Sacrifice (The Snow Queen #2)(53)

“Is everything alright?” His voice was barely above a whisper.

“Yes.” Rakel smiled. “Everything is perfect.”



Farrin crouched uncomfortably in the shadows—tensed in an awkward position, but he dared not shift until the soldier five paces away moved along.

“Wow.” Phile leaned past him to peer through the gaps in the foliage of the evergreen tree in which they hid. “You like to get real close when spying.”

“You frequently move in even closer.” Farrin shifted so the tree’s needles no longer scratched his face.

“Oh, I haven’t the grace and the wondrous abilities to pull that off,” Phile said.

“You left carving marks with Foedus in my best desk the last time you went through my tent,” Farrin said.

“Well, there was that one time,” she acknowledged.

Snorri—the other scout Halvor had instructed him to take—turned to stare at her.

“What? Farrin had confused Little Wolf by telling her she would have to pound him.” Phile said.

“I don’t believe I used the term ‘pound,’” Farrin said. He watched Tenebris’s tent, deep in thought. I wasn’t aware of Snorri’s existence and shadowy magic until I witnessed it myself. Could he sneak closer while using his power? “Snorri, can you get just outside the tent?”

Snorri mumbled something, saluted him, and then melted into the shadows.

“Where is Bunny?” Phile asked.

Farrin pointed to the crow sitting on the bare tree branch that stretched over Tenebris’s tent.

“You don’t think they’ll guess?” Phile asked.

“No one—superior or underling—was informed of Bunny’s crow form, except for me.”

“Saving it just in case, eh? I wonder who is more paranoid, you or Rakel.”

“It was not a move of paranoia but of respect. Bunny has several shapes she can change into—including a few she has not told me of. It is for her safety,” Farrin said.

“I suppose that’s fair. Which reminds me, we need to have a chat.” Phile flipped out her ugly dagger and was somehow able to toss it back and forth between her hands in spite of all the branches webbed around her.

Rakel said Phile never told the same story twice about how she got the weapon, but Farrin was certain it was magical. I can’t fully deflect it. She’s nicked me more times this season than I’ve been hit by any one person for years. “You wish to hold a conversation in the middle of a scouting mission, while we are sitting in a tree near the heart of the enemy camp?”

“Yeah,” Phile said. “I find adrenaline and the fear of getting caught often produce more honest answers.”

Farrin exhaled in exasperation. “What do you want?”

“This is very important, do you understand? This is a question you must stake your life and code of honor on. I very much doubt you will ever face such an important conversation again in your lifetime.”

The Robber Maiden likely would have gone on, but Farrin removed his gaze from Tenebris’s tent long enough to give her a flat look.

“Okay, fine.” She leaned close. “This is it: Phile is both a girl’s name and a boy’s name, so it will be the perfect name for your first child.”

“What.”

“The first brat Rakel gives birth to. You really ought to name it Phile.”

Farrin stared at her. She uses the exterior of a blissful imbecile to lure others into whatever trap her wicked mind comes up with. No wonder she and Rakel are friends—they are both fiendishly clever.

Farrin went back to scrutinizing the tent, nursing a pinprick of resentment that Phile would attempt to use his feelings for Rakel as leverage.

“I’m being serious,” Phile said.

“You do not often say something without hidden depths and calculations. What is it you are after?” Farrin asked.

“Eck. Aren’t you a saddlebag of fun? What I’m telling you, Farrin Graydim, is that you shouldn’t give up hope with Rakel, but you need to be crazy careful with the way you approach her. If you get too intense, she is going to leave you faster than a king loses money.”

“Tell me, how does King Steinar feel about your poor attitude towards his station?”

“I can’t help it. I was raised from a babe to distrust people who decree they’re better than anyone else—which actually excludes Steinar, as he has quite the low opinion of himself,” she said. “But we’re not talking about Rakel’s kid brother. We’re talking about Rakel. And you.”

“Yes? Is this where you intend to threaten me to take care of her and promise not to hurt her?”

“No, there’s no need for that. I’ve liked you from the start—and even if I didn’t, standing outside her room for a week solid without moving was a pretty good indicator you will keep her from encountering any harm. I just want to make sure you know that it is okay for you to pursue her,” Phile said.

Farrin tilted his head and listened. “Thank you for your blessing?” he said, only half paying attention to the conversation.

Phile opened her mouth to say more, but Farrin silenced her, raising a finger to his lips.

Tenebris stormed from his tent, his face twisted with dark rage. A uniformed soldier followed him, cringing as Tenebris fixed his face so it no longer resembled the visage of a monster.