My next leap was drastic, but again, I felt pretty confident of my instincts. “You’re going to surrender to Varia, aren’t you?” It seemed logical. They weren’t a big enough force to stage a rebellion, but underneath the wear and tear, something about this group said they weren’t commoners. I was certain they were here to negotiate. “So are we.”

Some of them shifted uncomfortably. “It’s the best thing for our people,” the woman said, almost defensively. “That’s what matters.”

“It is,” I agreed, hoping I sounded compassionate. “There’s no need to be ashamed.”

“We never said we were,” she said. Clearly this was a sensitive topic, which I understood perfectly.

The blond man lowered his sword, which I took as an excellent sign. “Are you going to Withywele?”

“Yes,” said Dorian quickly, before anyone could mess up the story. He lowered his sword too. “We assumed that would be the place to find the queen. A guide gave us directions.”

“You’ve never been there?”

“No.”

The spokesman turned and murmured a few words to his group. Most of them nodded, though a couple—like the woman—shook their heads emphatically. At last, the blond man turned his attention back to us. “We know the way. If you wish, you may travel with us. It will certainly help to have more of us to face the peacekeepers.”

I glanced at Dorian and was met with a puzzled shake of the head. “What are the peacekeepers?”

“A jest of a term,” said the Hemlock woman, scowling. “Queen Varia leaves certain enchantments and obstacles in her subservient kingdoms to keep them in line. The residents are given ways to avoid them and be safe ... unless they displease her. The peacekeepers also discourage outsiders.”

Kiyo spoke up. “Would you consider a group of dryads part of this, uh, peacekeeping?”

The woman nodded gravely. “Most certainly. They’re an excellent force to be used against strangers—but can be coaxed to leave natives alone.”

“Give us a second,” I said.

Hoping I wouldn’t be attacked in the back, I turned and walked back to the group with Dorian. “I don’t trust them,” said Rurik promptly.

“Nor should we,” said Dorian. “Not entirely. Though, they may be useful if they know the Yew Land—and about these ‘peacekeepers.’ That certainly would’ve been helpful information earlier when we met those wenches.”

“Volusian couldn’t have known,” I said, barely believing I was defending my minion.

Kiyo sighed. “I don’t like the idea of traveling with strangers, but we certainly need all the intel we can get.”

“They don’t look any happier about traveling with us than we do with them,” said Pagiel. It was a remarkably observant statement. “We could probably pretty much keep to ourselves until we got to Withywele. Even there, they might be able to help us with the city.”