The Eastern Wind [ Vargis ]
The thin slip of paper was worn; a small hole broke through the center where the creases were stressed most. Conlan had only been turning it between his fingers for a night, some of the morning. Captain Mearann's handwriting still looped methodically across the middle, spelling out what he wanted in brief, precise words. The angry bean pole of a girl that had been steadily cleaning every rafter in the Walker barracks with a horse brush and a rag was to follow him wherever he went. Observe whatever he did. And learn whatever it was that he knew about being a Rider. She was not his first mentee, but she was certainly the youngest. Conlan might have argued against taking her along, if he hadn't watched her bloody her fist on two men twice her size, who also should have possessed twice her skill. From the black look that Vargis had when he'd read the paper, Conlan should have argued against it purely for her name. Lady Vera of Beit-Orane. That he was teaching anyone so closely related to that House of smoke and blood was ironic at best and dangerous at worst.
Conlan never said anything to Captain Mearann. Not after walking into the barracks half past dawn to watch her shove dust off another rafter. She cleaned like she'd been born for nothing else and never once sought him out to ask if she could stop. It almost made him feel guilty.
Almost.
"Where are you going?"
He looked up to find a sharp pair of eyes staring down at him. There was a little jealousy in them, a little anger. Hasna had been in Trone for three weeks. Whenever she had to suffer merchants, she expected everyone else to. The Captain hadn't sent him south yet, though. Hasna saw his traveling boots by his chair and already knew he was going somewhere different. He supposed if he'd endured Trone as much as she had, he'd feel the same way. It seemed like Mearann was trying to deal justice for something long over with by sending Hasna there. Daughter of thieves or not, it was a waste wasn't it? But she wasn't going to take sympathy well from him, so Conlan only smiled at her. A woman told him he was charming once. It was worth a try.
"Hopefully somewhere that is more horrible than Trone. Maybe then you won't kill me in my sleep."
"I'm not going to kill you."
"You say that now, but when the moon comes up? A knife in the throat."
Hasna's lips thinned into a flat line. She wasn't protesting any more. That wasn't a good sign. "So where are you going?" she asked.
Conlan cleared his throat. He could hear light footsteps on the porch and they certainly didn't belong to Vargis. He wouldn't have heard him at all. "East, toward the Central Mountains. There have been a few girls from one small township who have gone missing over the past month. We are supposed to go find them."
"Hm."
Jealousy again. It wasn't that Hasna wore it badly, she was quite beautiful actually when her eyes were so vivid and her blond hair caught the morning light however angrily...it was just that she was...well, frightening when the green monster was curled about her shoulders like this. Conlan was going to say something else when he saw Lady Vera in the doorway. Her uniform was clean, but she wasn't wearing a mask. That was hanging from her hood. There was a staff that was several hands taller than she was strapped to her back. The girl's dark eyes went from him to Hasna and then back to him.
"I finished," she said. "Are you going to check?"
Conlan tilted his head to the side for a moment, pretending to consider. Silence was stretched to its limit and he seemed as comfortable as he was before she entered. He took the map back from Hasna. "No."
Lady Vera narrowed her eyes. She came into the room and took a chair just to his left. Her eyes went to the map but she didn't ask to see it. He expected her to. Maybe because she had beat two men into the mud she reminded him too much of Hasna.
"This is Rider Hasna. Hasna, this is Lady Vera of Beit-Orane. She's been assigned to me."
"Good luck to you." Hasna said dryly to Vera, who seemed more annoyed at him now than when he said he wasn't going to check her work. Hasna raised her brow at him. "Does this mean no Vargis?"