Page 64 of The Turncoat King

Luc forced himself out of the warm cocoon he and Ava had made, and pulled on his clothes in quick, economical movements.

“They won’t find us.” Ava sat up and spoke through a yawn.

He still found that strange, and difficult to accept. But he nodded as he pulled on his boots. “I’ll see you later.” Because sending a guard to find him was something Dak or Massi would only do if it was urgent.

He leaned across and kissed her, first on the lips, then on the forehead, to remind her they were still together. That while the threads that bound them may be a little frayed, they were there nonetheless.

Then he crawled out of the tent. When he rose up, he was relieved to find the guard facing away from him.

He moved silently to the left and walked out between a few tents from which he could hear gentle snores.

“You were looking for me?”

The guard yelped in surprise. “Sorry, Commander, I didn’t see you there.”

It was dawn, the sun was just a faint line of light on the horizon, so Luc put a finger to his lips. “They need me at the main tent?”

The guard nodded, his shoulders relaxing as Luc followed him through the Venyatux column.

“It’s not Revek, is it?” It suddenly occurred to him that this might be bad news about his friend, rather than an operational matter.

“I . . . don’t think so.” The guard shook his head. “I think a trader caravan has been spotted.”

Luc relaxed and waved the guard off.

When he got to his tent, Massi and Dak were there, along with two of the General’s lieutenants, Heival and Fervanti.

“A caravan?” he asked.

Massi nodded. “Coming from the west border of Grimwalt, perhaps, or the north west of Kassia.”

“If it’s from Grimwalt, that’s a change. They closed their borders.” Luc frowned down at the map, where Massi had marked where the caravan had been spotted.

“I know we didn’t like it when we first heard they’d decided to cease trade, because it seemed like they were withdrawing from responsibility in the region, but at least they weren’t providing aide to the Kassian. If they’ve started again, it might be a very bad sign.”

“They never closed their northeast border,” Fervanti said. “Trade between Venyatu and Grimwalt has never stopped.”

Luc nodded. “I guessed that. And through Venyatu, with other countries to the east as well, I’m sure.” He poured himself some water from a jug on the table, and then looked around at the group. “We have to go investigate. Find out if they’ve opened their borders again.”

Massi nodded. “And maybe get some supplies we’re running low on.”

Luc conceded that with a nod, and Heival coughed.

“We would like to do the same when it comes to sourcing some supplies we are running low on, so I suggest that we let the store masters coordinate any purchases, to prevent hard feelings if one side gets more than their share.”

Luc glanced at Dak. “You’ll manage that?”

His friend nodded. “Heival can direct me to who we need to talk to.”

“That’s if the traders are willing to part with their goods,” Massi said.

“If they are traders, and not Kassian spies trying to engage us in an underhanded way.” Fervanti crossed her arms over her chest.

“That’s a possibility,” Luc acknowledged. “We need to approach with soldiers ready for anything before we let the store masters anywhere near them. What’s more likely is the Kassian have at least one spy in the caravan. We’ll need to make sure no one speaks out of turn.”

“Agreed.” Heival nodded. “Raun-Tu and and I will put together a unit.”

“Massi and I will meet you at the head of the column.”

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