the shadow and bone

Chapter 5

THE NEXT FEW DAYS passed in a blur of discomfort and exhaustion. We

stayed off of the Vy and kept to side roads and narrow hunting trails,

moving as quickly as the hilly and sometimes treacherous terrain would

allow. I lost all sense of where we were or how far we had gone.

After the first day, the Darkling and I had ridden separately, but I found

that I was always aware of where he was in the column of riders. He didn't

say a word to me, and as the hours and days wore on, I started to worry that

I'd somehow offended him. (Though, given how little we'd spoken, I

wasn't sure how I could have managed it.) Occasionally, I caught him

looking at me, his eyes cool and unreadable.

I'd never been a particularly good rider, and the pace the Darkling set

was taking its toll. No matter which way I shifted in my saddle, some part

of my body ached. I stared listlessly at my horse's twitching ears and tried

not to think of my burning legs or the throbbing in my lower back. On the

fifth night, when we stopped to make camp at an abandoned farm, I wanted

to leap from my horse in joy. But I was so stiff that I settled for sliding

awkwardly to the ground. I thanked the soldier who saw to my mount and

waddled slowly down a small hill to where I could hear the soft gurgle of a

stream.

I knelt by the bank on shaky legs and washed my face and hands in the

cold water. The air had changed over the last couple of days, and the bright

blue skies of autumn were giving way to sullen gray. The soldiers seemed

to think that we would reach Os Alta before any real weather came on. And

then what? What would happen to me when we reached the Little Palace?

What would happen when I couldn't do what they wanted me to do? It

wasn't wise to disappoint kings. Or Darklings. I doubted they'd just send

me back to the regiment with a pat on the back. I wondered if Mal was still

in Kribirsk. If his wounds had healed, he might already have been sent back

across the Fold or on to some other assignment. I thought of his face

disappearing into the crowd in the Grisha tent. I hadn't even had a chance to

say goodbye.

In the gathering dusk, I stretched my arms and back and tried to shake the

feeling of gloom that had settled over me. It's probably for the best, I told

myself. How would I have said goodbye to Mal anyway? Thanks for being

my best friend and making my life bearable. Oh, and sorry I fell in love with

you for a while there. Make sure to write!

"What are you smiling at?"

I whirled, peering into the gloom. The Darkling's voice seemed to float

out of the shadows. He walked down to the stream, crouching on the bank