Page 90 of The Threadbare Queen

And she was too far away.

“Where is your healer?” he asked. Cervantes’ healers were good, using natural remedies to treat pain and fever, and most apprenticed for years to learn how to set bones and stitch cuts. Dorea, the Cervantes healer who’d traveled with the Rising Wave, had been invaluable in their march on Fernwell.

They hadn’t brought her with them on this mission, though. He’d rightly expected the ride to be hard and fast, so Rafe had chosen some soldiers who’d spent some time learning field dressings and basic patch-ups from Dorea, rather than someone who might be useful after a fight but would slow them down.

“Our healers were taken.” Sierra smoothed a hand down her baby’s back. “Both of them. We were able to inflict a few injuries and it seems the Jatan didn’t bring healers of their own.”

“How did they know who your healers were?” Luc couldn’t believe they would have had that level of information.

“They captured a few of the older people and threatened to kill them if our healers didn’t step forward. Dagar and Calintha did so of their own accord.”

“Where did they take them?” Revek had come in while Sierra had been talking, but Luc had seen him standing outside when Rafe had stepped in. He’d heard everything.

Luc could see his hands shook slightly.

Rev was almost as close to Sierra as Massi, and he kept his eyes averted from her, as if looking at her injured child would rip the last threads of his control away.

“Eduard followed them.” Sierra dipped a cloth in cool water and brushed it over her baby’s face and neck. “He returned less than an hour before you arrived. We thought you were the Jatan at first, that they’d seen him and followed him back. They’ve set up a camp under two hours away, just out of sight of Ta-lin. They seem to have lain low today and we’re guessing they’re planning to raid Ta-lin tonight.”

“Bold,” Rafe said.

“They’ve hardly encountered any resistance at all. They’re confident.” Luc shared a look with Rafe, as Revek was still concentrating on the floor.

That confidence was about to be crushed.

Chapter 22

“When do we kill them?” Revek hunkered down beside Luc, looking toward Hurst’s camp, which was surprisingly quiet and dark.

Luc turned to look at him. “You can kill as many as you like, but only when it’s time. If you’re going to ignore the plan, I’d prefer you return to Versai and stand watch there.”

Revek looked away.

Eventually he gave a nod, eyes still downcast.

They’d made good time from Versai, with Eduard leading the way directly to the shallow hollow where the Jatan had settled for the night. Luc thought the Jatan would be moving around by now, getting ready to raid Ta-lin, unless they’d already left, and he’d gotten here too late.

Revek’s gaze kept going toward the camp and Luc suppressed a sigh. Revek would be difficult to control after seeing baby Roan’s injuries.

He had to admit that he wasn’t completely sure of his own control, either. But he had to be coolheaded if they were going to crush Hurst without any more deaths to his own people.

He didn’t care how many Jatan died. All thoughts of long-term diplomacy were gone.

The Rising Wave would find it difficult to deal in good faith with the Jatan again.

“We’ll need a distraction while we rescue the healers. I’m happy for you to be involved in that, but only if you think you’re capable of pulling back when it’s time.” He intended to cripple Hurst’s unit and take whoever was left alive as a prisoner.

The soldier who’d whistled for her dog, Tara, had ridden hard from Versai straight to Ta-lin, to warn them of what was coming.

Given how quiet things were here, Luc hoped they were just waiting until the early hours of the morning for their attack, and that Tara wasn’t going to find the capital already under siege.

“Sierra needs the healers for her baby. We have to get them out before the fighting starts.” Luc pressed the point home, and Revek gave a savage jerk of his head in acknowledgement.

Luc turned to Rafe, trusting his captain to have a cooler head, although he could tell the older soldier was deeply affected.

They all were.

“Hold things together here. We can’t let them know we’re here.”

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