Lacuna - N.R. Walker Page 0,40

inn where the only room available was a large dorm room they would all share. It wasn’t ideal, but the baths were hot and the food was good. Like before, Crow and Tancho had to bathe together, but this bath was only big enough for one. So while Tancho bathed first, Crow sat nearby with his back turned for privacy. He couldn’t help but steal a few glances, catching the sight of smooth alabaster skin and errant strands of long red hair that had escaped the bun on his head.

Tancho was trim and lean, muscular like a whippet. His neck was long, his shoulders defined, and his biceps bulged as he washed. And even though he was mild-mannered and quiet, Crow didn’t take that for weakness. He would never doubt Tancho’s ability with his katanas.

Crow had no doubt he could best him in battle, if it ever came down to that. But he still would have liked to see him in action.

After their meals and baths, Tancho helped Karasu with Maghdlm, cleaning her wounds, feeding her broth. The frail old lady was improving. She understood questions now, giving a nod, but she mostly kept her eyes closed. She whispered her thanks after more tea and was soon sleeping.

They wouldn’t get answers to their questions today, but soon. Crow hoped it would be tomorrow, the day after that at the latest. They didn’t want to be riding into Tancho’s castle without knowing all they could.

The thin reed mattresses on the floor of the dorm room were hardly comfortable, though Crow lay in the corner listening to Soko and Kohaku comparing swords. Soko had a broadsword, Kohaku twin daggers, and they weren’t compatible for—

“Let me see what you’ve got,” Soko said, getting to his feet. He held his broadsword with both hands, and Crow might have been concerned if it weren’t for his shit-eating grin.

Kohaku leapt up, a dagger in each hand, a smile splitting his face. They sparred, struck, parried, countered, all while circling each other, laughing as their swords sung with each strike. Two different weapons and two very different fighting styles, but it was fun to watch. Then they swapped swords. Kohaku liked the weight of the heavier sword and Soko fancied the two smaller daggers but they were both hilariously unskilled at wielding them.

Everyone laughed at their antics, but Karasu found it funniest. “Kohaku, has your training taught you nothing?” she asked, laughing. “The weight of the sword doesn’t make for heavy feet.”

“You try it,” he said, holding Soko’s sword out for her. “Don’t mock me until I’ve seen your footwork.”

She jumped at the challenge, and when she took the sword from Kohaku, it almost went to the floor. She managed to hold it, needing both hands, and she shot Kohaku and Soko a glare when they laughed. “Is it made of lead?”

“Finest Northland steel. We mine the richest ore from deep in the mountains.” Soko said. He raised the two daggers and bowed. “En garde, madam.”

Karasu grinned and hefted the sword up, and they sparred for a few minutes. Crow had wondered if her temper might fray the mood, but she played in good sport. After a while she raised her hand. “Yield. How do you expect to fight for any length of time with this?”

“We know no other way,” Soko replied. “From the age when we could hold a fork and knife, we could hold a sword.”

“Here,” she said, handing Soko back his broadsword and swapping Kohaku’s daggers for her katana. “Now we’ll see how we fare.”

Soko’s grin widened impossibly, and if Crow weren’t mistaken, he might have thought his friend enamoured by the challenge, by Karasu. There was a light in his eyes that wasn’t there when he sparred with Kohaku.

They circled around each other, sparring, striking, and taunting, and Crow caught Tancho’s smile as he watched them. His whole face lit up when he laughed, and for that briefest moment, he looked carefree . . . and devastatingly beautiful.

Crow had never seen someone so beautiful.

When Crow heard Karasu laugh, he turned his attention back to the sparring to see Soko had swapped his broadsword for a katana. “Oh, Crow, I must get myself one of these. You must come and try this.”

Crow was about to decline the offer but Karasu held the hilt of her katana out to him, and he wouldn’t dare offend her. He got to his feet and took the katana with a bow of his head. It was light, and