Pathway

We're getting closer," Chang Chang said without prompting, startling Ju Feng next to her as he held the crodlu reins.

They had been in the wastes for two days without incident, which was nothing short of miraculous. Ju Feng just knew that meant something horrible would happen that day, so he was completely on edge. Just then, they were trudging slowly up a rise. Fa and Fu Ma were asleep in the back—they were taking more and more midday naps.

From behind him in the front part of t chittered something in Chachik, then: "We know we're getting closer, that's kind of the point of going through the wastes to Urik—to get closer."

Shaking her head, Chang Chang said, "No, I mean we're closer to where Gan is. I can feel him now."

"Good," Ruo had been walking alongside the carriage—his long legs could easily keep stride with the pace the crodlus were making while pulling the carriage uphill—and he suddenly moved closer to the front where Ju Feng and the others were. "We need to be alert."

Peering ahead, Ju Feng saw what the mul was talking about. "That's the top of the rise."

Nodding, Zu Ruo said, "Prime ambush spot." Then he started moving faster, wanting to be ahead of the crodlus when they arrived at the top of the rise in case there was an ambush.

Nervously, Ju Feng flicked his wrists to whip the crodlus with the reins. It didn't serve any useful function except to annoy the mounts, since they couldn't really go any faster with the burden they had. But the last thing he wanted to deal with was an attack on the carriage, especially since they were traveling alone. Zu Ruo could handle most problems—few of the desert scavengers could stand up to a mul—and Tricht'tha could hold her own in a fight too.

That was more for use against those who couldn't be talked to. Opponents who could hold a conversation were not ones that they were too terribly worried about.

Zu Ruo was standing at the top of the rise when the carriage arrived, hands on hips.

We're clear," the mul said, three seconds before four people leaped out from beneath the sand.

Ju Feng barely had time to acknowledge that they were there when one of them had grabbed Chang Chang and yanked her down off the carriage. He smoothly wrapped an arm around her neck. They wore the trademark all-black of the Black Sands Raiders, though the outfits were a bit ragged and torn. Of their mounts, there was no sign—which was odd, as atop the rise, they could see everything for miles.

"Oh great," Ju Feng said, as much for the benefit of the others in the emporium still inside the carriage as it was for their attackers, "more raiders. Is there any way this trip can get worse?"

"Give us everything you have," demanded the man with his arm on Chang Chang's neck, "or the girl dies."

Tricht'tha chittered. "Thought the Black Sands only traveled in groups of twelve."contemporary romance

"We did. The others're dead, and our crodlus ran. We got nothin' left, so we got nothin' to lose. We want all your coin."

Ju Feng pointed behind the carriage. "Go about ten miles that way, you may catch up with it. You're the third set of thieves we've hit since we left Raam."

Another Raider spoke. "That's a pretty well-laden carriage." He was closest to Zu Ruo, and the mul was staring daggers at him, his fists clenching and opening. Zu Ruo wasn't going to do anything until Chang Chang was safe, but the fact that Chang Chang was in danger didn't speak well for the Raider's continued survival if Zu Ruo had anything to say about itShrugging, Ju Feng said, "That's merchandise. You wanna take it, knock yourself out, but without crodlus, you're gonna have a hard time of it."

The one holding Chang Chang said, "We can take your mounts."

"You crazy, Voras? It'll take us weeks to get back if we're carrying all this crap."

Voras turned on the other one. "Shut up, Tralk."

Another one said, "He's right, I ain't takin' no carriage."

The last one said, "Why not?"

From behind Ju Feng, he heard his sister say, "Oh, please, let them take the carriage."

Whirling around, Ju Feng cried, "What?"

Climbing to the front of the carriage and taking the seat next to Ju Feng where Chang Chang had been before being grabbed, Kariang said, "Just let them take it. We're close enough that we can get there on foot within a few days." Before Ju Feng could say anything, she said, "Just take it. We'll walk to the spot on the map."

Voras's eyes widened. "What map?"

Ju Feng put his head in his hands. "Nice one, Sis—why'd you mention the map? Two other sets of thieves come by, they take all our coin, as well a half the merchandise, and you don't mention the map. Now you mention the map?"

"What map?" Voras asked again.

"Who cares?" Kariang pointed at the raiders. "They obviously want the merchandise. Look at them, they've got no mounts, no coin—they go back to their bosses like this, they'll get their hands cut off. They bring back a merchant carriage, and it'll be fine." She turned to Voras. "Just let us keep the map, and the rest of it's yours."

Tightening his grip on Chang Chang's neck, Voras spoke very slowly. "If I have to ask again, the girl will be dead on the sand. What map?"

Kariang waved her arms back and forth. "Don't hurt her. Look, it's a treasure map, but you don't want that. There's merchandise in here that's worth hundreds of gold."

Ju Feng didn't react to that, but he was smiling inside, as the merchandise was actually worth thousands.

With one arm, Voras tightened his grip on Chang Chang's neck; with the other, he pulled out a bone knife and put it at Chang Chang's jugular. Ju Feng saw Zu Ruo tense and take a step forward in the sand.

"Go ahead," Voras said to Zu Ruo. "Move closer and kill her." Then he turned to Kariang. "You will fetch this map."

"What?" Kariang sounded stunned. "No, you don't want that. It'll take months to dig up the treasure. You've got all this merchandise right here, and we—""Fetch the map now or I will slit this woman's throat."

Zu Ruo moved toward the carriage. "I'll get the fripping map."

"No, Zu Ruo, please." Kariang was starting to weep. "After all we went through to get that map—the merchandise is just stuff, they can have it, but the map is—"

Voras interrupted. "The map is going to be mine in about seven seconds or your woman—"

"Will die," Ju Feng finished, "we got it, already. Zu Ruo, get the map."

The mul was already climbing into the back of the carriage. Ju Feng prayed to the bright red sun of Athas, although he knew it wouldn't heed his prayer, that Zu Ruo's thumping around wouldn't wake Fa and Fu Ma. Not that he doubted that they'd be able to go along with the game, but Fu Ma especially tended to be a bit out of it when he first woke up, and that might have ruined the whole thing.

But all he heard was Zu Ruo's rooting around in the back of the carriage. So he kept an eye on Tralk and the other two, who also had gotten bone knives out.

Tralk said, "We should take the crodlus too."

Another one shook his head. "No, these are carriage-trained. We'll never get 'em to ride through the sand unless they're draggin' something."

Ju Feng breathed a sigh of relief. He was really worried that he was going to have to convince them that the crodlus would be of no use without the carriage, and Ju Feng had always found it easier to convince people of things that were false than to do so with the truth. If they couldn't convince them, the raiders would actually take the crodlus, then waste at least an hour while they tried and failed to make the crodlus move while untethered to the carriage.

The carriage shook as Zu Ruo's weight was removed from it. Slowly, the mul walked over toward Voras, a rolled-up parchment in hand.

"Let her go, and the map's yours."

Voras grinned, showing yellowed, broken teeth. "Nice try, mul. Tralk, get the map."

Nodding, Tralk moved cautiously toward Zu Ruo, keeping his bone knife at the ready. "Give it to me, mul."

Scowling down at the Raider with a look that Ju Feng knew Zu Ruo had used in the arenas of Tyr back in the day, the mul held out the map. Tralk hesitated a moment and gulped down a swallow before actually snatching the map.

He backed up slowly, keeping his eye on Zu Ruo the whole time.

"Take a look at it," Voras said.

Ju Feng stole a glance at his sister. Kariang was fidgeting. "Look, okay, it's a treasure map," she said as Tralk unrolled it, "fine, but like I said, it could take months before—"

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