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Ilse laughed weakly. “Oh yes.”
His words, her laughter, released her from inaction.
She walked toward him into his embrace. It was not necessary to kiss. The warmth of his body, the pressure of his arms around her, the scent of wood smoke and cedar and sweat, a scent that was entirely his. She held him tightly. The shirt’s cloth felt wonderfully rough against her cheek. Through the fabric, she heard the rapid beat of his heart. I love him. I always have. In lives before and times long ago. Today and now. Through all my future days.
Raul buried his face into her hair. “Your message came to me last week. Unfortunately, Khandarr set a watch on my house. It took several days before I could arrange matters to escape without his notice.”
At first she could only take in his presence, his arms holding her tightly, and his voice, which was like an invocation to a different kind of magic. But then the meaning of his words broke through. “It came only last week? But—”
“Last week,” he repeated. “Six days before that came a report you had died.”
She pressed harder against him. Felt him trembling. Oh my love.
His lips brushed her cheeks. His breath feathered her hair, as he continued. “I had word that our usual channels were not to be trusted. I went immediately to Aschlau, then sent my best trackers to sweep the hills. They sighted you when you came into Emmetz. As soon as I got word, I … I hurried.”
Hurried. Such a lovely, ordinary word. She wanted to laugh again, but tears choked her voice, and it took a few moments before she could say anything close to sensible. “I am so glad you did,” she said. “Let me tell you more.”
He gave her the flask again. She drank sparingly, because she did not want the wine to muddle her thoughts, and quickly told him about Valara, from their first encounter in the pleasure house, to their flight through Osterling’s streets, to their confrontation with the soldiers and how Valara killed them with magic. She went on to describe Valara’s attempted escape and her subdued behavior since.
Throughout, Raul listened without interruption. When she was done, he considered a moment, then asked, “What about the ship? Do you still believe we should give her aid?”
She blew out a breath. “I don’t know. But I believe it would be a terrible mistake to leave her to Khandarr or Leos Dzavek. Morennioù has one jewel. Dzavek and Khandarr both would use this woman as a hostage to obtain it, which means war between all our kingdoms. However, I’ve promised nothing so far, only that you would listen to her. In return she must listen to you.”
“Fair enough,” he said. “What else must I know before we return to the others?”
What warning could she give? All her impressions, beliefs, and second thoughts flashed through her mind. There was so much she wanted to tell him, but in the end one quality stood out from the rest. “She lies,” she said simply. “Every moment. You cannot trust her.”
“How interesting.” He shook with silent laughter. “We should deal famously then. What is the truth behind her stories, do you think?”
She shook her head. “Better that you listen and make your own judgment.”
“Which is a judgment itself. Nevertheless, I see what you mean. I shall be cautious.”
His hand brushed against her hair. Ilse tilted her face up to see him studying her. Moonlight picked out silver at his temples. She wondered what other changes the past seven months had worked within and without the man. She wondered what changes he had remarked in her.
I shall have to tell him about Alesso.
Not yet. Not when they had found each other again.
She laid a hand on his chest, closed her eyes, and tried to reach for a calm and focus she did not possess in the moment. Raul had sensed the change in her mood, because he loosened his embrace. “Come,” he said. “We’ll eat our supper and head north. Then we can talk with our queen.”
* * *
WITHIN TWO HOURS, they had crossed the river by the nearest fording and left Emmetz behind for the rain-wet fields beyond. They marched in single file along a muddy goat track, which rose slowly from the riverbanks to the lower slopes of the northern hills. The company kept to an easy pace, with frequent stops, but Raul did not call a halt until several hours later, when they had gained the edge of a pine and oak forest.
The guards went to work at once to set up their new camp, fetching water and deadwood, stretching lengths of canvas to make shelters. Ilse leaned against a tree trunk, overtaken by weariness. The moon had set an hour before. Far to the east, the first pale bands of dawn showed, but the river valley below was overrun with shadows. The air smelled fresh and cool, with a foretelling of rain.
“Do we go on tomorrow?” she asked Raul.
“Not until we talk with your queen,” he said. “I want to make certain we agree on the essentials.”
One of the guards approached. Raul turned away. Ilse listened to them discuss the watch rotation. She rubbed her palms against her eyes. The brief spurt of joy at seeing Raul had faded hours ago, during the long march into the hills. She had not removed the reason for their separation. She had merely changed the direction of their plans. What came next depended on Valara Baussay.
Raul and the guard were still deep in conversation. Ilse took herself to the edge of camp. Galena and Valara had disappeared. Another guard, Ada Geiss, told Ilse that Galena had volunteered to dig latrines. Valara had retired into her tent for the night. Ada’s expression was bland, but Ilse caught a hint of amusement in her voice, and she wondered just what Valara had said or done to provoke that.
Most likely she was herself.
She asked where she ought to sleep, and Ada pointed her to Raul’s tent. It was the largest of the camp, with a portable writing desk in the corner and a small metal box layered in spells, a miniature of the one he used in Tiralien. Several packs stowed in one corner. Two mattresses, she noted, both made from blankets tucked around pine branches.
