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“Don’t follow us, and you won’t have to hunt us down anywhere. Because we’ll leave her nice and safe for you to fetch.”

That was her cue.

Ava bent her head again, hunching low.

She heard Nedar helping Cassak up onto the horse’s back, and then knew the moment they realized she was gone.

All sound stopped.

Cassak sounded slack-jawed with shock. “Where—?”

He grunted in sudden pain, and she guessed Nedar had hit him to stop him saying anything out loud.

Nedar swore under his breath, dragging the word out softly and then she heard the jingle of his stirrups as he mounted his own horse. “An hour,” he called out. “Any sooner and she gets hurt.”

He led the way out, and Cassak followed after him.

As soon as they were out of sight, she lifted her head and started unpicking her invisibility stitches.

Luc must have been moving so quietly, she didn’t realize he was in the clearing until he’d passed her. His face was focused, his body fluid as he ghosted through the small space and disappeared between the trees, following her captors.

Damn!

He hadn’t seen her.

She frowned. Her head hadn’t been down. And he still hadn’t seen her.

She refused to believe he wouldn’t have been paying attention to everything around him.

Which meant—-

She went absolutely still when she heard a rustle of leaves, and then a small group of five soldiers stepped into the clearing. They were a mixed bunch; Rising Wave and Venyatux.

Deni was among them, and a Venyatux soldier she had sparred with before, Taira.

“This is where they must have been holding the Commander’s friend.” One of the Rising Wave soldiers looked straight at her, and she waited for him to call out or notice her, but his gaze moved on.

He had looked straight into her eyes and he still hadn’t seen her.

He had a bulky frame, a maturity of stature, that told Ava he was older than the rest of the group. He had an insignia on his leather vest that spoke of some kind of rank.

“Quiet,” Deni hissed. “If they hear us, they promised to hurt Avasu. As it is I’m worried about them hearing your Commander.”

“They won’t hear him.” The ranked officer shook his head. “Truth is, there is no one I know who moves as quietly as that man.”

“How does he do it?” Taira asked.

“All Cervantes move quietly. It’s in our blood. But he’s the best I’ve seen. Still, he’s already been caught by the Kassian once, so I wish he’d let us go with him.” The unit commander lifted his shoulders.

“He asked us to wait, and I have to trust he has Avasu’s best interests at heart.” Deni spoke softly.

“I’ve heard she’s enspelled him.” The woman who spoke was Rising Wave.

Ava’s focus fixed onto her.

“Who’s enspelled him?” Taira scoffed.

“Your Avasu.” The woman rubbed the back of her neck, her gaze darting around the clearing.