Brice flashed a lopsided grin. “But I didn’t play a tease with him. Your over-friendliness and quick thinking got us that pass. I wonder if it’s any good.”
“Well, I wouldn’t be showing it to anyone wearing blue and white, but he gave the impression we will encounter more of Ansel’s green uniforms before we meet Peermont’s.”
The ground remained soggy and soaked through the leather of their boots. Prin felt her wet feet getting sore and considered removing the boots, but before she could suggest it, a pair of soldiers stepped from the side of the road, hands resting on their swords.
Prin kept walking while considering how she could draw her throwing knife and let it fly at one, then while the other turned to his partner to find out what happened, she could pull the short blade inside her belt, run up to him, and gut the second soldier like a carp.
They were not experienced, front-line battle-hardened troops. Both were young and nervous. She pulled the military pass and continued walking as if in a city park. “Hello. We have a pass signed by your officer. He said that any delays for us and you’d answer to him.”
The younger of the two whispered from the side of his mouth, “Can you read?”
“No. You neither?”
Brice said, “You want me to read it to you?”
“No, sir. You may pass.”
When Prin was sure they couldn’t hear her, she said, “There’s a lesson for us. Officers can write and read, but most soldiers can’t. That pass could have said to apprehend and execute us.”
They went through three more checkpoints, all without incident, except for one where a guard wanted to ask if tying their boots on their backpacks and carrying them helped. Brice said to them as they kept walking, “It helps for a while, but now the bottoms of my feet are getting raw. How long to dry land?”
“The lowlands start to rise just past here. Good footing as far as being dry, but it gets rocky, and you can turn an ankle. Be careful.” The guard glanced at the upside-down pass as if he could read it. Then he said, “You better watch out up ahead. You’ll reach a Peermont checkpoint before nightfall, at least it was there last time we checked.”
Prin said, “It’s been a long war, huh?”
“We’re getting ready for a big push and end it. Stockpiling materials and men over on the bank of the river.”
The man with him jabbed him in the ribs. “Shut up.”
The first appeared angry, then said, “Don’t spread that information around, huh?”
Brice said, “Don’t worry, you haven’t told us anything we didn’t already know.”
A short while later, Brice looked at Prin’s face and asked, “Why the smile?”
“Because we have a point to bargain with we didn’t have, earlier. This is good. Very good.” Prin’s step was lighter.
“Good that the kingdom of Peermont, which is ruled by your relatives, is about to lose a war?”
“Exactly. Very good.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Brice quit talking to Prin as if he feared she was losing her mind. She quit talking to Brice because her mind was working as fast as it ever had, chewing up and spitting out new information. While she still possessed several spells that Maude and Sara had concocted, her best weapon was her mind. Prin had found the leverage she needed to take the next step in her plan.
As the soldier had forecast, the ground turned drier and rocky. They put their damp boots back on and trudged ahead. The river that had been so sluggish and wide gradually narrowed and a current increased. At the top of a crest, a patrol of four soldiers and an officer, all dressed in Peermont’s blue and white, waited.
“Hold it right there,” One with several stripes on his sleeve ordered. “Don’t even think about reaching for a weapon.”
Prin took note of the five. The officer gave the impression of being cocky, too good to speak to travelers. He stepped aside and allowed his sergeant to do the work while he watched. The other three appeared green recruits, none wearing the insignia of rank, and all young. Her impression was that if she wanted, she could defeat all of them in a few combat moves, but she stopped politely and waited.
The military pass from the Ansel officer rested in her purse. It might be difficult to explain, and she should have thrown it away. Brice stood at her side, hands limp, seemingly tired and compliant. But that was a lie. He’d learned from the instructor at Maude’s to pose and deceive as part of his training. Brice was ready to attack if needed.
Prin forced a wide smile. “I’m so glad to see Peermont’s colors. All we’ve seen back there is green.” She tossed a thumb over her shoulder.
The young troops had spread across the road, shoulder to shoulder, hands on the hilts of their swords. She assumed they hadn’t learned to use bows, yet. The sergeant stood in front, hands on hips, feet spread, a stern expression that neared a scowl. He snapped, “You’re from Ansel?”
“No, we’re from Gallium, across the sea. We’re searching for new markets for our father’s weavings. Cloth, canvas, even rope.”
Prin was prepared to continue speaking, but he interrupted, “How come they let you pass?”
She signed heavily, reverting to the disdain of young girls who have to explain the most rudimentary subjects to men who are slow to understand. “They let us by because they were reasonable. We explained our business and the officer in charge was nice enough to provide a written pass for his patrols, something I’ll ask you to do, also.”
The officer’s face remained impassive. He was over thirty, maybe closer to thirty-five, and didn’t appear swayed by the manipulations of a young girl. She remembered the like-me spell in her purse and considered using it. Or even gnosis.
The sergeant held out his hand.
Telling him about it had been a risk, but if they were searched and the pass found, the consequences would be far worse. She handed it to him, and he gave it to the officer. The officer read it and nodded slightly. He said, “Are you an acquaintance of this officer?”
“No, we just met, but he was young and handsome in his uniform. I think he liked me.”
Brice stood at her side and wisely said nothing.
The officer asked, “Are you willing to share what you know?”
She acted horrified. “You mean, like a spy?”
“If you are not a friend of theirs, what difference does it make? Or, are you a spy for Ansel?” His voice was softer, coercing. He smiled, knowing she was no such thing, but his duty dictated he ask the questions.
She stiffened. “We are merchants, not spies. However, we know almost nothing of them since we came from Indore, so we are useless to you.”
“And when you depart Peermont?”
“Again, we are merchants and not interested in taking sides. Our politics lie across fifteen days of an ocean voyage. Will you write us a pass or will we have to repeat this interrogation at every military encampment we stumble into?”
The officer motioned to the sergeant, who ordered his men to move behind Brice and Prin, leaving only the officer in front. He said, “Walk with me.”
Prin and Brice had little option but to step forward. Brice said, “We just want to conduct our business and be on our way to Wren. Then Indore and home.”
They had walked several steps before the officer said quietly, so his men couldn’t hear, “You may wish to go directly to Wren. Peermont is losing this war, and we have no gold to spend on luxuries like fine material. We can barely afford food, and it’s getting worse each day.”
Prin leaned closer and responded, “Sir, you may be wrong.”