apprentices, and only the Master Riders had earned the right to wear braids and whatever cultural or personal ornamentation they pleased.
“Oh, this is Nyk—he works in the stables,” Tristan said.
“Since when do stablehands train with apprentices?” asked Latham. He looked a good deal like his brother, Loran, with the same fair skin, spun-gold hair, and dark-blue eyes common in the south where they were from.
“Since the commander said so,” said Elliot helpfully, reminding everyone of Tristan’s punishment, to which they’d all been witness.
“Ah, yes!” Anders said with his usual broad smile, shooting Tristan a mischievous look. “The commander’s most recent disciplinary decree. Tell me, Nyk, have you gotten this poor apprentice up to scratch yet?”
Tristan just shook his head, a faint smile on his face as he stared at the ground. Veronyka wondered why he would take their joking without retaliating—he certainly had no problem arguing with her—when she realized his awkward place here. It was his father they were talking about, and his position of power over them put Tristan in a tough spot. He couldn’t be a regular apprentice, because they would always see him as the commander’s son, and yet he wasn’t technically in a position of authority. No wonder he was so eager to be promoted, to have the lines more clearly drawn.
“He was already up to scratch without my help,” Veronyka said stoutly, and Tristan flashed her a surprised, grateful look.
“Well, if they want to send servants over to help the apprentices, I’d be more than happy to let one of the washer girls whip me into shape,” Latham said, grinning and waggling his eyebrows. “Or maybe one of Morra’s kitchen maids . . .”
“Poor Latham, always pining for company. Almost as bad as Elliot here, going on and on about the girls back home,” said Anders, slinging an arm around him.
“I’m not pining,” Elliot protested, blushing as he shrugged Anders’s arm off his shoulders. “And I don’t go on and on—it’s my sister I talk about, not—”
“Leave him alone,” said Ronyn, sounding bored. He was one of the older apprentices and had clearly had his fill of Anders’s and Latham’s antics.
“Nyk here agrees, don’t you?” Anders asked, tossing his arm around Veronyka instead. “You’d like to see more girls about, wouldn’t you?”
“Of course,” Veronyka said. The others laughed in delight, but she didn’t mean it the way they meant it—she just wanted to see female Riders. She cast an exasperated glance at Tristan, but to her surprise, he avoided her gaze. His face seemed oddly flushed; was he embarrassed by her being there? Veronyka didn’t mind the teasing—it was far less malicious than Val’s constant jibes and sarcastic remarks—but it seemed that Tristan did. She felt the need to change the subject.
“What I meant,” Veronyka said, copying Elliot and throwing Anders’s arm off her, “is that there should be girl apprentices. For training.”
“Well, there’s something you and Elliot can agree on,” Anders said, still smirking. “So, is that why you’re here?”
Veronyka’s heart skipped a beat. “What do you mean?”
Anders raised an eyebrow. “To train?”
“Oh—yes. Well, sort of. I . . .”
“I’m helping him get in shape for the next recruitment,” Tristan said.
“What’s the point?” said Ronyn.
“What do you mean?” Veronyka asked. She couldn’t tell if his tone was negative or just disinterested like before.
His gaze flicked to Tristan and the others. “There, well—”
“We don’t have any eggs,” Anders cut in, the jovial attitude missing from his voice for the first time. “Haven’t found any in months. You’d have a better shot laying one yourself than finding one here.”
The tone of the group changed, the laughing and joking replaced by a somewhat strained silence. Veronyka was staring at Tristan, but he wouldn’t look at her. He’d known this all along. Why hadn’t he told her? Why had he pretended she had a chance—offering extra training and even promising to sponsor her—when he’d known there was no way it would actually happen? Maybe that was why he’d done it. . . . It was a debt he’d never have to repay.
When Beryk walked into the fenced area and called them to attention, Veronyka took the opportunity to slip away, past Tristan and out of the training yard.
It was still an hour until Veronyka would be expected to begin her duties for the day, but she went to the stables anyway. It was dark and quiet inside, and the presence of the animals soothed her. Veronyka’s magic had grown strong in her time here, the way it