They rode through the night and most of the next day until Phoenix insisted they stop. The other two, especially Trey, were looking dead on their horses from fatigue. According to Abigail, they could reach Osha by the next evening if they rode hard after a few hours of sleep. 

They pulled off the main road for a rest, Phoenix missing the trees of Fangralee or the caverns of the Pass to help keep them hidden. She felt exposed on the open plains, with nothing but their bedrolls and her keen eyes to keep them safe. The grass, a budding green in the early onslaught of spring, barely reached her ankles.

"You need to sleep, too," Abigail said, putting together some of the victuals Gwen had brought them from the kitchens. 

Phoenix suppressed a yawn, shaking her head. "One of us needs to keep an eye out and I need less sleep than either of you." She poked Trey, who had already nodded off once since they stopped. "Hey - stay awake long enough to eat." 

"I'm so tired," he said in a murmur, accepting the food Abigail handed him. He sat in between Phoenix and Abigail, protected on either side.

"I'm sure you are, but a growing boy needs food just as much as sleep." Abigail's soft smile drew a similar expression from Trey as he bit into a bit of bread. 

"This food is amazing," Abigail said as she, too, partook. "Better than anything I've ever had - even in Osha at the palace feasts. And this is after being packed in a bag all day."

Phoenix tested her own meal. Abigail had taken slices of bread and put cheese and some cold turkey on it. Not in the least bit fancy. Yet as Phoenix bit into the sandwich, every sense seemed to dance with bursts of flavor and delight. 

"There's no sauce," Abigail continued, eyeing her portion. "But it's as though I taste cranberries and gravy - and the bread is so buttery."

Phoenix swallowed, savoring the moment. "I think Gwen's gift might be culinary. There's no reason for this to be as good as it is."

"More please," Trey said, his mouth full and his hands empty. Abigail laughed and pulled out a few more supplies. 

"I'm going to be disappointed to be home with normal food." Her smile faltered, and Phoenix winced automatically at the lie. "I'm not endangering them, am I?"

"We may need to keep you hidden," Phoenix said as Trey finished yet another sandwich. "The last thing we need is for them to try and execute you again."

"I don't want to do that again." Trey's eyes grew wide, his whole body tensing. Phoenix felt a cold fill the air. "I don't want--"

"Trey," Phoenix put a hand on his shoulder, looking him straight in the eye. As she held his gaze, she felt the connection grow, linking him to her feelings. "I won't let anyone hurt you ever again, okay? You're going to be safe."

"It's me we should be worried about," Abigail said with a wink as she nudged him. "You're going to be the nephew of the Trusos. No one will know you're the boy from the orphanage. My face is a bit easier to remember."

"If Eric is in Osha," Phoenix said with surety, "you won't be in any danger from the queen."

#

Trey fell asleep within minutes of lying down, his bedroll stretched out between the two women, but Abigail forced herself to stay awake. Phoenix knew it was for her sake, but no amount of prodding could convince Abigail to rest.

"It's not going to do any good, you know," she said with a yawn. "I'm staying up if you're staying up."

"You forget I'm a supernatural being. I don't need sleep like you."

"Are you going to call for Castor like Finny said?" Abigail asked, changing the subject. "I'd like to meet him if he's Eric's Watcher."

Phoenix frowned. Part of her felt guilty for calling Castor instead of Altair, but she knew Altair would be more cryptic in his responses - if he even showed up. Closing her eyes, Phoenix concentrated on Castor, calling out for him from within as she spoke his name. "Castor?"

He appeared in his usual bright white glow, blinding both Phoenix and Abigail. They threw their hands up to block the light and it faded until only his face was obscured. 

"Sorry, I forget how it is with mortals." He addressed Abigail, who squinted up at him from where she sat. Before she could respond, he stretched out his hand. "Abigail, I'm Castor." 

She accepted his greeting, mouth opening and closing as no words came out. Phoenix bit back a smile as Castor sat down with them at the head of Trey's bedroll. The child continued to snooze, unaware of the Ancient so near. 

"You called?" Castor asked, turning his attention to Phoenix. 

Her lips twitched in a smirk. "You don't know why?"

"I'm a Watcher, not a Knower. I see things, but not all things, and I only know some things," he said, and she could hear the smile in his tone. 

"We're headed to Osha." 

"That much I had gathered." Castor spread his arms wide to indicate the plains around them. "What I don't know is why you'd go there." He glanced at Abigail. "Or maybe I do." He considered her for a long moment. "Ares loves you deeply. And you love him, yes?"

Abigail nodded. "More than anyone."  Phoenix felt the twinge of deceit - not a lie, but not the truth, either. 

"I can't imagine that kind of pain," Castor said, still looking at her. "To choose someone you know will die long before you."

"What do you mean?" Abigail asked, tensing. "Eric's going to die?"

"Perhaps, but I meant you. His life will long outstrip yours. You are mortal, and while not immortal, he teeters on the edge - his life will last four times that of yours at the very least. Any children you would have would be given a similar longevity." 

Abigail gaped at him, face paling, and Phoenix decided to pull them back on track.

"She needs to get back to her family," Phoenix said. "And Trey needs somewhere safer than the Militia to hide - they tried to kill him."

"Yes, I had heard that." Castor's head dropped as he considered the child. "He's very powerful. Someone doesn't want his gifts near the throne."

"But why? What does weather have to do with the race for the crown?" Phoenix brushed back Trey's hair, watching the troubled purse of his lips, even in sleep.

"I wish I knew. Much of him has been hidden from us, but we don't know by whom."

"That's obvious, isn't it?" Phoenix asked, straightening. "Narissa hid Eric from you, she's obviously hidden Trey, too."

Castor shook his head. "You forget, Phe, there's more at play here than Narissa. There's a traitor in our midst - among the Ancients. Altair believes it's one of the Ancient Order, though if that's true they are hiding their nature well."

"Why would the traitor want to hide Trey from you? Couldn't someone just be hiding him from you to keep him safe?"

"Safe from his own parents?" Castor asked. "We aren't even sure who they are because of this. And while weather may not seem like a dangerous element - you saw what he did with that blizzard." 

"But he'll be safer in Osha with my family?" Abigail's hopeful tone broke Phoenix's heart. She had such a matronly aura about her.

"I fear he won't be safe anywhere, but near Ares and Phoenix would be better than anywhere else."

"Except when Eric and I aren't exactly on the same side," Phoenix said with a frown. Castor fell silent for a moment.

"You and Eric will never be at your strongest unless you're together. You're made to work side by side, not to antagonize one another. There are things going on in Osha right now - unavoidable things - that would be better with you there."

"Better? But how am I supposed to make things better while hiding out at Abigail's? I hadn't planned on staying once she was settled except to deliver Gwen's letter."

"I fear hiding won't serve either of you," Castor said. "Trey needs to be hidden, yes, but you, Phoenix, are needed at your brother's side."

"My brother fights for the Army and Narissa."

"Your brother fights himself most of all. He needs help. Help I can't give him." Castor paused. "And as for Gwen's letter, it's not going where you think it's going."

Phoenix frowned, pulling the letter out. "Isn't it for her mother?" She glanced down at the name above the seal. "Oh. Harold. I guess I thought it said Harriet. Her father, not her mother?"

"Her brother," Castor said. "He lives in the west, but he's recently traveled to Osha."

"How convenient," Abigail said.

"Not quite. There's nothing convenient about it. If you find him...stop him." Castor pushed to his feet as though to leave. Phoenix shot up with him.

"What? No. Come on. Not cryptic. I don't like the cryptic. What am I stopping him from?"

"Just do what you're made to do, Phoenix." Castor reached out, tipping her chin. "Be safe. Your death would be heartbreaking." 

He disappeared in a flash of light. When Phoenix turned to Abigail, she saw the other woman's brows raised in interest.

"That sounded very much like a profession of love," she said, waggling her eyebrows.

Phoenix snorted in derision. "No. Probably more along the lines of how upset they'd all be if I failed. A lot is riding on this."

"I don't know. I know men, and while I couldn't sense much when I touched him, I did sense something familiar."

"Like someone you've met before?" Phoenix asked.

"No, like something I've felt before." Abigail rolled her eyes. "I know what love feels like, Phoenix, and what I felt from him...well it felt like the earliest stages."

"He barely knows me. Now go to sleep."

"You can love someone from afar," Abigail said, climbing into her bedroll. "That's how I fell in love with Eric."

Phoenix bit down on her lip. "Abigail?" 

"Mmm?"

"There's something I've been meaning to ask you for a very long time. It's something I...saw...or felt...when you shared memories with me right after we met."

Abigail propped herself up on her elbow and waited.

"There was a name - over and over again. It competed with Eric's. And just now when you said you loved Eric more than anyone else - there is someone else." 

Abigail's face paled and she swallowed hard. "I don't want to talk about this."

"I have to know. Abigail - who's Reed?"

WHAAAAAAAAAAT???? 

All right, so we've got Castor making a sort-of move (all the Nixon fans give him the side-eye-glare of "get away from her" while Castix fans cheer), a secret of Abigail's threatened to be revealed, and SO MUCH MORE!

We're close to Osha. Harold might be dangerous (Gwen's brother). Do you think Gwen is sending secret Militia instructions to someone inside Osha and hiding things from Phoenix without reeeeally lying to her?

Or do you think Harold being in Osha is just a coincidence? 

Tell me your thoughts RIGHT MEOW!

See you Monday!