Page 23 of Blood and Fate
“I said, if you need to attend to personal needs, you may do so this way before I show you to the food.”
She felt her cheeks heat. Personal needs. “Oh, I’m sorry. I was distracted. Yes, thank you.”
She was grateful for this stop, but she had also never taken care of her personal needs in the woods before. Satori rolled her eyes at herself. Don’t be such a princess. She moved down the path, and with some difficulty, though it was easier than she had expected, she took care of her needs and rejoined Teague.
They resumed walking, and she studied the men breaking down their tents, talking and joking familiarly as they worked. None of them wore a uniform, instead they were all dressed in normal daily attire. Boots, dark britches, comfortable shirts. Some wore jackets, others had their sleeves pushed to their elbows. All of them looked at ease. “Where are we going?”
Teague turned his head toward her as they wove in and out of the melee. “We will be returning you home, we just have a stop to make first.”
There was genuine sincerity in Teague’s deep, smooth voice.
“Yes, I know.” She lifted her skirt, stepping over a small stream of something spilled. “That’s what the General said, but where?”
“Our next big stop is Whitehall to replenish supplies. Of course, we’ll need to stop before we get there; that’s just the next destination on the trip.”
“And the final destination?” she asked.
He had gone back to watching where he walked and the bustle around them, but at her question he turned to look at her, his eyes sweeping over her face. “That’s not for me to share. If Kais wants you to know, he’ll have to be the one to tell you.”
So shady. Where were they heading? Why was it such a secret? The thought flew from her mind as Teague stopped by a small table spread with food. No one was seated there eating, but she noticed that as people passed by they would snatch bits from the selection. One man pulled a large green grape from a bunch, his eyes met hers, and he shot her a wink and a smile as he tossed the grape into the air and caught it in his mouth.
Teague nodded toward a small stack of dishes. “Grab a plate and some food. I need to check on some things. Kais wants to get on the road as soon as possible so we can make a decent dent in our trek. Is there anything else you need?”
Her head spun with the movement of the camp being broken down. “No. No, thank you, I’m fine.”
Teague dipped his head and left without another word, leaving her standing at the table of food. She already felt like she stood out, and she had no desire to draw further attention to herself. She snatched a bunch of grapes and a chunk of cheese off the table, foregoing the plate, and moved out of the center of the bustle, looking for a place to sit and eat.
She found a large tree out of the way and lowered herself to the cold ground, leaning against it, facing away from the camp. She bit off some cheese, listening to the working and occasional playful jests the men threw at each other. Kais had been true to his word; she had been safe, at least, through the night. But that was only the first night. How many of the men could even have known she was there? What would tonight hold? Or the next?
Two weeks. She had two weeks of traveling with these people before she could return home. If Kais continued to keep his word.
The cheese turned in her stomach. Home. She should be glad to return, but she wasn’t eager to meet what awaited her. Of course, she missed Tessa, but Tessa was a very small part of what Satori would face at her return.
Marriage. Either to a random royal she’d never met, from a country she’d never been to, or to Henrik. The idea brought tears to her eyes, and she blinked them away, tossing the cheese into the bushes in front of her. What kind of life would that be?
No. She wouldn’t marry Henrik. Not ever. She would marry the prince three times her age before that ever happened. But she knew Henrik. No doubt he was already plotting for a way to do away with the princely prospects, leaving himself the only option.
Again, she found herself hoping he was dead on the side of the road. Maybe the birds were eating him, plucking at his eyeballs. No doubt he turned their stomachs, as well.
She couldn’t eat anything else, but she didn’t want to waste the grapes, so she tucked them carefully into a pocket on her skirt. Now, what should she do? She wasn’t left to wonder for long as a sensation that was becoming far too familiar overtook her. The warmth rested on her head, flowing over her. It wouldn’t be an unpleasant experience if it weren’t for the cause of it. Though, she had no idea why he caused it.
She waited for him to speak, but there was only silence. She could feel him there. Not only the syrupy feeling, but also his stare. She knew he was watching her, could feel his gaze on her shoulder.
“You ignore it so well.”
His deep, accented voice always took her by surprise. It was like she knew what he sounded like, but her mind couldn’t create an accurate replica of the sound.
A soft chuckle followed. “See?”
He stepped around in front of her, his black boots, worn and dusty, were all she could see from where she sat.
She raised her chin, allowing her eyes to take in the entire length of his body. Brown pants, belt, from which hung a rather large knife and a coiled braid of leather, black shirt, laces loose at his neck. She continued to tilt her head up to meet his gaze. “See what?”
He ignored her question, instead posing one of his own. “How did you sleep?”
Her hold on his gaze faltered for just a moment, her pride struck by the fact that she had slept well even in the camp of her enemy. “Fine.”
His brow creased momentarily as though her answer confused him. What had she said that could possibly trip him up? She’d slept fine. Was he waiting for a ‘thank you’?