Rachel Rossano - The Theodoric Saga Read Online Free PDF

Canktinton, on the border.”
    Labren nodded. “I am familiar with the area. May we travel with you?”
    The man glanced over at Eve again. “We’ll find room, but it will cost you. We don’t have extra supplies.”
    Labren frowned, but shook his head. “We brought our own.” The pointed interest in Eve rankled his instincts, but the dull ache in his limbs overwhelmed them.
    The man shrugged. “Father will still insist on payment.” Then he turned and strode toward the central fire circle.
    The young man, Ulysses, was correct. His father demanded an outrageous fee, but Labren was compelled to pay for the peace of mind. He read the signs of his earlier pursuers closing in on them: strangers asking questions, strained looks when purchasing supplies, and an occasional patrol riding past them. Any time now they would connect him to the disappearance of a slave girl. The additional cover of traveling in a caravan might help. They traveled slowly with all the women and children, the opposite of what the trackers would expect.
     
    “So, where are you from, little mouse?”
    Eve lifted her head from scrubbing the dinner pot. Her hands shook from exhaustion. They had now traveled a full day and night without rest. Her eyes protested at the idea of focusing. The wagon master’s son stood over her, grinning in a way he clearly thought disarming.
    Eve returned to scrubbing.
    “Must be somewhere north.”
    Eve blinked hazily and tried to think about what she needed to do next.
    “Now is not the time to visit, Ulysses.” Labren’s voice broke through her drifting thoughts. “We have had a long day.”
    Ulysses shrugged. “See you folks tomorrow.”
    Labren watched him leave through narrowed eyes. Eve felt vaguely uneasy.
    “Try to avoid that one, Eve. He is trouble.”
    She nodded. Tears rose unbidden. She was so intent on not letting them fall she jumped when Labren’s hand closed around hers.
    “Come to bed. The rest can wait until tomorrow.”
    Obediently, Eve lay down the scrub brush and dumped the water out of the pot. She didn’t want to let the kettle rust again considering the elbow effort to clean it initially.
    After stumbling up into the wagon with Labren’s help, she fell asleep before he blew out the lantern.
     
    A patrol passed the wagon train in a cacophony of yells, hoof beats, and swearing. Perched on the seat, Labren hunched deeper into his scarf and coat and prayed they didn’t look back.
    “Are you certain they are still searching for you?” Eve asked from her place next to him.
    “Positive.”
    She turned to watch one of the children running to catch another.
    He almost heard the unanswered inquiries whirling around her brain. His grip tightened on the reins. After four weeks of marriage, she should have asked one of the questions, but she didn’t. Instead, she avoided his gaze and concentrated on knitting something. One of the other women taught her a week ago. Now she hid behind a skein of wool, wooden needles, and a growing knot of something.
    Closing his eyes, he sighed. Every night she clung to the distance between them until she relaxed into sleep. Each meal swiftly became a study in stunted conversation. He wanted more, but he feared there never would be. At least she treated the whelp, Ulysses, the same way. No , he corrected himself, s he treats him worse. Her reception of his advances grew downright frigid.
    “How much farther?” she asked.
    Shaking off his grim mood, Labren glanced around. The long dusty road lay out before them, winding through rolling hills covered by forests and fields. “What was the name of the town at the last crossroads?”
    “Overkan, I believe.”
    “Then we have another month.” He glanced her way to judge her reaction. She frowned and stared up at the grey sky.
    “The snow will not hold out that long.”
    “Making camp!” Ulysses called out as he rode back along the line of wagons. Their wagon brought up the tail of the caravan. “Camp is in