She cut down a small alley sandwiched between two tents and plodded past a few campfires with the smell of breakfast clinging to them. Though it was still the early hours of the morning, the sun was up which meant the Trateri were up.
She headed for the tent where the scouts were given their assignments. Usually there were a couple of scouts hanging around outside. She hoped she’d find someone she knew.
“Shane!”
Clark’s hand was a blur as he stood up and waved madly to attract her attention. The men sitting with him studied her as she made her way over to the group.
She felt her stomach sink as she was greeted with an open curiosity verging on approval. They possibly knew about Fallon’s rescue.
Clark bounced to her side and grabbed her arm to drag her in front of the other men.
“This is Shane. He’s the one who came up with the idea to start the board of beasts.” The two on the left dipped their chins in acknowledgement.
“That’s a pretty impressive idea you had,” the larger one said gruffly. His hair was a scraggly mess reaching down to his shoulders, and his features were blunt and weather beaten. “The knowledge I’ve picked up from that book saved mine and my men’s asses more than once now.”
“My captain has made it an order that one of us is to report to the board of beasts before and after a patrol to get updates in case any new information has been put up there,” the younger one said. His warm, brown eyes twinkled with good will and his features still had a trace of baby fat.
“Clark played a bigger role in that than I did,” Shea said uncomfortably, grateful that they were talking about beasts and not Fallon.
“Don’t sell yourself short, boy,” the first man said. “Way Clark tells it, it was your idea originally. You got to accept praise when it comes your way. Else people begin to think you got false modesty, and you’re thinking you’re better than them.”
He finished his speech by taking a huge bit out of a biscuit and then gulping down some of his drink.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Clark piped up again. “Shane, is it true you’re the one who found the Hawkvale? That’s all anybody has been talking about since we rode into camp.”
Damn. She was hoping he hadn’t known. This meant everybody here knew as well.
“I heard you and your men refused to give Hawkvale to his personal guard and got punished for it,” the brown-eyed man said eagerly.
Shea gritted her teeth. Did everything from last night make the rounds? These men gossiped worse than the old biddies in Birdon Leaf.
All eyes were on Shea. Even those outside the circle of men she was talking to. Those at neighboring fires had given up any pretense of ignoring them and had turned to listen.
Left with no choice, Shea confirmed, “My team and I did find Hawkvale.”
Clark let out a whoop, and Shea cringed as his brown-eyed friend echoed it. The bigger man chewed thoughtfully on his biscuit while examining her closely. A low rumble came from the neighboring campsites, and three men stood and ambled closer to stand with arms folded over huge chests behind the three men sitting before Shea.
She shifted uneasily. So much for not drawing attention to herself.
“I told you,” Clark crowed. “I told you I knew him. I can’t believe this. I’m friends with the man who saved Hawkvale. You’re going to be a legend, Shane. After this, you’ll probably be promoted, and I’ll get to say I knew you when you were just a Daisy.”
Shea smiled tightly in response to the nods of appreciation and crossed her arms over her stomach.
“Clark, could I speak to you alone for a second?” Shea grabbed Clark’s arm and hauled him away before he could answer.
“Shane, what’s the rush?” Clark asked, nearly stumbling as she swept around a corner.
Her eyes darted around, making sure they were as alone as they could get in this tent city. No one seemed to be paying undue attention to them, but there was an itching sensation drilling into the back of her head as if they were being watched. Another subtle scan of the area didn’t reveal what set off her instincts, but she’d learned over the years to pay attention to them. They’d saved her life more than once.
There were men dressed in the distinctive green of a scout and the more common browns and tans of a front liner. None paid undue attention to Shea or her companion and continued on their way.
She took a deep breath, forcing a composure she didn’t feel.
“When’s your next mission?” she asked.
She felt a twinge of guilt at the innocent questions in his eyes.
“Not ‘til tomorrow morning. They wanted us to rest up a little. Why?”
How much should she tell him? Not the truth, but maybe a version of it.
She allowed some of the frustration she was feeling to register on her face and dragged a hand through her short hair. “This stuff with the Hawkvale is just making me a little antsy. All the attention is kind of getting to me. Not to mention our squad has been taken off the register for at least a week.” She gave him a sheepish smile. “I’ve never been in camp that long. I guess I was just hoping that I could tag along the next time you or one of the others head out.”
“I can ask Perry if you could come with us,” Clark offered.
As a scout, he understood what she was talking about. Sometimes spending all your time with a small group of men out in the great wide expanse made it difficult to come back to the chaos of camp life. Being forced into a rest could wind a scout up quicker than any beast encounter.
She considered his offer. Tomorrow would be too late. She needed to leave today. Preferably ten minutes from now.
“Still, it’d be a shame missing all this recognition,” Clark continued. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Hawkvale doesn’t throw you some kind of feast.”
She shrugged off-handedly. “I’ve never really been a fan of attention. Besides, I doubt they’ll invite me to any feast. I’m not Trateri.”
“I don’t think it’ll matter if you’re Trateri. You might even get adopted into a clan because of this.” Clark’s eyes lit in excitement. “That’d be something. If you became a true Trateri. You’d be one of us.”
“You wouldn’t happen to know of anybody who’s leaving sooner? For instance, this morning?”
Clark sighed, disappointment clear in his eyes. “I think Remy’s group is leaving this morning. I’ll ask if they can use another scout.”
Shane nearly leapt forward to hug Clark but at the last minute turned her excitement into a brisk pat on the back.
“Meet me at the corral in an hour,” he told her. “If he says yes, you’ll leave directly from there.”
Shea smiled big, and Clark stilled. He blinked, as if seeing something he hadn’t before. The smile fell from her face.
“Thanks, Clark. I owe you for this,” Shea continued, ignoring the look of surprise and speculation on Clark’s face.
“No problem.”
Shea’s mind was already on her small tent and its belongings, mentally cataloging what she needed for her journey and what she could leave behind. She gave him another distracted smile before setting off for her tent.
An hour later Shea leaned against the rough fence encircling the corral, bag packed, waiting for Clark and his friend. The sun felt good on her face and the morning had warmed significantly. It was going to be a hot one.