Page 119 of Mikoto and the Reaver Village
His musing were interrupted by the arrival of three reaversin the small clearing at the base of his hideaway. Had they managed to trackhim? That was promising.
No Kith in evidence. Should he trip a new trap? Just to seeif they’d learned their lesson.
Earlier, the rookies had taken two hours to realize he’dcompromised four of their members. If not for the Kith in their midst, theymight never have realized that they’d begun trapping each other instead of him.
A low growl. A soft hiss.
Sinder glanced over his shoulder and winced as the twistpulled at his injuries. “He warded you? Smart.”
Timur’s feline partner crouched in the shadow of a bush,orange eyes burning with predatory zeal.
“Then again, he said you were the smart one.” Sinder didnotlike the twitch in Fend’s tail. “You going to let me off easy?”
The panther’s lips peeled back, baring fangs, and his growlescalated into a snarl.
Sinder swore and sprang away, barely evading Fend’s pounce.The animal’s scream alerted the battlers and spurred Sinder through thetreetops. He’d have to add a line in his report about warding the Kith, whichwas terrifyingly effective. Hisoka would be pleased. Michaelson and Fend wereexactly what Naroo-soh needed—invulnerable and innovative.
Teetering to a halt on the sagging limb of an old pine, heworked his way closer to the trunk and climbed to one of the hideaways he’dcreated back when the rookies were more gullible. The scent of tree sap wasn’tthe best cover, but if he was lucky, he could catch his breath.
“Let me have a look.”
Sinder started violently enough to lose his balance, but stronghands grabbed his wrists. Which was a little too much like being held captive.But his captor turned him loose and raised both hands.
“Peace, Sinder. Or should I call you Damsel?” SalaliFullstash grinned at him from under the brim of a battered hat. “I’m a neutralparty in these games, so you’re not caught.”
“Salali,” he mumbled. “Right. Thank you for your concern,but I’m fine.”
“Let me have a look,” he repeated with calm authority. “Orthe scent of blood will give away your position quicker than a sneeze.”
Was he bleeding? Sinder pressed a hand to the stitch in hisside.
“Hold this.” Salali pressed a blue pebble into his hand. “Gent,pass him Merl’s bundle.”
An overlarge blue jay dropped through the pine boughs andhopped sideways along the branch. From his beak dangled a cloth bag. Sinderaccepted it with a puzzled nod.
“Eat,” ordered Salali, who was busily unwinding lengths ofgauze.
The bundle contained bite-sized squares of dense cake, thickwith dried fruit and nuts. Popping one into his mouth, Sinder slowly chewed.And immediately felt better. He hadn’t realized he was hungry. Rookie mistake.“Thanks,” he mumbled.
“Thank Ginkgo.” Salali slowly daubed a greenish paste onto theworst gash. Something antiseptic but laced with spikenard. “He owes me a favor.The goo and goodies are from Merl.”
Sinder mumbled around a mouthful. “As much as I needed afriend in my corner, this feels like cheating.”
“For all we know, the rogue has allies, too.” Salali shiftedin midair to doctor a different abrasion. “It could explain why there areglimmers of brilliance in a pattern dominated by baser instincts.”
A second individual, somehow party to the crimes? Did therogue—like Timur—have a smart partner? Someone with intelligence and influence.That was a chilling thought.
“Can I add that bit of speculation to my next report?”Sinder asked.
“Depends who you’re reporting to.”
“Twineshaft.”
“Tell him,” said Salali. “Tell him everything. Even if itdoesn’t seem important. Even if it doesn’t seem related.”
Sinder muttered, “I’ll know.”
“What’ll you know?” countered the squirrel clansman lightly.
