you plan on rescuing the women? Those men aren’t just going to give them to us.”
“I thought we’d sneak them out,” he suggested. “Knock whoever is left awake to guard them unconscious, then lead the girls away.”
Anna rolled their eyes. “Two armed foes appear in the night, strangers to these women. What do you think they’ll do?”
He sighed. “Scream?”
She smiled cruelly. “You’re not as fool-brained as you look, then. The women will scream, and the entire camp of mercenaries will rush in to end us. I’m good with a blade, but I’m not that good.”
He took a deep breath. There had to be another way. “We’ll slip the women a note,” he suggested. “We’ll tell them to prepare for rescue.”
She turned and started walking in the direction the mercenaries had
gone. “I take it back, you are as fool-brained as you look.” He hurried to catch up with her as she continued, “Ignoring the complications of actually getting a note to the women, it would undoubtedly be confiscated by the mercenaries, dashing our plan to bits.”
“I just don’t want to kill them,” he admitted, slowing alongside her as her eyes scanned the trail now far to their right.
She snorted. “Yeah, I got that. What I don’t understand is why?”
“Because killing is wrong?” he suggested.
She flicked her gaze to him. “These men have doubtlessly killed many innocents,” she countered. “They’ve kidnapped those women to likely be sold into servitude. They have earned their deaths.”
How could she be so callous? He shook his head. “Well that’s not really for us to decide, is it?”
She stopped walking and turned to fully face him, hands on hips. “Do you want my help, or not?”
Did he? He was quite sure working with Anna was the only way he could save those women, but at what cost? Who was he to decide who lived or died?
Reading his expression, she sighed. “I made a mistake coming back. If you somehow survive, seek me out in the next burgh.”
She turned to walk away, but he grabbed her sleeve. “Wait,” he breathed. “If it’s truly the only way, we’ll go with your plan.”
She gave him a sharp nod, seemingly satisfied.
Despite having a plan, his stomach twisted into knots far more painful than the ache of his bruises. He suspected Anna did not plan to kill all of the men on her own. She’d want him to do his share. The only question was, could he do it? He tried to imagine himself with a blade poised over a sleeping man. Could he puncture flesh and end the man’s life?
He wasn’t sure. The only thing he was really sure of, was that he didn’t have much choice.
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