When they stopped for the night, Janco tried asking her questions again, but this time he stayed away from the more sensitive topics. She had donned a pair of well-worn, black fur-lined boots.

He gestured to them. “Looks like Black Angus leather. I hear the people who live near the ice sheet will only wear those boots. Is that why you’re not cold? It must feel like the warm season to you down here.”

“Yeah. I only brought this cape along for the nighttime. Is Sitia really hotter?”

“Oh yes. During the hot season, it’s like swimming in the White Mist Springs up in MD-2. Do you know about them?”

“They’re near the place I grew up,” she said.

Aha! “Sweet. Did you go there all the time? I would!”

“No. Half the year the snow cats gather around them. And in the warmer weather, it’s not as much fun.”

“For you.” He shivered, remembering being on the ice sheet during a blizzard. Hands down, it was the coldest he’d ever been in his entire life.

She smiled and he marveled at the change. The harsh lines of her face softened, and for the first time since meeting her, he thought of her as truly pretty. Her nose crinkled and two tiny dimples marked her cheeks.

“I guess you didn’t grow up in the north?” she asked.

“Nope. I lived on the coast in MD-7. I could have been a beach bum, but I hate sand. Nasty stuff. Gets everywhere. And I mean everywhere. My dad tried to make me a fisherman, but I got seasick. Even now the smell of fish makes me gag.”

“What does he think of your job?” she asked in a quiet voice.

“Don’t know. He was out on his boat when a big storm came through. I was eleven. We never saw him again.”

“Too bad. Do you have any siblings?”

Janco laughed. “After I was born, my mother swore off kids. When my dad disappeared, we moved to my uncle’s farm and I had to deal with all these annoying cousins! What about you?”

“An older brother. He raised me until he couldn’t.”

A million questions shoved their way up his throat, but Ari’s voice sounded in his head. Don’t scare her off, you idiot. He swallowed them down. Instead, he asked, “Do you want to take first shift?”

“Won’t the forest wake you if someone comes close?” Onora teased.

“Ha-ha. There’s no one around. But that can change. Besides, I thought you’d feel more...comfortable if we took turns on guard duty.”

She gazed at him a moment. A crease puckered the skin between her eyes as if she couldn’t quite figure him out. Janco repeated his comments in his mind, trying to determine what he’d said to cause such puzzlement.

“I’ll take the first shift.” Onora stood, removed her short cape and boots and tucked them into her pack.

“Won’t you be cold?”

“I’m used to it. Besides, the cape’s extra fabric can snag on the branches, and it’s hard to climb a tree with boots on. Don’t you do the same thing when on duty?”

“No. I find a good spot and hunker down.”

Alarmed, she asked, “How do you stay awake?”

“If I tell you, do you promise not to tell anyone?”

Instantly wary, Onora bit her lip before nodding.

“That’s when I compose my rhymes. Everyone thinks I make them up as I fight, but I have a whole bunch of them ready for my next match.” He tapped his temple.

“Oh. Okay.” She pinched her thumb and index finger together, touched them to her lips and twisted as if locking her mouth shut. “I won’t say a word.”

Grinning, Janco set up his bedroll and blankets by the small fire. He squirmed until comfortable. Each year, it seemed to take longer for him to find a position where his muscles and/or joints didn’t ache when lying on the hard ground.

Before closing his eyes, he scanned their campsite. Onora had disappeared into the forest. Probably climbing a tree. And then he wondered when he’d stopped thinking of her as Little Miss Assassin.

* * *

After a couple of days of hiking, they were close to the Sitian border. Instead of crossing into the Featherstone lands, they headed east, paralleling the edge of the Snake Forest. Janco thought it best to enter Sitia near the west side of Lapeer. He remembered a river that flowed nearby that would be hard to forge this time of year. Not to mention freezing cold. Brrr. Much better, and smarter, to use the bridge.

They traveled east for another five days and dodged the border patrols performing their sweeps of the forest. When the first squad had drawn near, Onora had grabbed Janco’s arm at the same time as he put a finger to his lips to warn her. Without a word, she’d melted into the surroundings, while he’d scouted the patrol’s position, tracking them and ensuring he and Onora wouldn’t cross paths with the guards.

And soon dodging patrols became routine. His forest vibe would trigger when her assassin senses tingled. She melted while he scouted.

Janco squeezed a few more personal facts from her. The most interesting tidbit was she’d had to join the military when she turned sixteen or she would have starved.

Early in the morning on the eleventh day, pain radiated from Janco’s right ear. He pressed his fingers to the scar that had formed after the lower half of his ear had been hacked off. The burning pain spread to his jaw and drilled a hole into his brain. Janco scanned the surroundings while Onora waited.

“Strong magic,” he puffed. “Close by.”