Page 41 of The Prince's Sacrifice

They climbed higher and reached the rain, which was sheeting down unrelentingly. It made it harder to see, evenwith the glow of Tor’s magic. The trees began to thin out, and the ground turned stonier. There were spots where they passed between two tall walls of rock. Pel imagined this was not pleasant for Tor, but he looked like he was concentrating fiercely, and Pel hoped that meant he wasn’t noticing his surroundings too much.

Pel’s hair was plastered to his skull now, his well-oiled cloak unable to keep up with the deluge. He was wet through. It was summer, at least, but between the mountains, the wind, and it being the middle of the night, it was chillier than Pel had expected.

Water was rushing past them down the path now, bouncing off the ground and sending small rocks skittering and making everything slick and treacherous. Thunder boomed frequently around them, along with cracks of lightning that briefly lit up the world and then plunged it back into just the glow of their shields. The horses were not happy, and it was all the riders could do to keep them moving. Still, they climbed, moving as quickly as they could.

And then Cavun called out a warning and stopped. Coming closer, they realized there’d been a rockfall. Rocks obscured most of the path, though there was a narrow, rock-strewn opening that remained open or had been cleared.

It was too narrow for a horse.

Cavun swore. “We’ll need to get a patrol out here properly. Look at clearing the path.”

Needless to say, that wasn’t going to help them right now.

“Is there another way around?” Tor demanded. “Would the guards have gone this way?”

“They must have,” Cavun said, shaking his head. “I mean, in daylight, I might be able to find an alternate route, but probably not one that’s suitable for horses. And there isn’t any sign of anyone having gone elsewhere, is there?”

Not that Pel could see. Not hundreds of guards.

Tor dismounted, and the rest of them did the same. “I have to keep going.”

“I will shoot you with one of my arrows if you try to leave me behind,” Pel told him flatly.

Tor almost smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I don’t like that they’re pressing on in these conditions.”

Pel didn’t, either.

“We’re with you, Your Highness,” Beluna said firmly, and the other two nodded.

“Someone needs to stay with the horses,” Tor told them. “I don’t want to tie them up in this weather, if there’s even anywhere to tie themto. I’d prefer we have a way to get back down the mountain in a hurry if need be.”

The three guards eyed one another, and then Beluna said, “Den, you stay with the horses.”

He opened his mouth like he was about to protest, but she stared him down, and he finally said, “All right.”

He took all the reins and then said, “I think we passed a spot a bit further back where we can gather under a bit of shelter. I’ll wait there.”

Pel hadn’t noticed, but he’d been straining to see anything ahead of them.

“Thank you,” Tor told him. He hesitated for a moment. “If we’re not back by morning, please report to King Forex and then to the High King in Alossa. He’ll reimburse you for any expenses.”

Denil swallowed and then nodded. “Yes, Your Highness.”

Tor renewed the magic grips on the horses and then tossed them onto the humans as well. They all walked a few paces. It didn’tfeellike they were walking on magic, but Pel noticed that the ground didn’t feel quite as slippery, either.

“Thank you,” Pel murmured, as did the others.

“It should stay for a few hours,” Tor told Denil. “Be careful.”

“Yes, Your Highness. You, too.”

Ill at ease but knowing they had no other choice, Pel followed Cavun through the cleared section of the path. Small rocks shifted treacherously under their feet or rolled down from the mass of rocks they were trying to pass between. All of them stumbled more than once, even with the magic grips.

Finally, they emerged on the other side of the rockfall. Pel wasn’t the only one who breathed a sigh of relief. Tor looked paler than he had when they’d entered. They stayed closer together now, but Cavun went a bit ahead and Beluna took up the rear, with Tor and Pel walking side by side between them.

It might almost have been pleasant if it wasn’t for the thunderstorm raging around them, the fact that they were soaking wet, and the knowledge that they might be heading for a slaughter.

“Is there an actual plan?” Pel asked as quietly as he could while still being heard by Tor over the storm.