Forty Six
Zaria tightened the last strap on her saddle, the leather creaking softly under her fingers. Cillian was strapped snugly against her chest in his sling, his warm little body pressed to hers, his head tucked just beneath her chin. Behind her, Zakai was muttering to himself as he stuffed yet another bundle into his already overfull saddlebag. “I still can’t believe you’re going to bring Cillian on a week-long hunting trip in the Western Kingdom,” he grumbled, jerking the buckle closed. Zaria shot him a dark look over her shoulder. “They won’t even know he’s there,” she retorted. “He’ll be on me the entire time. No one will get close enough to even count his fingers.” Zakai let out a long, frustrated sigh. “It’s not safe,” he insisted, slinging the saddlebag over his horse’s back. “Why ca
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