A loud shout jolts me awake. Horse's hooves trample the ground beside my head. I leap out of the sleeping pouch before I'm crushed. A raid? Did the Cerillis army find us again?
I search for Trevus. He's up from his sleeping pouch too, and his sword is drawn.
The horses stampede off into the forest, the noise of their stomping hooves fading away. To my relief, there are no raiders in sight.
"A thief!" Marcellus shouts. Trevus, Giddius and I all follow his voice. Marcellus is wrestling with a thin man on the ground.
Trevus helps Marcellus take control. Marcellus twists the man's arms behind his back, eliciting a yell of pain before he stills in surrender.
Marcellus forces the man to sit upright at the peril of further twisting his strained shoulders. The thief is hardly a man – closer to a boy.
The boy flinches as Trevus kneels down to search him. He has a wiry frame, blond hair and a soft, thin face. The boy is cast in sharp contrast to Trevus, with his large stature and commanding presence.
Trevus's search yields only a small pocketknife, closer to a farmer's tool than a weapon.
"A looter," Giddius says. "And now our mounts are lost."
The boy's face tells a different story to the wild men we encountered before. He's not a robber who came here to threaten us to hand over our valuables, but rather a thief hoping not to be noticed. I move a little closer, feeling more secure about the whole situation. We're standing in the spot where they hitched our four horses, but now none of them are in sight.
"'Tis a great loss." Trevus's eyes are on the thief, but his mind is far away. If this costs too much time, his father will be dead before we arrive.
The boy's clothes aren't ragged like the wild men's, and his hair is well kempt. He looks about a year or two younger than me, probably living in a nearby settlement. He came to steal while we slept. Marcellus was on watch, and he's not the most alert. The boy must have tried to sneak past Marcellus like I did, but he got caught after untying the horses. Marcellus's scuffle with the boy spooked the animals, and now they're gone.
Giddius picks up Marcellus's axe. "The punishment for looters is unambiguous in Versillian law."
The boy's mouth falls open. Marcellus presses his elbow into the boy's back, forcing his head down and exposing his neck. Giddius's going to decapitate him. My stomach roils. How can they take his life over a few horses? I also attempted to steal Becky, and this boy didn't come here to hurt us. If Marcellus hadn't grabbed him, the boy would have fled into the field.
No. I leap in-between them, blocking the trembling boy with my body.
"Jade," Trevus growls. Giddius still has his axe raised in the air. The mirrored edge reflects the moonlight, boasting its sharpness.
I glance up at the hanging weapon. "Are you going to kill me too, Giddius?"
His brows furrow with fury. If his emotions take over, he could charge past me and attack the boy. I reach out for him, and he takes a step back at the sight of my bare hands. That's right. Back away, coward.
Marcellus still has the boy's arms pinned. My glare serves as a warning not to go any further.
"The crimes that boy has committed shall not go unpunished," Giddius says.
"You might as well toss that axe to the grass," I say. I'm not going to allow Giddius to murder a second person on this journey.
Trevus steps forward into my space. He's not afraid of my hands like the others. "'Tis stated in the law that he pay for his crime."
"To salts with the law! Don't try mask your revenge as some form of justice. If holding malefactors accountable was so important, Marcellus should plant an axe in your shoulder after what you did to that horseman yesterday. Now back off, Prince of Blood."
Trevus stiffens at my words. I won't let him so easily forget about the life he almost smothered. I won't let any of these men forget the consequences of their unchecked violence.
"Surely you shall not let the little mit dictate to us," Giddius says.
Trevus's eyes linger on me. I'm not moving from this spot. I won't let anyone else die.
He finally speaks. "The boy's life shall not return our horses, and 'tis not worth further agitating our sorceress."
Giddius growls and approaches with the axe. I reach for him again, and he quickly steps to the side, backing away. Though he witnessed my refusal to use my connection on the wild men, deep inside, he still fears what I can do.
I turn to Marcellus and grab his arm. He releases his hold on the boy. The boy falls on all fours, and his wide eyes move up and down my frame before glancing back at Marcellus. I'm shorter than the boy, and much shorter than Marcellus. In my matching oban uniform, he must think I'm a soldier too. He probably attributes that to my confidence standing up to the soldiers with my small size. In reality, I'm just a prisoner who's learned not to be intimidated by tall men.
The boy is too fearful to move. He has given up resisting in hope of mercy. I indicate with a nod for him to get up and go. I'd prefer he leave before learning that I'm trapped here.
The boy staggers to his feet and takes off in a limping run. I don't let my guard down until he's safely out of the range of Giddius's bow.
"What is your grand scheme now, oh wise Captain?" Giddius asks.
I pass both of them, returning to my sleeping pouch.
"We shall walk," Trevus says.
I sit with the pouch wrapped tightly, bringing my knees to my chest. My mind stays on the boy. His home must be nearby. His parents, if he has them, will surely be glad when he returns.
The wool lining of the pouch keeps the frigid night air away, and the fire offers further warmth. I pay no attention to the soldiers shuffling around the camp. Trevus won't let Giddius touch me, and even if Giddius chanced it, bruises aren't that frightening.
* * * * * * * *
The fire blackens the branches. With time, they crack and sink into the pit. My mind hasn't left the boy. He escaped from all of this with no mark on his life beyond a frightening memory. I envy him. If only I could get away so easily, free myself from this quest that demands my life.
Both Trevus and Marcellus are asleep, leaving Giddius with the final watch before dawn. I haven't caught any sleep since the boy escaped while I had failed a few days ago. Despite stealing their riding gear and taking off on Becky, they still caught me, and my shirt has a small hole from the tip of Trevus's blade.
My only opportunity to escape was when the horsemen pursued our party, and a fate with them is far worse than one with Trevus. My best chance won't come from out running Trevus but from external pressure bearing down upon him.
The men that surround me, Giddius, Marcellus and Trevus, are united to hold me prisoner and fulfill Trevus's plan. If one of them became an adversary, it would eliminate one guard, and the pressure on Trevus would build. The cracks in the party are already beginning to show.
I watch Giddius from across the fire. My gaze doesn't escape his notice, receiving a nasty glare in response. Attracting his attention is something that he'd consider stupid, but I'm prepared to make sacrifices to survive. I've seen aggressive men like him at their worst, and they don't scare me.
I approach him, leaving behind the fire that was our only barrier.
He rises to his feet. "Lay back down, mit," he says in a low tone to not wake the others.
I continue forward. My hands are still uncovered. "You should listen-"
He swings at me as soon as I'm in range. His open hand strikes my cheek. The immense force sends me stumbling back, and my butt hits the hard dirt.
I touch my throbbing face, disoriented from the ringing in my ear. My cheek stings like it's on fire. His slap is harder than my punch.
Giddius stands over me, his large boots inches away from my body.
"You're only brave enough to do that when Trevus isn't watching," I say. "Only I have the guts to actually stand up to him."
Giddius's brows furrow. He doesn't appreciate being insulted, especially by someone he looks down on. "'Tis not cowardice," he says. "Trevus is the Captain."
I laugh at his ridiculous excuse. "The captain of an army which neither of you belong to."
His foot pins my hand to the ground with enough pressure to make it ache.
"I'll scream," I say. "Your captain will wake up and reprimand you."
Goaded on from my words, he steps down on my hand. I scream from the sharp pain. There's nothing fake about it.
Trevus shoves Giddius off of me. He responded so quickly that I didn't even see him get up. My sore hand snaps to my chest. It hurts, but I don't think anything's broken.
Trevus is in Giddius's space, just inches away from him. I remember how uncomfortable that made me feel when he first interrogated me. "Do you suppose that our operation will go smoother if our sorceress has a dysfunctional hand?" Trevus says.
Giddius doesn't step back. "I grow tired of you questioning my actions," he says.
Trevus glances at me, then at the sleeping pouch. He's suspicious. "I shall take the watch," he says.
Giddius steps around him and returns to his seat on the log.
Trevus's attention is now on me. I'm still holding my sore hand, and my cheek is red.
His eyes move over my form, not sharing the same concern that he had when I was freed from the wild men's clutches. "Your sleeping sack is there." He gestures to the other side of the fire. "What is your purpose in being here?"
He suspects I'm at fault, but he doesn't know the outcome was intentional. "I was talking to Giddius," I say.
"He does not wish to speak with you." Trevus bends down to be at eye level. "Do not do it again."
I nod before standing and returning to my sleeping pouch. Trevus thinks he can control me, but he can't. I slide down into the pouch, cognizant to rest on the cheek Giddius didn't hit. A little pain is nothing I can't handle. I achieved exactly what I desired.