Page 44 of Keeper of the Word

“Cannot someone else accompany you, Lord Wolf?”

“They can, but I have instructed you.”

Tolvar almost wished Hux defied him. He hadn’t been able topunch anyone since Tam’s Ford. But Hux rose, gave Elanna a backward glance, and followed Tolvar in the direction of the sunset.

“Why are you still doing this?” Hux said when they were alone.

They tramped through a clearing, the grass at their waists. There were no clusters of trees in this area so close to the Glendower River, the massive river’s rushing water audible in the distance. Tomorrow, they only had a half-day’s travel before they would cross the Stella Pohl Bridge to reach Asalle.

“Did you not scout your own camps, Ravyn?”

“Ididn’t. I utilized my men, of which you have many at the moment, I might add.”

Tolvar ignored him, transforming himself into a hunter. He marked the landscape. It was said of the Wolf that he could memorize a territory in a matter of moments. ’Twas not quite that quick, but Tolvar was certainly no novice in collecting his bearings. A light breeze carried the aroma of roasting quails from their camp, and beneath that, the scent of fresh water from the Glendower.

A dozen yards away, a covey of quails’ coos assured a sense of peace. Tolvar moved the other way.

“When you stalk like that, you remind me of my brother,” Hux said, his eyes drawn into the distance. “Brinley would walk on his toes just as you’re doing now.”

A bird fluttered overhead.

“Do you truly believe you could kill your own brother?” Hux asked.

Tolvar sighed and straightened his shoulders. “The list of reasons to justify why Crevan should be killed is longer than I can say.”

“Aye. But couldyoube the one to do it?”

“We’re not all as righteous as you, Ravyn. I care not for who he is now. That evil traitor took my father from me.”

“I almost killed my father,” Hux said, smirking at Tolvar’s expression of surprise. “Instead, I righteously formed the Ravyns. After years of pondering, I do not think I could have lived with myself had I, in fact, been the one to end his life. Even though he deserved it.”

Hux crouched to inspect a groove in the dirt where a patch of grass had died. Tolvar knelt. A footprint? Hux said no more, and Tolvar took in his words as he scrutinized the ground. Hux had always hinted he was the son of a nobleman. But, like the dullard he was, he was waiting for Tolvar to ask.

Stars.

“I’ll snatch your bait. Why did your father deserve it?”

Hux continued to study the ground, but ’twas not because he still surveyed it. He appeared to be deep in thought.

“My father disowned my brother, Brinley.”

“Is that it? Mayhap Brinley deserved it.”

“Do not be an ass until you’ve heard all.” Hux’s dark eyes left no doubt to his wrath.

Tolvar nodded.

“Brinley and I are—were—the sons of a baron. What baron, I shall not say, for I no longer consider that my home. Brinley was the eldest and, of course, was expected to make a match of fortune. My father had a habit of gambling, you see, and drained much of his coffers. But Brinley refused the arranged match.”

“Why?” Tolvar hoped his sincere tone of curiosity made amends for his last statement.

“He almost did not. Brinley loved our father and wished to serve him as best he could, as first son. But Brinley felt it would go against his integrity and against the integrity of the woman. You see, he did not prefer the company of females.”

He eyed Tolvar again, daring him to cross him. But Tolvar simply nodded in understanding. He knew others like Brinley. He’d never concerned himself with such matters. Frankly, what did it matter to anyone else what person attracted another?

“When Brinley was forced to give his reason to our father, my father’s words were…” Hux’s eyes glossed over. “Unkind, to say the least. Horrid, monstrous, in truth. I always knew my father loved Brinley best and accepted it. To hear my father spurn his son in an instant—turning away from the affinity Iknowhe felt his whole life—well, I could not stand by.

“Brinley suggested that I take the lady’s hand in his stead, and Iwould have, for Brinley’s sake, that is. And my father’s debt problems would have been solved. But then, my father said his last piece to my brother.” Hux paused. “He said, ‘Speak not to me about resolutions, for you are worse than no one to me. No longer my son.’ I stood in shock. Then, I raged. I got in four good hits and a stab of my knife—Iwasgoing to kill him—before the guards tackled me to the floor.