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“See? You don’t even know their name,” he exclaimed. “So do you have one?”

“Why would I have one?”

“Whywouldn’tyou?” he asked. “Did you hear me? They havecaramelin it. We should find some.”

“Sure, next convenience store we pass.”

“Really?”

“Very next one.” I grinned smugly. There wasn’t any kind of store like that out here, probably not even on the main roads. Not like there would be American candy in them anyway, since all that stuff disappeared fast after the war. A few lodgings popped up between towns for weary travelers, the only money to make once outside the city. Yet so far, since we left the suburbs, I hadn’t seen anything open. Just remnants of life that once existed, nature already whispering at the edges, taking back the land.

“Oh, I know. I’ll call him Caramel, then.” He pointed at my horse. “That one, Chocolate.” He pointed back to Cooper’s dark horse, then went to AB’s horse. “That one, Churro. Oh, I miss those. And that one…” He pointed to Katrina’s. “Tootsie Pop.” He leaned in, nudging me with his elbow. “Get it?” He snickered. “How manylicksdoes it take to get to the center?”

I stared straight ahead, wondering how long it would take before I snapped. Sprig’s endless stream of chatter only stopped when he was sleeping.

“I thought I banned you from my shoulder.” I took a deep breath.

“That was your right shoulder. I’m on your left,” Sprig replied, his backpack holding Pam pressing against my neck. There was no way we could have left without him. Not only did Annabeth feel the need to keep him with her, but he also had the ability to open magic locks and sneak into small places we couldn’t. When Zoey and I were in the basement labs together, I couldn’t deny Sprig had gotten us out of some tense situations.

He had spent the first three hours reminding me of that, singing “magic hands” and wiggling his fingers in front of my face.

Why he wasn’t gagged and bound by now was a mystery to me.

“Croygen?” Kat’s horse got even with mine, my body stiffening at her nearness. I had done well all day with keeping away from her. Only talking when I had to and trying not to look at her. Maybe if I was a mature adult, I would talk to her about what happened, but I was fine with ignoring it.

“We should find lodging soon.” She glanced over her shoulder, her voice lowering. “Annabeth isn’t looking too good. Think she needs a break till morning.”

Glancing quickly back, I saw what Kat meant. AB kept her head up, but fatigue made her body limp, heat burning her pale cheeks bright red, yet she was still pale. She looked beyond exhausted, barely holding herself up.

Any human would have reached their limit by now, and still, she kept her mouth shut, pushing on with us.

I had stopped many times during the day when we didn’t need to, making sure she was hydrated and okay, paranoid about her illness. She’d always pin on a smile and tell me she was fine.

AB was stronger than all of us combined.

“Yeah.” I nodded. “The town of Nanxun is not far.”

I clicked my tongue, encouraging my horse to go faster, needing to get away from Kat.

I now knew how badly it hurt to be on a horse with an erection.

Her release was still on my tongue, my fingers tingling with the memory of being inside her. Only a thread of reasoning had kept me from kissing her again last night. I wouldn’t have been able to stop from completely falling over the edge, getting us caught.

The four of us rode into the old town, firebulbs flickering off the canals of this once prosperous village. Nanxun sat on various canals, like Venice, south of the Yangtze River, and was established for the silk trade. It was a stunning village, but it was obvious the glory days were far behind them. It was like stepping back in time over 750 years, with its ancient buildings, arched stone bridges, temples, and gardens.

Since the barrier fell, this place had become a haven for fae and humans. A stop before heading out into the more treacherous, lawless lands of China. It reminded me of an old frontier town men frequented for supplies before heading into the mountains to mine for gold.

I swung my leg off my horse, my boots hitting the ground as I took in the old inn, which hadn’t changed. Red Chinese lanterns hung along the patio, reflecting off the water, and voices from the tavern/restaurant on the ground floor suggested it was packed. I had come to this place a lot in the past. Silk was an excellent trading commodity.

In the past, the inn only had a few places to sleep, and I doubted it had gotten better.

“Let me see if they have room for us. Coop, take the horses to the stalls in back.” I handed Sprig back to AB, sauntering inside. The small dining/bar area was packed. The smells of meat, steamed buns, and beer had my stomach growling.

The human family who ran the inn had gone through so many generations in my lifetime, I forgot who was in charge now. They were people who always knew about fae and magic, seeing so many of us not age a day while they grew from children to a hundred.

Two women looking like mother and daughter took orders while father and another daughter served the plates and drinks. The small kitchen staff tried to keep up.

The older man spotted me first, his lids narrowing in recognition.