The Wind's Call (The Broken Lands #4) - T.A. White Page 0,63

if to apologize for the general's ill mood.

"The mythologicals sent me to tell you they think there is something wrong with the water," Eva said, spitting out the message before she could let herself think better of it.

Focus on what needs doing, leave everything else behind, she told herself.

Darius stared at her for several moments, silent. It gave her time to glance around uneasily. Caden, at his side, watched her evenly, his expression unchanging.

"And?" Darius demanded.

"They recommend finding another way around." She'd decided to keep the message simple and to leave out her own feelings about the water and what might be dwelling beneath. This way he'd have less to question.

Darius's head bowed as a groan slipped out. "I never thought I'd take advice from a horse and a human bird."

"They’re called Kyren and Tenrin," Eva pointed out.

Darius lifted his head as those next to him stared at Eva as if she was out of her mind. Too late she realized she probably should have kept her mouth shut. Even if Darius's terms for them had been wrong and it was her job as their intermediary to help in human-mythological relations.

"Is that so?" he asked.

Eva's uncertain gaze darted to Caden's and back to Darius. What did he want her to say? He knew it was. Forcing her say it was just mean. "It is."

"The girl's right," Reece said, appearing out of nowhere. The pathfinder looked half-drowned, his hair dripping water and his clothes sopping wet. "Going through that water will end in the death of everyone here."

A stinging curse escaped Fiona while the rest of those assembled looked like they'd bitten into something sour.

"What did you find?" Darius asked, his expression alert and attentive in a way it hadn't been when Eva had voiced the mythological's concerns. It made her want to say some sharp words of her own.

A look of admonition from Caden had her biting those back. Probably for the best.

"This lake, river, whatever you want to call it, wasn't here the last time I came through," Reece said. "I put out a little bait and nearly got pulled under by whatever was down there. I recommend not investigating further."

"I thought that was what you pathfinders did," Jedrek said, looking confused. "Poke the hornet’s nest and see what comes out."

Reece let out a long sigh. "That might work for my cousin, but the rest of us prefer to avoid the resulting stings."

There were sounds of assent from those around Eva. It seemed Reece wasn't the only one accustomed to that particular trait of his cousin.

"I, for one, appreciate that," Jedrek said.

"You would, Jedrek," Fiona scoffed.

Jedrek looked up at the warrior. "Most of us who are sane would."

Hanna snickered from behind Fiona, the sound cutting off abruptly when the other woman turned and glared. Hanna sobered, though amusement still tugged at her lips.

"Did they say anything else?" Caden asked, his quiet voice cutting through the brewing argument.

Eva hesitated. "Ajari said it smelled like rot and death."

"Is that it?" Caden asked, his expression expectant as if he could see inside Eva's mind and knew she was holding back.

She shook her head. "That's all they shared."

His eyes narrowed slightly. If she hadn't been watching him so closely, she might never have noticed.

"It's enough," Darius said dryly. "Far be it for me to argue with a Tenrin, a Kyren, and a pathfinder. We'll go around."

Eva released the breath she'd been holding, the knot in her stomach loosening slightly.

"Herd mistress.” Darius stopped her as she started to move away. Eva paused, looking back at him in question. His smile didn't reach his eyes. "Today will be the last day for the wagon."

His tone didn't invite questioning or resistance. Eva got the feeling that while she might have gotten away with her first request, pushing him on this would only lead to trouble for her.

She jerked her chin down in acknowledgment. "Of course, general."

CHAPTER NINE

Ajari was waiting expectantly when Eva climbed into the bed of the wagon. "Well?"

"They agreed to go around."

Eva was startled at the depth of relief that filled Ajari's expression, there and gone in a blink of an eye.

"Why does this place unsettle you so?" Eva couldn't help but ask.

She wasn't really surprised when Ajari ignored her.

Left with no other choice, she addressed Sebastian, "You're going to get your wish. This is the last day Darius will permit the use of the wagon. After this, you're walking like the rest of us."

Sebastian's ears pricked forward and an anticipatory expression showed on