I stopped Kiki.

“What’s the matter?” Leif asked.

“Give us a moment, please?” I asked Hale as I pulled my brother aside.

“Okay, now you’re really worrying me.”

I explained about the Council. It didn’t take long for Leif to jump to the same conclusions. “I’d better contact Irys. Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” He dug in his saddlebags for a small super messenger.

“We were a little busy fleeing the Council’s guards.”

“Oh, right.” Distracted, Leif gazed into the square-shaped glass. After a few minutes he glanced up. “She’s checking.”

We waited forever. If Mara had been hurt because of me, I’d never forgive myself. Kiki shifted her weight under me as if she, too, worried about Mara. She probably did. Mara fed her apples on her way to the glass shop every morning. As far as Kiki was concerned, a daily apple equaled unconditional love.

Leif’s attention riveted on the glass. Then he smiled. I relaxed.

“She’s fine and a little angry we didn’t trust her to defend herself,” he said.

“She wouldn’t last against a skilled opponent.”

“I know, but she said she’d match her pontil iron against your bo staff any day.”

That would be an interesting fight. “Tell her she’s on.”

We resumed traveling. Once again, my thoughts contemplated the encounter.

Who else knew about me? The assassin was well aware of what he had done to me. Did that mean the assassin worked for the Council, or was in contact with one of the Councilors or aides? A more likely scenario.

After a few hours, we reached the border of the Avibian Plains and headed east. The long stalks of grass had turned brown and brittle. Various shades of browns, grays and tans covered the undulating barren landscape.

“It’s dreary during the cold season,” I said to Hale. “You should see this place in the warm season. It’s bursting with color and life.”

“What about the Sandseed’s magic?” Hale asked in a small voice.

“Stick with us, Skippy. The protection doesn’t attack family. Oh, wait, you’re not family. Too bad. Good luck finding your way home.” Leif chuckled.

Even after the decimation of a majority of the Sandseed clan members, the protection remained strong, attacking intruders by convincing them they were lost. They’d wander the plains for days until they died of thirst.

“You’re not family, either,” Hale said.

“Distant cousins. You know that weird magic you teased me about in school? I’ll bet you wished you had some of that now.”

“Don’t listen to him, Hale. Garnet will keep you from going crazy.”

“Lovely,” he muttered.

Garnet pinned his ears back.

“He didn’t mean it, Garnet,” I said. “He’s just scared.” I gave Hale a pointed look.

“Oh...ah...right.” He patted Garnet’s dark neck. “It’s my first time in the plains. I’m a bit...skittish.”

Nice word choice. I gave him a thumbs-up. “Okay, Kiki, you’re in charge.” It seemed weird talking out loud to her after years of silent communication.

“What does that mean?” Hale asked.

“It means Kiki will decide the route we take to Fulgor,” Leif supplied. “And she’ll stop when the horses are tired or hungry or thirsty. We’re just along for the ride. Oh, and hold on tight. It’s a ride like no other.”

“You mean because of that gust-of-wind gait you talked about?”

“Yep.” Leif grinned.

As if on cue, Kiki broke stride and, with a hop forward, launched into the gait I’d dubbed her gust-of-wind gait. It felt as if we rode on a river of wind. That was the easiest way to describe the feeling. Kiki’s hooves didn’t drum on the ground. I didn’t have to match my movement to hers. We flew, covering twice the amount of ground as a regular gait.

The magical gait only worked in the Avibian Plains and only Sandseed-bred horses had the ability. Handy, considering the plains, which were located southeast of the Citadel, stretched east to the base of the Emerald Mountains and south to the Daviian Plateau. A nice chunk of Sitia that we used as a shortcut on many occasions.

Kiki stopped to rest a couple of hours later. We collected firewood and Leif used his magic to start a fire. With Hale in charge of cooking dinner, Leif and I groomed the horses as they munched from their feed bags.

Leif broke the silence. “If the Council didn’t find out from Mara about your...ah...condition, how did they?”

“The only possibility that makes sense is the assassin or the person who hired the assassin told one of the Councilors or one of their aides.”

“I don’t like the sound of that.”

“Well, would you like the sound of Irys, Bain, Healer Hayes or Fisk betraying my trust better?”

“No.”

“I didn’t think so.”

“No need to be snippy.”

“Leif, word is spreading. Fast. I need to find a cure before all my enemies come after me.”

Hale called that dinner was ready.

Leif tossed the currycomb at me. “Good enough.”

I caught it, then finished brushing the knots from Kiki’s tail. He might be satisfied with “good enough,” but my Kiki deserved perfection.

When I finally finished, Leif was asking Hale what he thought of the gust-of-wind gait between slurps of a bread-and-cheese soup.