Waiting for the bell that would signal their departure, his mount jostling restlessly under him, Peter was letting his mind drift in these thoughts—it was only later that he would come to fully understand their bearing—when he lifted his eyes to see Alicia headed their way on foot from the Armory, moving at a purposeful clip. He expected her to stop in front of Theo’s mount—two Captains conferring, perhaps to discuss the night’s events and the possibility of mounting a smokehunt, to chase out the rest of the pod—but this was not what happened. Instead she moved straight past Theo to the back of the line.

“Forget it, Maus,” Alicia said sharply. “You’re not going anywhere.”

Mausami looked around—a gesture of puzzlement that Peter perceived at once as false. Everyone said Maus was lucky to have taken her looks from her mother—the same soft, oval face, and rich black hair that, when she undid it, fell to her shoulders in a dark wave. She carried more weight than many women did, but most of it was muscle.

“What are you talking about? How come?”

Alicia, standing below them, rested her hands on her slender hips. Even in the cool dawn light, her hair, which she wore tied back in a long braid, glowed a rich, honeyed red. She was, as always, wearing three blades on her belt. Everybody joked that she hadn’t paired yet because she slept with her blades on.

“Because you’re pregnant,” Alicia declared, “that’s how come.”

The group was stunned into a momentary silence. Peter couldn’t help it; turning in his saddle, he let his eyes fall quickly to Mausami’s belly. Well, if she was carrying, she wasn’t showing yet, though it was hard to tell under the loose fabric of the jersey. He glanced at Theo, whose eyes betrayed nothing.

“Well, how about that,” Arlo said. His lips curled into a broad grin inside the pocket of his beard. “I wondered when you two would get around to it.”

A deep crimson had bloomed across Mausami’s copper-colored cheeks. “Who told you?”

“Who do you think?”

Mausami looked away. “Flyers. I’m going to kill him, I swear it.”

Theo had shifted on his mount to face Mausami. “Galen’s right, Maus. I can’t let you ride.”

“Oh, what does he know? He’s been trying to get me off the Wall all year. He can’t do this.”

“Galen’s not doing it,” Alicia interjected. “I am. You’re off the Watch, Maus. That’s it, end of story.”