Leontis drew a sharp breath, forcing back the rising storm within him.
"Where has she gone?"
The novice trembled so hard she could barely speak.
"She... she said the convoy was moving too slowly. She left on her own two nights ago. She said..."
"She said what?" His voice was cold as ice.
"She said she would go ahead... and meet the rest of you there."
Leontis' head spun, caught between anger and helplessness. A bitter laugh caught in his throat.
"Still so headstrong. Couldn't she have told me plainly?"
The girl looked up at him in confusion. "My Lord, on the very first day, she told you herself to keep traveling through the night without stopping."
He fell silent. He could not vent his anger on a child.
Closing his eyes, he steadied himself before turning to his second-in-command
