sunlit stone. “We can’t possibly climb that!”
Dev’s one-sided grin appeared. “Well, you’re right about the ‘we’ part. You’ll stay right here, so you can quit twitching like a roundtail in a snare.” He stood and shucked off his shirt. Then untied the rope from his harness.
“What are you doing?” Dev had impressed on Kiran in no uncertain terms that the rope was his lifeline, never to be untied while on a climb.
“Kinslayer’s not the kind of climb that lends itself to pitons. Without ’em, a rope’s only dead weight.” Dev stretched his arms overhead and rotated his wrists. “Once I reach the carcabon, I can set a piton in the crack between the rock layers. I’ll tie off with a sling, chip out any decent stones, and then climb an ascending traverse off the overhang. When I’m done, I’ll downclimb back to you.” He spoke as casually as if he planned a stroll down a city street.
“You’re going to climb something called Kinslayer without a rope?” Had Dev gone insane?
Dev made a noise halfway between a snort and a laugh. “Don’t let the name bother you. Outriders always make up dramatic names for crags. Makes for a better tavern story.”
Kiran eyed the smooth expanse of rock leading up to Dev’s chosen streak. A vivid vision of Dev’s body plummeting through the air to splatter on the ground far below brought sweat to his palms. The ledge suddenly seemed a far more precarious perch than it had a moment ago. Kiran didn’t even know how to get back down the cliff safely without Dev, let alone cross the Alathian border. “What if you slip? Forget the carcabon! We can find another way to deal with Pello.”
Dev crouched down until his eyes were level with Kiran’s. “Look. I’ve been climbing since I was knee high to a mule. I know what I’m doing.” He slapped the pale stone of the ledge. “I wouldn’t try Kinslayer if I thought I might fail. Without a carcabon stone, I can’t find Pello’s wards to break them. Kinslayer’s the best chance for a stone. You want to stop Pello from sending any messages, this is the only way.”
Dev was wrong, of course. There was another way. If Kiran were the one to search Pello’s wagon, he could sense the location of any wards, even through his barriers. If he pointed the wards out to Dev, and then Dev used whatever trick he’d planned to break them...but no. How could Kiran possibly explain an ability to sense wards, without arousing Dev’s suspicion? If he claimed he carried a special charm...no, Dev would want to see the charm, perhaps insist on using it himself instead of Kiran...
Kiran pinched the bridge of his nose. “Can’t you at least get me back down first?” If only he had more time to think!
“What, and leave you alone where Pello can find you? Nope. You’re safer here.” Dev uncoiled from his crouch and locked his hands behind his back. He arched over in another stretch. “If Khalmet touches me, and I fall...you sit tight. Cara and Jerik will come for you. Stick with the convoy until just before the border. Then make up some excuse to stay behind, and send a message through with one of the workers, to Gerran’s import house at the river docks. Gerran’ll handle it from there.” Dev hesitated, his eyes traveling over Kiran’s face, as if he might say something else. Instead, he turned away.
“Was that supposed to reassure me?” Kiran cast about desperately for a tale that might convince Dev without revealing the truth. His mind remained stubbornly blank.
Dev paced to the end of the ledge without a backward glance. Kiran cursed himself for ever having suggested a carcabon stone as an option. “Wait, maybe we can—”
“Shut up,” Dev said mildly. “I need to concentrate.” He flattened his hands on the rock and bowed his head. Kiran recognized the intent stillness in his stance. He’d seen it hundreds of times in Mikail, preparing to cast a channeled spell. Kiran opened his mouth, then shut it again. Perhaps the climb was well within Dev’s abilities, and Kiran was agonizing over nothing.
Yet if Dev had misjudged the difficulty...Kiran could halt any fall with ease, if he chose. Was Dev’s life worth the cost? Kiran imagined Ruslan hot-eyed with predatory triumph. His stomach rolled over. If it were death Kiran risked, the choice to save Dev would be easy. He would have welcomed death at Ruslan’s hands. Kiran pressed