“Risa,” Javi admonished.
The Wolf rolled her eyes. “I am not brandishing it now. And I am asking. Nicely.”
She swallowed. A high-collared tunic obscured the movement. Her cape made her look as if she were encased in darkness.
“Let me come with you to Madros.”
Risa sucked in a breath. The Wolf hadn’t stumbled over the word, hadn’t paused, didn’t look troubled. It rolled off her tongue with ease, her accent flavoring the word with warmth and care.
“How do you know that’s where we’re going?” Risa asked, troubled by the request. Something was off, even if Risa couldn’t quite tell what it was. Her mouth felt woolen and dry.
“He is getting married to the general’s daughter, is he not?” The Wolf jerked her thumb at the prince.
Risa scowled, suspicion flaring in her mind, though she could not pinpoint why, much the same way she couldn’t identify what was wrong. Risa had been the one to mention the prince’s marriage in the tavern, so she shouldn’t have been surprised that someone would remember.
“Fine, I’m going to”—Javi seemed to wrestle with himself, then released a frustrated sigh as he amended whatever he had originally tried to say—“get married. Why do you want to come?”
“My business is my own.”
“What are you getting out of it?” Risa interjected, ignoring the Wolf’s dismissal.
“I will not turn around and kidnap the prince for his bounty, if that is what worries you.”
Risa remained hesitant. With such a fearsome name, the Wolf’s reputation preceded her. Though Risa didn’t trust the girl’s word, there was a fierceness in her steely gaze that told Risa her name was hard-earned, which made her the best choice among outlaws. The Wolf looked like the type to protect her investment.
“On one condition,” Risa said before Javi could negotiate himself out of a good deal. “You protect us in return.”
The Wolf cocked her head in consideration for a moment, then agreed. “Fine.”
It was exactly what Risa wanted to hear, which made her all themore suspicious. Things didn’t simplywork outfor her. There had to be a catch lurking in the deal. Bad luck, waiting to strike when she would least expect it.
“Fine,” Risa agreed, ignoring Javi’s spluttering (“Am I invisible?”). “But we’re going to San Cirilo first.”
The Wolf’s mouth pressed into a thin line before she nodded. “Fine.”
They shook hands, the Wolf’s clad in black leather gloves, Risa’s naked and sweaty from panic. As she pulled away, a chill crawled down her back, telling her that magic was in the air.
Shit.
CHAPTER THIRTEENIn Which the Trio Encounters Outlaws
The Wolf was making them wait until the wee hours of the morning before leaving. Javi complained about sitting on the floor, his muttering coloring Risa’s dreams as she went back into a fitful sleep. Eventually, she rolled out of bed and let him have the cot for the last few hours before dawn. He was asleep within moments while she sat in a corner, glaring at the Wolf, trying to see past her drawn hood.
After a little while, a faint scratching at the window filled the air. Risa turned to find Brunie staring through the glass, eyes yellow in the dim candlelight. Risa let the cat in, thankful that he proceeded to sit on the ledge and regard the Wolf with a thinly veiled suspicion that matched her own.
“I do not like cats,” the Wolf declared.
“Yes, well, it’s clear the cat does not like you, either,” Risa shot back.
The Wolf finally determined it was time to make their way to the stables, where they would steal some horses and escape into what was left of the night.
“It is important that we ride toward the far end of town,” the Wolf ordered in a whisper as they crept through the inn on silent footsteps. “No matter what happens, you mustnotraise your hand in violence.”
“What do you mean?” Javi asked, panic laced in his voice.
The Wolf’s answer was vague. “Do not do it, and you will have nothing to worry about.”
Outside, the moon was a blot of silver against a clear, inky sky, turning the dusty road and dunes colorless. Sounds of raucous merriment rose up to greet them as people stumbled in and out of half-crumbled establishments, spilling liquor onto the thirsty ground. No one paid them much mind as the Wolf turned the corner of the inn and disappeared behind the side of the building.