“If I wanted a hot bath, a servant had to hand-pump the water from a faucet in the kitchen, boil it on the stoves, and then carry it up the stairs to my rooms. Needless to say, that rarely happened.”
He smirked. “I remember how the flies followed you everywhere you went.”
I grabbed a leftover crust from my plate and hurled it at him. He ducked and laughed. I resisted the urge to kick his ankle. “I had plenty of soap and water and a big ewer and basin in my room, but you...” I gave him a grave look. “You probably took your baths in the horse’s trough.”
He grinned and winked. “At least I was clean.”
“It wasn’t much.” My levity drained away. “But it was where my family lived for generations, where I was born and where my father died.”
He nodded. “It was home.”
“It was, and I hope to see it again someday. If there’s anything left to see.” I set aside the last crumbs of my breakfast and brushed my hands against my trousers as I stood. “I have to get to work. Even with everything else that’s happened, I still have to earn my keep.”
He stood up beside me. “I’ll walk with you.”
We’d been apart for weeks, suffering so much uncertainty about one another’s welfare that we both needed more time to relish each other’s company. “We’ll be rolling out soon. Falak says we’ll be in Barsava in a few days and we’ll be setting up to perform.”
“You’re going to ride the lion then?”
I shrugged. “He wants me to, but I’m not sure we’ll be ready. I suppose....” I stopped as a realization hit me. “Well, I suppose now that you and I are together again, we don’t need to stay with the circus. We can go on to Varynga ourselves and look for the Fantaz—Oh!” Falak’s appearance was so sudden I nearly plowed into him.
“Good morning, m’lady. Sir Faust.” He doffed his little cap and settled it back on his dark hair. He wore his usual white shirt, jodhpurs, and suspenders, but had added a green velveteen waistcoat that brought out the amber undertones in his brown skin. “I was just looking for you.”
I stepped back and studied his face, searching for a hint in his expression, but he gave nothing away. “Although I’m afraid to ask...” I bowed and came up wearing a facetious smile. “How may we be of service?”
The ringmaster rolled his eyes. “Like I’ve told you before, your performance skills leave much to be desired.”
I scowled. “What do you want, Falak?”
“Have you had breakfast yet?”
“Just finished. I was on my way to help with the dishes.”
“Let me propose something to the both of you first.” The three of us stopped at the steps leading to the cook wagon’s rear door. Falak fingered his collar as though it had drawn tight against his throat. “Perhaps the arrival of your guardian here”—he gestured at Gideon—“was more fortuitous than I wanted to admit. Almost fateful, perhaps.”
“How’s that?”
He pointed to a vast mountain range in the distance that had grown closer each day until its peaks loomed over us like silent, watchful giants. Their dark presence felt foreboding and ominous, or perhaps it was the way Falak had hinted about them being dangerous. “We must pass through those mountains, there, to reach the outskirts of Barsava.”
I squinted at the mountains as if it might bring their details into focus. “Yes, and your point is?”
Gideon cleared his throat. “Those are the Thaulgants, correct?”
Falak peered at Gideon and nodded.
“Home to a notorious band of thieves called the Thaulgant Brigands, am I right?”
Again, Falak nodded, and I noticed his complexion had gone a bit pale.
Gideon leaned back on his heels and crossed his arms over his chest. “Evie, what would you like to wager that the ringmaster here is about to offer us a proposal. I’m willing to bet he’s going to offer me something very alluring. Food. A wagon to sleep in perhaps. Money, if he’s desperate—”
Falak scoffed, hacking a derisive noise in his throat, but he did not object outright.
Gideon continued. “And in return, he’ll ask me to offer my services as a watch dog. A sentinel. A hired gun, if it comes to it.”
An instant chill slithered down my spine. “No.”
The ringmaster arched an eyebrow and blinked at me. He turned his gaze to my companion and waited.
“Either way,” Gideon said, “we’ll have to go through those mountains if you want to get to Barsava and then Varynga. Finding another route could take weeks.”
Falak snorted. “Try months. It would take months.”
“But you don’t have to risk yourself for the circus.” I jabbed my finger at Falak. “Or for him.”
“It wouldn’t be for him, or for the circus. I’d do it for you.” Gideon glanced at Falak, and the muscles around his eyes tightened. “Give me a place to sleep in one of your wagons, the right to take meals with the rest of the circus, and I vow to do whatever it takes to get you safely through those mountains.”
“Gideon, no.” I grabbed his arm and dug my fingers in. “It’s too risky.”
He turned his granite gaze on me. “It’s less dangerous to stick with a large group than go out on our own. This is the safest bet for us all.”
“But you’ll be putting yourself at the greatest risk. Again. I told you I can’t ask that of you anymore.”
“You’re not asking it of me. Falak is, and it’s my choice. If I can’t protect you or the people you care about, what’s my purpose? Why am I even here, if you won’t let me do the one thing I’m good at?”
Desperation and fear made my voice high pitched. “Fighting is not the only thing you’re good at.”
His forehead wrinkled as his scowl deepened. “What do you think I’m here for? What am I following you around the world for? You think I’m waiting for you to reclaim your throne so I can be your what? Your horse master?”
