His lips turned up like he’d been expecting the question. “The Croven aren’t close, as far as I can tell.”

It wasn’t the exact answer she’d wanted, but good to hear nonetheless. “Who is he—Marron?”

“A friend. A trader. A ruler. A bit of everything.” His eyes dropped to her shaking shoulders. “Can’t have a fire.”

“Because someone would see the smoke?”

He nodded. “Or scent it.”

She looked at his restless hands. “You don’t sit still much, do you?”

He slid the knife through a leather strap at his boot. “Being still makes me tired.”

That made no sense, but she wasn’t going to ask and risk upsetting what felt like a fragile truce.

He crossed his arms and then uncrossed them. “How do you feel?”

A tingle ran down her back. This was so strange. Him, asking her this. Far more intimate than it should have felt. Because she knew he wanted to know. He didn’t ask empty questions or waste words.

“I want to go home.”

It was a weak answer and she knew it, but how could she explain? Her body was changing, and it wasn’t just that she was menstruating. Her senses were filled with the trickle of the creek and the smell of pine in the air. Her whole awareness was shifting. Like every cell in her body was stretching its arms and yawning off sleep. Sure, she ached in her feet. And she still had the headaches and a dull pain low in her stomach. Yet in spite of all her ailments, she didn’t feel like a girl whose life was slipping away.

Perry stood. Perry, she realized. Not Peregrine. It seemed her subconscious had decided what to make of him. She unwrapped herself from the blanket, her muscles aching and reluctant to move again. They might as well walk, she supposed, if they weren’t going to sleep. Then she noticed the way Perry stared into the darkness.

“What is it?” she asked, shooting to her feet. “Is it the Croven?”

He shook his head, still gazing into the woods. Perry cupped his hands around his mouth. “Roar!”

The sound of his raised voice made her heart stop.

“Roar, you rancy bastard! I know you’re out there! I can smell you from here!”

A moment later, a whistle broke into the air, echoing through the mountain pass.

Perry looked down at her, a striking grin on his face. “Our luck just turned.”