Page 34 of King's Warrior

The soldier kneeled by hoof prints. “They rode shod mules. There’s no wagon, so not a merchant or brigands. There’s something else.” He glanced up at Cass and Niam.

“Report,” Cass said.

“I noticed someone following us.”

Niam’s stomach twisted anxiously. Could some of Whreyn’s men be behind them?

“How many?” Casseign rested his hand on his sword hilt.

“One, sir.”

“Just one? He must be either brave or foolhardy to approach a group of trained soldiers.”

Niam’s heart lurched when another thought occurred to him. “One? Show me.”

The soldier gestured through the trees, taking the lead while Casseign trailed after Niam. Once they’d gotten out of view of their party, they looked down from a ridge. Sure enough, a single rider came trotting up the path on a rather fine animal. Wait. Was that his mother’s mule?

The creature drew closer, but a hooded cloak shielded the rider. Niam's eyes might not have visual confirmation, but his wildly pounding heart knew the rider. “Rufe!” His Rufe. Here! Now! He’d figure out which deity to thank later.

“Sire, wait!” Cass called.

Too late. Niam was already on his way to meet his man.

Chapter Fourteen

Rufe caught Niam near sunset. He expected to have to talk his way through the guards, who might or might not know of him—and who might or might not hate him for being Cormiran.

He never expected Niam to step from the trees into his path. Rufe’s heart gave an energetic leap. How odd. He rarely got this excited to see a lover. It must be the thrill of being part of the mission. Yeah, that had to be the explanation.

“Rufe? What are you doing here?” Was that expression on Niam’s face surprise, pleasure, or something else?

“I might ask you the same thing. Where are your guards?” How dare the soldiers leave their king unprotected?

“Right here.” Captain Casseign and three of his men stepped out from the trees. “Rest assured, we wouldn’t allow Ki…” Casseign glanced sharply toward Niam before finishing with, “… Ned, to wander the woods alone.”

Ned. Good. And Niam had dressed as a lowly private. No one of importance. Which meant, to keep up the ruse, Casseign outranked him. But wait! Cass spoke Cormiran? Had Rufe heard himspeak Cormiran before? If Nera knew she'd pretended he didn't, acting as interpreter.

Rufe forced his gaze away from Niam and onto the captain. Delletina’s protocol might differ from Cormira's, but he used rehearsed words. “As a soldier fully trained in combat, I offer my sword to your service and request entry into your company.”

Casseign glanced at Niam, but Rufe kept his attention fixed on Casseign. As the highest-ranking member of this campaign he'd met so far, the choice should be the captain's.

Finally, Casseign nodded. “We welcome your expertise.” He grinned. “Just remember, for the duration of this assignment, I’m your commanding officer.”

“Can I still call you Cass?”

“Why not?”

Rufe saluted with an arm across his chest. Although he and Cass might hold the same rank, Rufe knew that following Draylon to Delletina could get him cast out of the Cormiran army. He could do worse than find himself under Cass’s leadership.

Rufe fought the urge to fill Niam’s cup or plate at dinner. What was wrong with him? He was a soldier, not a servant, and if Niam planned to continue pretending to be a private, he’d have to fend for himself. Besides, movement meant trying harder to hide aches.

Not that Niam seemed to find taking care of himself a hardship. He wasn’t like other nobles Rufe knew, expecting to be catered to, and even took his turn at guard duty and had learned the healer’s art. He might not be Delletina's best swordsman, but he could defend himself, and he rode a saddle as if he'd been on a mule since infancy.

While Rufe couldn’t wait on him, he took the liberty of sitting next to Niam by the campfire, where he stretched his injured leg out. He could always claim he sat there because only Niam understood Cormiran, though he’d realized Cass spoke more of the language than he’d initially let on. The warmth of the fire eased some of the pain Rufe didn’t dare mention to anyone. He also put on quite the performance to hide any traces of a limp. No one was going to send him back.

They ate roast rabbit that Cass and some others snared. While the captain watched Rufe from across the campfire with curious eyes, he showed no animosity, merely lifting a brow when Rufe settled next to Niam. Roughly two hundred soldiers gathered around campfires or stood guard.

Which explained how Rufe caught up so quickly. Niam’s company had stopped to pick up more soldiers.

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