Page 77 of Grave Situation

“Horrifying, but not very interesting,” Jaimin replies, straightening from his crouch. “I was hoping to find some kind of weakness, but…” He shakes his head. “There is something strange, but I’m not sure if it’s noteworthy or just the fact that they’re zombies. They all have the same… resonance.”

“The fact that they’re zombies is fairly noteworthy on its own,” Tia comments, stabbing an arm that tries to reach for us. I prudently take a step back.

Jaimin smiles faintly, unfazed by the fingers straining in his direction. “True, but we already knew about that.” He shakes his head. “I’m on this journey for a reason, and I’m determined to discover what it is.”

“You’re here to keep me from murdering Talon.” My beloved sister winks at him. “And to make the vote go my way when the sensible solution is camping, but he wants to keep riding to find a village.”

Iknewthey were conspiring against me! I open my mouth to indignantly reply, but Coryn calls, his voice dripping with menace, “He’s awake.”

“Burn the remains,” Jaimin orders as he and Tia walk away, leaving me with my mouth hanging open and wondering when “expedition leader” turned into “lackey.”

A foot starts to inch in my direction, and I hasten to shoot magefire at it, deciding titles and positions aren’t really all that important, and who cares if Jaimin makes a suggestion or two along the way?

Once all the limbs and other things are ash, I go to join the others. The prisoner is sitting up, looking pasty and shaky, his wound still bleeding sluggishly. His eyes are guarded, and I don’t blame him. Coryn looks positively murderous, and Tia’s not far behind. Even Jaimin’s face is bleak.

But nobody’s spoken yet.

Time for me to take back the reins. Metaphorically. I already know Sweetie’s the one in charge of the actual reins.

“Who are you?” My voice seems ridiculously loud.

His eyes flick to me, but he doesn’t speak.

“You were asked a question.” Coryn looms over the man, sword somehow still dripping. How much blood was even on it? Did he add more for effect?

The prisoner still doesn’t speak, and Coryn looks at me. “Would you like me to break some of his fingers?”

I really hope he’s posturing and that’s not something the soldiers of Lenle actually do. Also, I like him better when he’s begging for cuddles. Warrior Coryn is terrifying.

“One moment,” I say. I want to check something first. If the mage who raised the zombies has put some kind of compulsion on this man, he won’t be able to tell us anything. And I draw the line at torturing someone who literally cannot comply with our demands.

I reach out and carefully sift through the top layer of the man’s brain, the part that’s always open. This is where I “knock” for other telepaths. It’s like a doorstep or front porch—part of the mind, but not inside where all the valuable stuff is.

There’s a shield there, just as I feared. Fuck.

Probing at it carefully, I try to glean any information I can without setting off any booby traps—if there are any. I’m fairly sure whoever built this isn’t as strong a telepath as I am, but it would still take me time to dismantle it. Time we don’t have right now, on the road so close to the border with Camblin.

“We definitely can’t bring him with us?” I check, even though I know the answer.

“No,” Tia replies, not bothering to add an explanation. She doesn’t need to—I’ve heard it already.

I let my magic slide along the shield, aware of the eyes on me, Tia and Jaimin waiting, Coryn and the prisoner a little confused. The shield has a different mental signature than the man’s mind, so he definitely didn’t build it himself—or if he did, he’s a master telepath beyond the ability of anyone alive. He would have had to make it look like he was completely unTalented, that a different mind created the shieldandlike that person was only a mid-level telepath. The latter, I could do—though not all that well yet—but the other… I’ve never heard of anyone being able to do that.

“He can’t tell us anything,” I say at last, disappointment almost choking me.

Tia’s jaw sets. “Can you get information from him another way?”

It takes me a moment to realize what she’s suggesting. “No.” The only fast way to do that would be to smash through the shield, and that would more than likely leave the man a vegetable, nothing left in his mind for me to see. If we had time for me to dismantle the shield, then yes, theoretically I would beable to take the information from his brain… but just the idea makes me want to squirm. “It would take too long. He’s been shielded.”

She mutters a curse. “It was worth a try. Go back to your horse—Jaimin, you too.”

I take a step back, knowing what’s coming, but somehow, I can’t bring myself to go. If we have to kill this man in cold blood, why should I be spared the discomfort of that? Being expedition leader means taking responsibility for the decisions that are made.

As I hesitate, Tia tugs at my mind, and I reach out.“I’m staying.”

“You don’t want to see this. I mean it—go. Nobody will think anything of it. You’re not trained for this.”

“I’m staying. He might be our enemy, but he’s a person still, and he deserves this courtesy.”

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