and even after, that it was to be saved for marriage.
“Nor, after everything that Sami and I have been through in the past few months, I’m not afraid of anything anymore. As soon as I have him in my arms again, I don’t plan to ever let go.”
I flushed and stared at my sister with new eyes. “I see.”
She started toward the log cabin, glancing once over her shoulder at me with a knowing smile that only made me blush harder. “You don’t yet. But you will soon enough.”
I stared after her, wondering what exactly she meant. Did she assume that Talin and I were headed down the same path she and Sami were on? Did Talin? Before I left Varenia the first time, I hadn’t given much thought to my future there. My daydreams were all about the world beyond my village. And since then, I hadn’t dreamed about anything beyond a secure future for the people I loved.
I hefted the wood in my arms and told myself there was no point in speculating about my own future. After all, I’d spent years imagining Ilara, and look how wrong I’d turned out to be. But something about our conversation nagged at me as I made my way back to the cabin.
How could Zadie and Talin know where I was headed, if I didn’t even know myself?
12
Leesbrook, the capital of Galeth, was located in the center of the country. We traveled along acres of farmland with rich, dark soil, worked by heavy draft horses and their owners, who waved to us as we passed. I noticed that all of the roads were far softer and better maintained than any I’d seen before, which Roan explained was an initiative to protect the horses’ feet. Their manure was also used to fertilize the pastures, which in turn grew the lush green grass that became the hay they ate. There were herds of free-roaming horses in the mountains, but here they were pastured, to protect the soil from their hooves.
We entered Leesbrook in the late afternoon. It was clearly the hub of commerce in Galeth; the streets were wide enough for carriages and lined with shops of all kinds. Horses were tied to hitching posts up and down the street. Young boys and girls waited with shovels and pails, charging a nickel a pile. They heaped the manure onto wagons that carried it out to the countryside for fertilizer.
“The council meets at nightfall,” Roan told us as we wound through the city streets toward a timber inn. “These are your lodgings. I’ll come for you when it’s time.”
He left without a backward glance, disappearing among the crowds. A girl ran out to take our horses to the stables, collecting a coin from Talin that she tested with her teeth before pocketing.
Inside, the inn was dark and smoky, and I was glad when we were shown immediately to our rooms upstairs. Zadie and I were down the hall from the men, and I was grateful for the time alone with my sister.
“I can’t believe I’m going to see Sami soon,” she said, instantly stripping out of her riding clothing and searching in her bag for the one gown Talin had permitted us each to purchase in Riaga. “Help me change, would you?”
“We have hours.” I sat down on the bed with a sigh. Last night I had been so relieved to be safe, and so exhausted from the road, that my fear for our parents had eased a little. But I was growing restless. “We’re wasting time. We don’t even know what’s happening in Ilara. I hate that they don’t get any news this far north.”
Zadie seemed hardly to hear me, so I continued to think out loud.
“And I’m worried about this council. Roan said Talin, Osius, and Grig would have to face them, as if they’re on trial or something.”
Zadie held her gown up in front of the mirror, twisting back and forth. “They allowed Sami to stay.”
“Did they allow it?” I couldn’t keep the edge out of my voice. “Or is he being forced to stay? Besides, Sami isn’t Ilarean. And he’s not a prince.”
She came to sit next to me in her shift. “Try not to fret. Roan seems like a fair leader.”
“He’s not a leader. Not the only leader, anyway. These people aren’t at all bothered with what happens outside their borders. It seems impossible they’ll agree to help us.”
“A few days ago, it would have seemed impossible that we