Parno nodded. “True, merchants aren’t known for giving away profit. They’re towns folk, though, let’s not forget,” he continued. “They would have had to hire guards anyway, and then…” He cocked his head. “Doing favors for the powerful is a chancy thing. Less reward for them this way, perhaps, but less risk, too.”
“More risk for us, you mean.”
They fell silent as they watched Mar wait for a boy driving a donkey with water jugs in its panniers to cross in front of her. Parno lowered his voice still further. “Dhulyn? When you touched her, what did you See?”
“I Saw our little Dove wearing a cloth-of-silver gown. Hand in hand with a line of dancers.”
“Her wedding, do you think? The wedding she expects?”
Dhulyn shrugged. “Rich and alive,” she answered. “It seemed like a good omen for us who are to be her guards. And I’ll tell you something else, my Brother,” she said. “If they were so very anxious to have her back in the bosom of the family, why did the Tenebros not send some trusted servants of their own?” She smiled her wolf’s smile. “Perhaps there’s more than bandits and Cloud People for us to be wary of.”
Parno shook his head. Whatever she might have guessed from his evasions, she was willing to let it drop, at least for now.
“Caids take you,” he said, “as if we didn’t have enough problems!”
Laughing, Dhulyn thumped him on the shoulder before swinging herself up on Bloodbone, leaving Parno to help Mar regain her seat on the packhorse. When they were both ready, Dhulyn led them north through the market and into the wide avenue that would become the Gotterang Road once it passed through the north gates of Navra. The streets were unusually crowded this morning, and when they were within sight of the town’s wall and the gates themselves, she saw why. Only one leaf of the heavy timbered gate was open, and the people, horses, and carts ahead of them had been formed into a line and were being stopped by the Watch before they were allowed to pass through. While Dhulyn was looking the situation over, one short man with a tinker’s pack on his back was escorted away to the guardroom while the others in line stood waiting.
Dhulyn checked Bloodbone, keeping the horse to a much slower pace than the animal wanted. Too late to get out of line and try a different gate-or a different way out of the city entirely. They were behind two farm carts and a small company of strolling players, and there wasn’t much room to maneuver. Dhulyn shrugged, making sure the sword lying along her spine was loose in its sheath. There were only five guards, and if worse came to worst…
Dhulyn spotted the helmet crest of the officer of the Watch, and even from this distance she had no trouble making out how his lips were thinned by a look of frozen displeasure. The very look, Dhulyn considered, of a man following orders he didn’t agree with. Give too many of those, and you could have a revolt on your hands.
And she’d bet her second-best sword that the Jaldean standing behind the gatemen had something to do with it. Looked as if they’d got the Finders out just in time-and perhaps they should have gone with them.
Casually, as if she were just checking the numbers in line behind them, she turned to look back at Parno. Mar and the packhorse were between them, but Dhulyn had no trouble catching his eye over the girl’s head. He scratched his left ear with his right thumb. So he agreed. Too late to change their minds. They’d have to see if they couldn’t bluff their way through.
Whatever it was that had the officer clenching his teeth, his men looked content enough, though there was none of the relaxed informality Dhulyn would have expected from gate guards in a country at peace. And now that she was looking for it, there was a tall fair guard having trouble hiding his smirk, grinning openly whenever he was sure that his officer wasn’t looking. Dhulyn smiled. That kind of discord spelled real trouble, and where there was trouble in the ranks, there was room for a good Mercenary to maneuver.
The two farmers and the traveling players passed through without incident, and Dhulyn pulled up as Bloodbone came abreast of the officer’s crest. The nearer guards gave ground, and the three farther away came closer, until there was a cleared circle with Dhulyn, Parno, and the girl in the center. Dhulyn glanced up. There were crossbow men at the top of the gate. Still, if Parno took care of the bowmen, she could manage the five guards down here before any others arrived. And from the wide-eyed look on the face of the nearest one, he knew exactly what she was thinking and believed it as well. If she hadn’t already taken money to make sure the girl was safe… She smiled her wolf’s smile at the officer.
“Step to the side, Mercenaries, please,” he said, staring steadily at a point just over her left shoulder. “Over there if you will.”
And if I won’t? Dhulyn didn’t say the words aloud. “But you know us, Officer.” She tapped her Mercenary badge with the fingers of an obviously empty hand. “Mercenaries of the Brotherhood. This young one’s Mar, fosterling of the Weavers in Threadneedle Alley. We’ve been given the charge of taking her to her family in Gotterang.” Dhulyn was careful to keep her tone light, as if she were just gossiping, and the guard officer was just a friend.
The Jaldean pushed his way forward and laid his hand on the thin wool covering Dhulyn’s knee. “You go to Gotterang, Mercenary?”
Dhulyn bit down to keep from gasping as
flashed through her mind almost too quickly to see. It took all of her training and concentration not to flinch away from the Jaldean’s hand.
THE MAN IN FRONT OF HER CROSSES THE STREET, HIS EYES GLOWING GREEN
“We do,” she answered, pleased at how steady her voice was. “Would you mind stepping back, friend? You’re making my horse nervous.” Dhulyn took hold of Bloodbone’s mane in a special twist, and the mare tossed her head and brought her right forehoof down on the Jaldean’s foot.
The officer suddenly looked away and Dhulyn was quick to draw in her brows and “tsk,” as Bloodbone continued dancing and rolling her eyes like a horse about to bolt. Nursing his foot, the Jaldean flicked his hand toward them and the officer, eyes now bright in his stiff face, acknowledged Dhulyn with the slightest of bows, and waved them through the gate.
As soon as they were through Mar’s packhorse fell into place at Dhulyn’s right hand of its own accord, even though Dhulyn was still having trouble with Bloodbone. When Parno took up position to Mar’s right, the girl looked from one Brother to the other.
“I don’t understand,” Mar said. “Were they going to stop us?”
“Seems like they meant to,” Parno said. “At least until they knew where we were going.”
“Almost makes you wonder why, doesn’t it?” Dhulyn said. Bloodbone was now perfectly calm, except for the head tossing that looked remarkably as though the animal were laughing.
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” Parno said, turning back to stare at Navra’s wall.
Five days later they were in the foothills of the Antedichas Mountains, heading for the pass, and Cloud Country. Dhulyn and Parno rode with bows strung and arrows ready. Even if the packhorse could carry food for three almost a whole moon-which it could not and carry Mar as well-they’d be heartily sick of roadbread and dried fish if they did not hunt.
Dark still came early at this time of year; the search for a place to spend the night began after the midday meal, which was roadbread and dried fruit eaten on horseback. It was obvious the town girl did not have the trick of eating the roadbread, and finally Dhulyn took pity on her.
“You’ll break your teeth, my Dove,” she said. “The stuff’s dense as bricks. Break off a small piece in your hands, or with your knife if your fingers aren’t strong enough,” she advised. “Then hold it in your mouth until it softens enough to chew.” Dhulyn watched to make sure Mar could manage before turning her attention back to the road ahead.