Page 77 of The Threadbare Queen

“I know it.” Gregor’s eyes were dark and he seemed to search her face for something. “And what is your gift?” he asked.

She shook her head. That was a question she would not answer. Not to someone she didn’t know. Not to someone shedidknow, come to that. “I have no gift.” As she spoke, Evelyn stepped out of the cart.

At last.

Ava tore another strip of bark off the stump she was sitting on and began to weave it into a knot, keeping her head down as Evelyn gave her a long look as she skirted the fire pit.

“Your sister doesn’t like you,” Gregor said, consideringly.

Ava gave a tiny shake of her head, not to disagree but to end the conversation. Evelyn disappeared in-between the trees on the river bank.

It was time.

She rose to her feet, keeping her footsteps shuffling as she made her way to the cart.

Sirna had gone hunting with his friend, Reckhart, the one who’d let him join the caravan. They were armed with bow and arrow, looking for a deer for the fire tonight.

If she could shake Gregor loose, she could do a thorough search.

“Reckhart has let a viper into our midst, hasn’t he?” Gregor was just behind her. “Sirna’s done this to you. Made you ill.”

Ava closed her eyes against his persistence. He needed to leave her alone.

And then she shrugged.

He seemed on her side. He probably wouldn’t tell Sirna what she was up to.

She would look anyway.

This was the first chance she’d had to access the inside of the cart since the day before, and she was going to take it.

Gregor could watch her if he wanted to.

She pulled the door open and latched it in place to keep it from swinging shut.

She needed as much light as possible to do this fast.

“You’re looking for something."

She turned to look at Gregor, lips in a sardonic twist, and he looked back at her, calm and patient.

“Why are you so interested?”

“Because I have a feeling that you are a good example of what might happen to Melodie in the future. So I’m trying to understand what brought you here, and why, so I can make sure she doesn’t follow the same path.”

Ava gave a low laugh as she pulled the bedding off the narrow bench and onto the floor. Then she lifted the wooden slats to look into the deep box below.

“You think this is apathI’ve taken?” She couldn’t help the snort that escaped.

“Then what? Tell me.” His voice was urgent.

She glanced at him over her shoulder as she sorted through the clothing, shoes, cloaks and other personal items in the box.

She tried to keep her features blank but something in her eyes must have given her away because he made a noise at the back of his throat, an angry, explosive sound.

“Is this what my girl has to look forward to?” He spoke through his teeth. “Being starved, left to sleep outside in the cold, stripped of her clothes, stripped of her wits, too?”

Ava sighed as she pulled the wooden slats back and smoothed the bedding out. It hadn’t been neatly set to rights before, so she decided she could get away with leaving it messy.

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