Siege (The Warrior Chronicles, #5) - K.F. Breene Page 0,15
what has been going on?”
“That could be why the Hunter was left unchecked. Xandre had his eye on the situation from close enough to get his prize if it was going to be easy pickings. I never thought he would be the kind of Commander to allow important pieces to slip through the cracks.” Frustration welled up in Shanti suddenly, turning into violent energy. She was getting restless. She hated waiting for an enemy to come to her. Cayan knew how she felt, but he also hated chasing an enemy that might be laying a trap.
His hands thudded against the desk as he leaned over the map. “He couldn’t have assembled a large force in the Mugdock lands. Not with the host he had in the Shadow Lands. There hadn’t been enough time to move that many people.”
“That many valuable people,” Daniels said. “Kallon gave me the impression that he encountered a great many men who were little better than militia. They were starved out of their lands and given very little choice but to join the Graygual army. The Shadow Lands had good warriors and enlightened tacticians. That doesn’t mean the men waiting at our walls are of the same caliber.”
“But why are they waiting?” Cayan pushed off the wood and crossed to the window. The street beyond was empty, nothing but sunshine gracing the cobblestone. “Anything new from Burson?”
“Just the latest urgent plea to get moving.”
“Have any other reports come in?”
“The land is strangely quiet.”
Cayan turned around to find Daniels was looking at him with an unreadable expression. His shoulders were tight, and not just from the fatigue of constant planning. Something was worrying him.
Cayan thought about the port city of Clintos after they’d returned from the Shadow Lands. The people there kept to themselves. Only low murmurs and the clink of eating utensils graced the inn’s common area, where dice games and the raucous laughter of the drunk would usually vibrate through the space. The town had been plagued by the Graygual, and yet they were lying low. Sonson had said they were waiting for the Wanderer.
Was everyone?
The situation crystallized in Cayan’s head. Everything from the solemn looks of strangers to the glimmer of hope in the downtrodden. From the desperate acts of the Hunter when he was trapped to the hesitation of the army at their doorstep. Everyone, including the enemy, was waiting for someone to push back.
They were waiting for Shanti.
She was the ultimate wild card, entirely unpredictable. Things she found so logical were chaos to most, including her own people, and yet her plans always seemed to work. Even nearly succumbing to death in the burnt lands worked to her advantage—she had found him, and grown stronger.
She was the key, and he was holding her back. He was trying to tame the wildness in her instead of embracing it. He needed to set her free, hold on, and take what came. It was the only way.
Cayan moved toward the door. “Put the plans in action. We’re leaving.” He paused with his hand on the cold metal of the handle. “And Daniels…”
The graying man looked up.
“We’ll head to the Mugdock lands first. We need to clean out that infestation and then plant some eyes there in case they come back.”
Two incredibly short days later, armed men waited at the gates of the city at dawn, ready to ride out and cut down the enemy. Preparing had been a hectic affair, all while the enemy was growing in size outside the walls. They hadn’t attacked, though. A few had ventured closer each day, and each had been brought down by a well-aimed arrow.
“I had no idea you were this ready,” Shanti said from beside Cayan. “This horse is too tame, though. It does run, right?”
Cayan glanced at her warhorse, one of the best they had. It waited under her patiently, as it was supposed to do. Her own wild horse would have to stay behind. The gash in its chest wasn’t life-threatening, but would severely hinder taking a rider. “Ideally, I would’ve loved to stay within the city and somehow also beat Xandre, but that wasn’t logical. We’ve been preparing for this day since we took our city back.”
Cayan glanced behind him and saw Sanders walk up the line of horses. His Commander paused at the mare bearing Alena. He said a couple words Cayan couldn’t hear, nodded, and continued. “I worry about taking such inexperienced people.”
Shanti followed his gaze before checking her weapons. “Ruisa was