Page 44 of Arrows and Gems
“It wasn’t my idea!” Helena pounded the dough. “Your precious Capuchon sought me out the first day, not the other way around.Heinsisted I ride Farrell again yesterday instead of riding my own horse and traveling with Alanna. If you have a problem with me spending time withCap, you should take it up with him. I’m not the one seeking him out.”
She wasn’t. And she didn’t like it that he was.
He’d made it plain that he had as much interest in her company as anyone else in her life. And she didn’t need his pity.
Unwanted.
It was the story of her life.
Abandoned.
First Reineggburg. Now to the council’s demands.
Alone.
Even when surrounded by other people, she never belonged.
CHAPTER 18
Cap
Are you sure about this, Cap? We’re a long way from home.”
Cap sat on his horse, gazing out at the rolling hills before him. Unlike the mountains, this valley was mostly meadow. Staying out of sight would be difficult, and riding across the baron’s lands would draw the attention of anyone who saw them.
But he and Jean-haut had already searched the mountainous part of the Lancée lands, and they’d seen no sign of the baron’s flocks.
“We’ll stick to the trees.” He traced the edge of the meadow with his eyes. “It will take longer, but it will be safer.”
The forester shifted in his saddle. “She could be on the other side of the property for all we know. It could take us a week to search every dell.”
His friend’s worried tone made Cap’s forehead wrinkle. “We’ve gone on longer trips. Rouge has enough flour to feed everyone for a while, and Laurent and the others will supplement with meat as needed. And you gave fresh tokens to Rouge and Adrien before we left, didn’t you?”
“As always,” Jean-haut verified. “But things have changed, Cap. Can’t you feel it?”
“You mean Margit?” Frowning, Cap turned fully toward his friend. “I thought you believed her. Do you think she’llcause trouble while we’re gone?”
Jean-haut’s horse snorted and stamped a foot. “The enchanted wind. Rouge knows where to take the others if there’s trouble, but at our last camp...” He stared at his horse’s neck for a few moments, then turned and looked Cap in the eyes. “She didn’t feel it.”
A chill settled in Cap’s bones that had nothing to do with the wintry air. He hadn’t told his band about the wind gryphon because he didn’t want them to panic. But if Rouge had missed it, were they safe without him?
He debated with himself. He didn’t want to put his people at risk, but he felt a burning need to speak with the woman who had put Daphne in danger. He needed to know what she knew about what was happening in his kingdom.
Facing forward, he guided his horse around the edge of the trees. “We’ll be quick and trust that she’ll sense it this time,” he said with confidence.
But he didn’t feel confident at all.
Jean-haut followed him without further questions, but Cap’s mind swirled with indecision. He didn’t like it. On the day his hesitation had almost cost his friend’s life, he’d promised himself to never again second-guess himself. That he wouldn’t hesitate.
But his path was becoming more twisted, and every decision put someone at risk if he was wrong. He’d almost been caught when he followed a bad lead. He had a possible spy in his camp.
It was getting harder to be certain that he was right.
They searched for the rest of that day. By noon the next day, Cap was beginning to doubt himself. Was he on a fool’s errand? Even if he found Nathalie, would she be able to tell him anything new? Should he simply return to camp so he could watch over his people?
No – the best way to protect his people was to solve the mystery of the king’s murder. Once he could prove who the true culprit was, Prince Raphael would return to take charge of the kingdom. Neither the poor in the villages nor his little band in the woods would need Le Capuchon any longer.
“There’s a place...about two hundred yards east,” Jean-haut said, his eyes closed in concentration. His horse walked docilely next to Cap’s, following their lead while its rider was distracted. “There’s enough tree cover to provide shelter from passing eyes, but a bare patch big enough for us to lie down.”
