Hours had passed since they narrowly slipped from Clan One.
The wagon groaned beneath its load as it creaked along the narrow woodland trail, each turn of the wheels sending a shudder through the wooden frame. Crates of grain and stacked barns hemmed Rey in, their wooden edges pressing into her spine each time the wagon lurched and swayed.
Dust seeped through the gaps in the canvas, motes drifting in the dim light. The air smelt of earth and hay, heavy and stale.
Rey sat with her knees pulled close to her chest. She hadn't spoken since they climbed aboard, not since Clan One fell away behind them. Silence hung between her and Erik like a third body, shifting with every sway of the waggon.
She could feel him watching her sometimes. His eyes cracked open, his jaw tight as though words sa
