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“How bad?” he asked Revek.

“Not bad.” Rev wouldn’t look at him. Instead, he breathed in and then gave a shout as he ripped the arrow from his flesh.

Frederik turned to look at him, wild-eyed.

“Rafe, help me get him into the open.” Luc didn’t bother going back the way they’d come in. It was a circuitous route that would take too long. He slung a shoulder under Rev’s right side, and Rafe took the left. Frederik went ahead of them, holding branches back to make the going easier, and they eventually stepped out into the open.

Blood was flowing from Revek’s wound in a steady, relentless flow.

“He should have left it in until we got him to the healer.”

“Yes.” Luc sighed. “But he can’t bear having anything piercing his skin.”

It would do no good to blame Revek for this. He was how he was for good reason. And Luc had yet to find a way to help him.

He thought time would do that, but as the last few days had shown, that hadn’t happened.

A short way down from where they emerged, Ava stood with a patrol unit.

Luc saw her turn in their direction, her face shadowed by the hood of her cloak.

Was that worked with protections, too?

As they moved toward the group, Rafe shouted for a horse to carry Revek, and everyone sprang into action.

As Rafe rode off with him lying across his saddle, one of the Venyatux lieutenants, Raun-Tu, rode up, braided hair flying.

“Will you come speak to the General?”

Luc felt a stab of guilt at the relief the request gave him. More time away from Ava to gather his thoughts.

He nodded, moving across to the trees to untie the horse he’d left when he’d gone into the bush to find Ava.

“I’ll see you later,” he murmured to her as he passed her, letting his hand brush along her shoulder.

She looked up at him, and he thought she might have been crying. It shocked him into a stumbling step, but didn’t stop him.

She gave a nod, but as he swung up into his saddle and followed Raun-Tu, he had the same hollow sensation in the pit of his stomach he had the night before when she had walked away.

He might be the one leaving this time, but he was still the one with something to lose.

Chapter 16

She had ripped away the veil, and it had gone about as well as her mother and father had always warned her it would.

Ava pulled herself gingerly up onto her horse and started back toward the twin columns.

She felt sick to her stomach, and frightened.

Luc had the power now to reveal her secret to others. To put her in more danger than she’d ever been in before.

She had given him that power.

And yet, she still had hope in her heart that he would not do anything to hurt her.

Did that mean she’d won? Had managed to keep true to herself no matter the hard lessons being a prisoner for two years had taught her? Or was it naive and stupid? Trusting too much, too soon.

She gave a bitter smile.