Lissie needed air. Cora tried to stop her, but she walked barefoot through the tower to the stable.
Niko was sitting cross-legged, eyes closed.
Lissie asked, “Can I sleep here?”
He opened his eyes and frowned. “You will be cold.”
“I haven’t felt cold since we left the cave.” Lissie sat in the straw. “I don’t know if I can anymore.”
Niko closed his eyes. Lissie curled into a ball in front of him.
Sleep, child. The voice was not soothing.
She did not dream. She woke up to the sound of the wind.
Riley and Cora were standing over her. The frost around her had melted. Her clothes were soaked.
Riley put a water skin in her hand. Lissie sat up and drank it, tasting rivers and oceans she had never seen.
She looked around for Niko. He was gone. The light was thin and golden. “Where is Niko?”
“He’s with Alexander and the horses. We have to go.” Riley looked scared.
Lissie got to her feet.
“Two soldiers died last night.” Cora’s voice fell heavy in the air. “In their sleep.”
Lissie’s eyes flew wide open. “They are blaming Niko. Okay, I’m coming.”
“They are not blaming Niko.” Riley reached out a hand, and pulled it back. “We couldn’t wake you. We couldn’t move you.”
“What are you talking about? I was asleep. I didn’t dream…” Lissie started walking out of the stable.
“You don’t remember anything?” Cora asked. “You were screaming. After the soldiers died—”
Riley cut her off. “Let’s just go.”
The horses were already saddled. Soldiers stood on either side as she walked towards Peach. They did not have their weapons drawn, but their eyes skittered across her hands. They wouldn’t look her in the face.
Lissie felt better on Peach’s back. The sky was bright overhead. She breathed clean air and felt herself rising. She kept herself in her lungs and tightened her fingers in Peach’s mane.
They rode the entire day and only broke for camp when they were alone in the mountains. They had ridden in silence. Lissie kept catching Riley staring at her. She did not know what to say.
“Do we have anything to cook?” Lissie tried to sound normal.
“We did not get supplies. No.” Riley did not elaborate.
Alexander was holding Ruskin on his lap. He looked south and sighed, petting his dog. Ruskin whined. He kept stroking.
Lissie said, “I could go forage. Or set a trap.”
Everyone turned to look at her. Riley said, “You should stay here.” Riley motioned to Alexander and they set out with twine to find food.
Lissie went to work building a fire.
Cora had her journal out in the fading light.
Niko approached. “The soldiers wanted to kill you.” He said it with no inflection. “I stopped them. The others are scared. They did not want to tell you what happened as you slept.”
Cora flipped a page and kept writing. She did not look up.
Lissie blew the fire to life. She sat and patted the ground next to her. “You are not scared.”
“Not of you.” He looked to the distance. “Only of the south.”
“It’ll be better once we get there. They warned me about the north.”
Nikolai sat. He reached a hand toward the fire and pulled it back.
Riley and Alexander returned empty-handed. Everyone slept with empty stomachs.
Lissie did not dream.
Riley was smiling when she woke her up. “I knew it was a coincidence. After that cave, you just had a nightmare.” She helped Lissie to her feet. “That whole place was a nightmare.”
They set out before dawn and made good time through the hills. Lissie grabbed everyone bits of fir needles to chew. The day was a haze of hunger and confused guilt. The walls of Farvue crawled up the horizon. The time that had passed left this place unchanged. Lissie felt unrecognizable.
Recognized, they were. The Duke of Farvue insisted they stay in his castle. “Giant and all!” The Duke proclaimed, he was a loud and fat man with red cheeks. “A hero’s welcome for the return of our daring vigilantes.”
Lissie thought the man was looking hard for an excuse for a feast. The other diners were nervous. She kept hearing the whispered phrase ‘The Weeping Roses’ and she felt herself swimming as she ate the fish. She had never been so grateful to eat a fish. Until she felt the hook.
“Another day’s ride and we will be in the Plains.” Riley’s mouth was full. Lissie smiled.
Cora’s journal was on the table. She asked, “Do you think they’ll be able to find us?”
“They’ve been watching us the whole time. Dahla will make sure Tlaso is waiting for us.” Lissie took another bite. “Or someone.”