“Give me the rope.” I stomped to Jean Luc’s side, seizing his bag. The coil sat at the top. Right. Squaring my shoulders, I turned to face the witch. The others watched in rapt fascination. “Don’t make this difficult.”

Her eyes fell to the rope in my hand. Her smile faltered. “You’re kidding.”

“I don’t kid. Give me your wrists. You can walk behind the horse.”

“Fuck you.”

Coco slid from her own horse now, coming to stand beside Lou. “Don’t make us tie you to the horse, Reid.” She lifted her wrist to place a thumbnail upon it. A threat. “If you talk to her like that again, it would be my pleasure.”

My hands tightened on the rope. “Try.”

Beau rolled his eyes. “Honestly, brother, will you insist on this asshattery at every turn? If so, it’s going to be a very long trip.”

“I’m not riding anywhere with that witch.”

Without my Balisarda, I was virtually defenseless. She could attack me even now, and I wouldn’t be able to stop her. As if sensing that thought, Lou snorted. “You aren’t in any more danger on the horse.” Stepping into the stirrup, she swung her leg over its back. “Don’t be stupid, Chass. Climb up. You can tie me up later if you’d like, but I’m not walking anywhere.”

I glared up at her. “I don’t trust you.”

Her answering smile was hard. “I don’t particularly trust you either, which is why you should know”—she brushed the sheath at her thigh—“I’ll gut you like a fish if you try anything.”

I didn’t move. Coco didn’t either. Her eyes narrowed on my bandolier. “Not good enough. Give me your knives.”

“That isn’t going to happen.”

Lou tipped her face up to the sky, exhaling heavily. “It’s fine, Coco. I’ve kicked his ass before. I can do it again.”

“We’re wasting time,” Célie urged.

Jean Luc shot me an impatient look. “Just get on the horse, Reid.”

Judas.

Reluctant, furious, I hoisted myself behind her, reaching around to take hold of the reins. She relinquished them freely. “Be very careful,” I warned her, voice low. “You may have magic, but you aren’t the only one who can gut a fish.”

She turned her face toward mine. “I’m not the only one who has magic either.” When I nudged our horse into a trot, following the others, she asked, “Have you heard them yet? The voices?”

I glared straight ahead. “I am sound of mind.”

“For now.”

I ignored the bait. Ignored her altogether. Until— “Beau said we’re riding toward a castle?”

“Chateau le Blanc.” She settled between my arms, heaving a terse sigh when I shoved her forward once more. “My ancestral home.”