He didn’t know why she was with them, though a number of ugly reasons had flitted through his head more than once since they had picked up the Skjaldbr??ur trail.
The black-haired man who had been one of the two archers on the day the Khagan died was not among the seven, and Gansukh continued to puzzle over that man’s absence-as well as the absence of the other one, the grizzled veteran who led them. His body had not been accounted for either.
They had left two behind: the tall archer whom he and Alchiq had brought down, and another one-the wielder of the immense sword. Gansukh couldn’t believe such a blade could actually be swung, but the presence of several legless ponies near the man’s body had suggested otherwise.
The Skjaldbr??ur made little effort to hide themselves as they rode, and Gansukh wondered if it was arrogance that allowed them to think themselves invisible and invincible to any roving group of Mongol tribesmen or simply that they did not know where they were going. West was easy enough; they followed the track of the sun across the sky, reorienting themselves in the afternoon.
They were going home. They had accomplished what they came to do.
Having satisfied his curiosity as to the location and condition of the Skjaldbr??ur party, he climbed over the ridge and returned to his horse. He had shot several rabbits, and his stomach grumbled noisily at the thought of fresh meat for dinner. He rode north, losing himself in the endless grasslands of the steppe, until he reached the narrow stream. He followed it awhile, fording it at a place where it bent back on itself.
The camp was on the lee of a small rise, sheltered from the wind. His horse nickered as he approached, and he heard an answering call from the other horse.
Alchiq looked up from where he sat beside the fire, his leather jerkin in his lap, needle and thread in his hand.
Gansukh tossed the rabbits on the ground. “Still heading west,” he reported as he slid off his horse and went about taking off the saddle.
Alchiq nodded as he tied his thread, biting it off, and packed up his sewing kit. “Is she still with them?”
Gansukh began brushing his horse down. “She is.”
“Still think she didn’t betray us?”
And when Gansukh didn’t reply, Alchiq chuckled and began dressing the rabbits. “They’ll lead us to it,” he said. “And when we find the Spirit Banner, you can do whatever you like.”