“We can’t just leave her —” Ashyn began.
“By the roadside? No. As tempting as that might be. When we near the next town, we ought to send her on her way with a few silver. She’ll be fine. She’s a healthy young woman of marriageable age. We’ll give her a story, and the villagers will take her in.”
“So she can tell them where we’re headed?” Tyrus said.
Guin jumped to her feet at that. “I would never —”
“How does your arm feel?” Tyrus asked Ashyn. “Can you move it?”
She nodded. “How are you?”
He fingered a fresh gash on his chin, below the earlier one. “It stings, but I’ll live.” He tilted his head, still touching the cut. “Do you think it will scar? I could better intimidate my enemies if I had a scar.”
“Tyrus…” Ashyn gave him a hard look.
He lowered his hand and sobered. “I’ve always said I aspired to nothing except to make a name for myself in battle. The goddess has granted my wish. At least now I don’t ever have to worry about my brothers seeing me as a threat. They won’t bother killing me. The rest of the empire, though…”
He caught Ashyn’s eye. “Don’t give me that look, Ash. I’m not being flippant. I’m dealing with this the best I can. I’m sure the shock will set in soon enough. Until then, I need to make plans.”
“You must tell your father the truth,” Guin said.
“Yes, and while I would love to think he does not truly believe me capable of what Simeon has claimed, I cannot rely on that. I’ll worry about clearing my name later. For now, I’m going after Moria.”
“Because you think she might have done as they say?” Guin said. “Betrayed you?”
“Not for a moment. But she’s being held by Alvar Kitsune, as his prisoner, and if she gets any chance to escape, she will. She’ll flee to the nearest village, where she’ll discover —”
“— that she’s been branded a traitor,” Ashyn said, her breath catching. “She’ll have no way of knowing it. If she escapes and identifies herself to anyone —”
“She won’t,” Tyrus said. “Because I’m going to get to her first.”
Before they left, Tyrus insisted they rest and recover from the fight and flight. Not that he himself rested. He prowled about the perimeter of their camp with Daigo, clearly anxious to be gone. Ashyn found them in a small gully. Tyrus was crouched, peering into a rabbit burrow.
“I’d smoke them out the other end if I could trust you to catch one,” he was saying to Daigo.
The wildcat busied himself cleaning a paw.
“Or you could smoke them out,” Tyrus said. “And I’ll catch one.”
Ashyn laughed as she walked over. “You’re wasting your time.”
“On the contrary,” he said, straightening. “I’m wearing him down. Eventually, he will tire of not having fresh meat.”
Tova walked over to sniff at the hole. Daigo hissed and batted him with a paw, as if to say, That’s mine.
“See?” Tyrus said. “He’s considering it. Soon he’ll realize there’s no sense resisting. I’m more patient – and persistent – than he is stubborn.”
“I need to speak to you.”
She climbed down the small gully and seated herself on the edge. Tyrus sat beside her. Tova settled in at her feet while Daigo set off prowling.
“You must let Ronan leave,” she said.
“He’s free to go at any time, Ash. If I haven’t made that clear —”
“I’m sorry. I misspoke. I meant that you must make him leave. Send him onward to the city so he can be with his brother and sister. Otherwise he’ll stay at your side until you’ve found Moria and cleared your names.”
“Which is unlikely to be anytime soon,” he murmured. “All right, then. I’ll insist he continue on.”
“I’m going, too.”
Tyrus turned sharply. “What?”
“My priority is always my sister. But you can best search for her on your own, in disguise. I will go to the city to seek information that might help you.”
“If you walk into the imperial city —”
“I’m not so foolish as to stroll in and announce myself.” She gave him a look, which Tova seconded with a grunt. “But even if I were caught, there are no rumors about me.” None at all, which was, admittedly, a little disheartening. She had once again faded into obscurity beside her sister’s supposed wild deeds. “I could convince them I was not at the battlefield, that I know not what happened.”
“And Simeon? He clearly started these stories to punish you.”
“I’m not convinced of that. Part of his reason, it seems, was hurt over my rejection, but there must be more to it.”
“Still…”
“If it came to it, I would convince him that he’d misinterpreted my rejection. As much as I might hate deception, there are times that warrant it. However, I’m not my sister, Tyrus. I have no wish to defy or tempt fate. I’ll quietly gather what information I can, while Ronan tends to his siblings. I will also get word to your mother, tell her you are well.”
“I cannot ask you to endanger yourself, for me or my mother —”
“I will if I can. I know you are worried about her. It’s settled, then? We part?”