Aidan shrugged and admitted the truth. “No. I couldn’t. Still can’t.”

Her smile faded. Her breath hitched.

They stared at each other, the moment lasting for seconds or forever. Aidan didn’t know. They would have continued to stand there if Keita hadn’t returned to them and stamped her bare foot on the ground.

“Oy!” she barked. “Do you two mind? We have an empire to destroy! Move your asses!”

She stormed off and Aidan had to admit, “She is so much like her mother.”

Brannie snorted. “You tell her that, mate, at your own risk.”

* * *

Uther thought he’d be able to get some sleep, but the longer he stayed in that pub bed, the more awake he felt. Only not a normal awake, but an exhausted one.

He finally gave up, deciding an ale might help him sleep, and stumbled down to the first floor.

The pub was busy, all the tables filled with locals. A lot of talk about the war and rumors about recent Zealot attacks, including what had happened at Aberthol. Not surprisingly, everyone in the place was armed, even though most of them seemed like farmers.

Uther spotted Caswyn at a back table with the Riders and made his way over.

“Uther!” Zoya cheered. “Come. Sit, comrade. Barkeep,” she called out, “more of this watery ale!”

Many empty bowls cluttered the table, but for once Uther didn’t think Caswyn had emptied them. Not the way the Riders were still eating, shoveling food into their mouths.

Brannie had said they’d been starved while at the Zealot fort, but they hadn’t really looked deprived. Now, he wasn’t so sure. He’d never seen Kachka eat like this before.

“Sit, sit,” Zoya insisted.

He did as two serving girls came over. One cleared off the used bowls and the other poured more ale into everyone’s tankard.

“Bring food for our comrade, weak female,” Zoya told the serving girls, and Uther cringed. He’d always gone out of his way not to irritate serving girls because he didn’t want anyone pissing in his food.

“Thank you,” he said to the girl before she could do just that.

Kachka finished her bowl of food, dropped the spoon into it, and leaned back. She let out a loud sigh, which she followed up with a loud burp.

“Now I feel better,” she said to them.

“Was it very bad in that dungeon?” Caswyn asked.

“Could be worse,” she replied, reaching for bread and tearing the loaf in half. “They were scared of Riders, so they sealed us in cage and waited for us to die. But starving is not enough to kill Daughter of Steppes.”

“I believe that,” Uther said.

Biting off a huge chunk of the bread and chewing, Kachka asked, “Why were you there, Uther the Despicable?”

“Branwen didn’t tell you?”

“We had little time for talk. And coming here, all we could think of was eating.”