I give him another smile, but this time there’s less heart in it. The word outlaw isn’t one I ever thought would apply to me. I always dreamed I’d be a rider, a champion. The choice I made has good and bad consequences both. My family will have enough money now to change their lives forever. I made sure to check the law ahead of time. The Ashlords emphasize personal responsibility above all else. My rebellion cannot be charged to my family.

Which means Prosper can get a proper education. Farian can study film at any university he wants. My father can stop working three jobs. It takes effort to remind myself that those blessings outweigh the curse attached to them: I’ll never get to go back home.

The best-case scenario is that I survive this, settle into my cousin’s village, and live life as a rancher. Martial is slick enough to help my family visit from time to time, but I’ll miss birthdays and celebrations and all of it. I didn’t know how much I wanted a better life for them until this moment, until I knew exactly what it would cost me to get it for them.

Bastian must recognize the change in my expression, because he keeps walking beside me but doesn’t say a word. The quiet is enough to drive me crazy, though, so I force the conversation in the hopes of thinking about something less sad.

“Where are we going?”

Bastian nods in the distance. “Gig’s Wall. It’s past the first few villages. Our base of operations on this side of the mountain. We’ll camp there and then move through the passes. The plan is to escort you to your uncle’s village.” His cheeks brighten. “Or you could join us. Always need extra hands. It’s your call really.”

He doesn’t wait for an answer this time. Instead, he slides back up to the front of our column and leaves me to consider the life I left behind, and the life that waits ahead.

It’s past noon when we reach the first village. From below, all I can see are the slanting roofs and stone chimneys. Bastian has the rest of the group march an overgrown path, well out of sight. But he walks in the open and flashes a series of signals as he does. I don’t know who’s watching or what any of it means, but fear settles like deadweight in my chest. I realize for the first time I’ve trusted my fate to people I don’t know, and I’m stuck in a place I know even less. I’ve been trusting them because Luca is with them. And because Bastian is nice and they’re Dividian like me. But is that enough?