Decoy Danger

Mylo was apprehensive about all of them setting off on a two week journey, but everyone else seemed excited. They hadn’t really left the cottage much except for occasional trips into town; and even then Mylo often went alone. He supposed they might all be a little stir crazy, even if they had the woods to romp around in.

“You’re sure you haven’t forgotten anything?” he asked, for the fifth time. “Everyone has their rations, and their weapons? And you have them stored correctly this time. Yes, I’m talking about you, Bret. We don’t need you stabbing yourself again on accident.”

Trina bit back a giggle and Bret glared at her.

“Mylo, you practically packed all our bags for us,” Luis said. “We’re ready.”

“Yeah, okay. Sorry.” Mylo shifted awkwardly. “Let’s go, then.”

They were going to trek through the woods for a time, instead of going through the center of town. It added about half a day to the journey but he decided that was worth it. He’d go into Oakhurst himself when they returned and continue to try and get word about William. As soon as he thought it, he glanced toward Shila. Trina had linked arms with her and was chirping away like a happy bird. Shila could hardly get a word in, but she seemed content to smile and nod along as the younger girl talked to her. He realized he was staring and quickly looked away before she turned her head and noticed.

Mylo couldn’t decide if it was better to keep her always in his line of sight or to not look at her at all. The walk through the forest was actually kind of pleasant; everything smelled fresh after the rain and a deer and her two fawns passed ahead of them, eliciting some coos from the girls. The deer flicked their ears and watched them for a moment before moving on. When they emerged from the trees it was afternoon, and they were past the borders of Oakhurst. Mylo relaxed slightly.

They should, if they continued making good time, reach a small town called Valley Glen by nightfall. It was more like an outpost than a proper town, but it had a place to sleep. They’d be alternating between inns and camping outdoors on their way to Goldshore.

“I’ve always wanted to see the coast,” Bret remarked as they walked.

“I went once, when I was little,” Lola said. “Not to Goldshore, we were in a much smaller town. A fishing village. But it was still beautiful.”

“I’ve been to Goldshore,” Trina said. “There was this really pretty inn with an amazing view.” The eager grin on her face suddenly slipped, and she looked down at her feet, seeming both sad and embarrassed. Mylo moved forward and gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder. She flashed him a tiny smile but was unusually quiet for the rest of the day. They reached Valley Glen just after sunset. Its single little inn didn’t have a lot of rooms, so everyone had to share with someone else. The girls had a room together, and the twins another. Mylo had to bunk with Bret.

“You better not spend an hour trying to make your hair look perfect in the morning,” Mylo told him. “We’re getting an early start.”

“Yes, Father,” Bret grumbled, rolling his eyes. Mylo threw a pillow at him.

“Have you ever seen the ocean before?” Bret asked.

“Once, a very long time ago. I think I was maybe five.”

“Is it true that girls like to take walks on the beach?”

Mylo arched an eyebrow. “What girls?”

“Just girls in general,” Bret said, a little defensive as he pretended to look through his travel pack. “It just seems to be one of those things that’s automatically romantic. How do you even take a girl to the beach, do you just ask if she wants to take a walk? You’re older than me, you must know something about girls and stuff you do with girls.”

“Oh, no.” Mylo stood up, shaking his head.

“What?” Bret frowned.

“I can’t deal with this right now, on top of everything else. Do not ask me for advice on how to flirt with Trina.”

“Who said I was talking about Trina?”

“Your beet red face,” Mylo replied. “I said her name and you blushed to the roots of your hair.”

“It’s just hot in here,” Bret protested. Mylo ran a hand over his face.

“I’m going for a walk,” he said. “Please behave while I’m gone.” Mylo stepped out into the hallway, both amused and deeply exasperated. He went outside and sat on the front porch of the inn, leaning back and looking up at the night sky. He heard the door open and someone else step out onto the porch. He turned, expecting to see Bret and prepared to tell him to go back to the room. Instead he saw Shila.

“Mind if I sit out here for a bit?” she asked.

“I think the porch is big enough for both of us.”

She sat, arms wrapped around her knees. They were silent for a few moments.

“How did you all end up together?” Shila finally asked. Mylo glanced over at her and she grimaced faintly.

“Sorry, I guess you probably don’t want to tell me.”

“They’ve all lost something because of the Emory’s and people like them,” Mylo said after a moment. “Lola’s husband was arrested on their wedding night, a year ago. He’s in prison now, because it was believed that his brother was involved in rebel activity and when he said he didn’t know anything about it, they accused him of being a rebel sympathizer. Bret’s parents were both arrested and he was sent to the orphanage. They both died in prison so when the orphanage kicked him out, he had nowhere to go. Luis and Bran had their family business taken from them when they didn’t pay their share of taxes. Trina is actually from a wealthy family, I’m sure you’ve heard of them. The Colemeres.”

“Really?” Shila’s eyes widened. Mylo nodded.

“They were dissenters among the lords who control this region; they spoke out against the way they treated the people. They were deemed traitors. Trina’s nanny managed to smuggle her out and get her to safety, but her parents were executed. That was just before the rebellion really started to form. None of the rebel factions wanted to take her, because they don’t really trust her despite the fact that her parents essentially died for their same cause.”

“They were all turned away,” Shila guessed.

“They were,” Mylo admitted.

“But you’re helping them be rebels anyway.”

“They have as good a reason to fight as anyone else. I don’t want them to be rebels but if they go it on their own they’re more likely to wind up dead.” He glanced at her. “To be clear, I don’t want you to be a rebel either. But…I get why you want to be. And I’m sorry. About what happened to your parents.”

She smiled slightly. “Thank you.”

Mylo quickly looked away. He was particularly sorry about her father being in jail, but he couldn’t explain that now. He awkwardly cleared his throat. “Well, we have to get going early tomorrow. We should probably get some sleep.”

They stood up at the same time and Mylo bumped into her, almost knocking her down. He quickly grabbed her shoulder to right her on her feet.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, snatching his hand away. “Uh. Good night.”

“Good night, Mylo.”