Page 22 of The Rebel's Prize

"No." She shook her head. "Nothing fragile."

He turned back to the corporal. "There. Nothing to be concerned with."

The corporal nodded. "Very good, my lord. That will speed matters once the horses arrive. It shouldn't be long." He gestured at the side of the wagon, where the steps had already been lowered. "If the three of you wish to wait inside, I already activated the cooling charm, so it should be comfortable. Better than staying out in this heat for the ladies."

Chloe didn't mind the warmth of the sun, but Silya did look hot despite the fact that she wore light cotton and had braided her hair up like Chloe's. Two spots of pink warmed the cheeks of her pale Andalyssian skin, and her icy green eyes were squinted against the sun. The tip of her nose was starting to look pink, too. Perhaps someone in the kharaevenia could sell them a few of the wide-brimmed hats everyone else seemed to wear.

She doubted Silya had ever encountered temperatures like the climate in Miseneia, and it might be wise to get her under shelter. Whether or not she approved of cooling charms, it wouldn't do to have one of King Mikvel's advisers becoming ill from sunstroke.

"Inside sounds lovely," she said, smiling gratefully at the corporal. "Sejerin, after you."

Lucien remained outside, speaking in a soft tone to the corporal so that Chloe couldn't make it out, but eventually he climbed in with them.

The wagon was laid out in similar fashion to the one they had traveled in early. Two bench seats, facing each other, the padding looking a little more robust and the backs higher. Toward the rear, separated by a low frame across the breadth of the space, there were shelves loaded with paper-wrapped packages and small crates lashed into place. In front of the shelves lay piles of rolled fabric she suspected might be their bedding.

A reminder that even if someone had thought to make this wagon slightly more comfortable, there would be tents and sleeping on the ground in her future.

Well, she wasn't a fragile flower. She had camped with her family a time or two, and there were worse things than a few weeks sleeping in tents.

Lucien settled into the position opposite Chloe's, his long legs stretching toward hers. The distance between the seats was sufficient that there was no chance of them touching, but she still had to resist the urge to tuck her feet back, safely out of the way.

No need to let him see she was nervous.

He pointed out the cupboards under the seats that held blankets, a large leather flask that came with a set of tin cups, and a covered basket that contained their lunch apparently. "Do either of you want tea? I could ask the corporal to fetch some."

"I could make tea," Silya said.

Chloe shot her a wary glance. "Normal tea or one of your medicines?"

The seer smiled tightly. "Do not look so concerned, Lady Castaigne. I am not here to finish off you or your husband. My kit contains no firewort or anything vaguely lethal. Well, I suppose one could take too much of the Armesia syrup, but that seems unlikely. It tastes bad enough that it is difficult to sneak into anyone's food or drink."

The fact that Silya knew about Armesia didn't ease Chloe's nerves. Clearly she knew something of healing to be carrying such a thing. Which meant she was probably well versed in Andalyssian poisons as well.

"I assure you, it is nothing but a basic kit to treat minor ailments and inconveniences. The same as anyone might take with them traveling." The seer's gaze flicked to Lucien. "After all, I have had ample time to poison your husband already. I doubt he or his guards know enough about healing to detect anything I might have tried on our journey to Jinkara. Yet here he is safe and well. If we are to travel well together, you will have to trust me."

"So it seems."

Silya chuckled. "Given our task, I will not tell you not to be so suspicious. It may stand you in good stead."

Chloe wasn't entirely sure how to take that statement, so instead she turned her attention to Lucien. "Just how many guards did you bring with you?"

He had forgotten to mention anything about that the previous evening or even over breakfast, but now that she thought about it, it made sense that he hadn't come entirely alone.

"A few," Lucien admitted. "They'll take turns driving the wagon and mingling with the others."

A few. That probably meant at least five. Maybe more.

"And you just forgot to mention that you were traveling with Imperial guards? What, in case I was recalcitrant?" If he'd brought some of his household guard, she would have felt more comfortable. They were sworn to his service. Toherservice, in a way, though it was Lucien they would obey. But household guards wouldn't be used to arrest her.

Lucien shook his head. "They are not intended for you."

She wasn't entirely sure she believed him. If they had been coming to arrest her, knowing she had a sanctii to protect her, a few guards would not be overrated. Though she would have expected at least one of them to be a water mage with a sanctii of their own, and Octarus had said nothing about another sanctii in the camp. Though, given he'd stayed silent about his communication with Martius and Ikarus, perhaps she should ask him outright.

"They are here because Aristides insisted that Sejerin Silya required more of an escort than I could provide on my own to ensure her safety," Lucien continued before she could. "And I imagine he was concerned for my safety as well." He shrugged. "And it may prove useful to have some extra help on hand for when we find Deandra and her friends somewhere not handy to an Imperial garrison. Corporal Chartres is a good, strong blood mage, and several of the others have useful skills." He glanced at Silya, his expression somewhat apologetic.

She merely shrugged and said, "I am not in my own country. I do not expect you heathens to practice magic as I approve of it."

Lucien laughed, and Chloe realized that somewhere along their journey to Jinkara, he and Silya had grown comfortable together. "Well, this heathen is glad to hear it, Sejerin. It may become necessary given our quarry."

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