Free Seeing is Believing by Sasha L. Miller Page B

started to heat. What kind of response was that? Obviously, he was too tired for this.
    Reid laughed loudly, pressing a dried apple into Ty's hand and tugging at a stray lock of Ty's hair, pulling sharply once before dropping his hand. Ty half-heartedly tried to swat his hand away, but Reid was quick and Ty was exhausted.
    "I'll forgive you, seeing as you hadn't met me yet," Reid offered graciously, passing Ty a bit of dried meat. Ty ignored that comment, shifting in an attempt to relieve some of his aches. It was to no avail, and Ty thought it would take weeks of nothing but hot, soothing baths and no riding before he stopped aching.
    "How bad are the bruises?" Reid asked casually, taking a loud bite of his apple. Ty just shrugged, taking a smaller, quieter chunk out of his own apple.
    "Do we need to slow down?" Reid asked, thankfully not anything but matter-of-fact.
    "No," Ty dismissed immediately. If the group of guardsmen pursuing them had gotten so close twice, they couldn't afford to dawdle because Ty ached. Besides which, Ty didn't really think they could go much slower. The horse obviously needed a good rest before it would be any good, and carrying the both of them wasn't helping.
    "Good," Reid declared, smugly approving. Ty rolled his eyes, applying himself to his food. The sooner he finished eating, the sooner he could go to bed and not have to move for a few hours.
    "You didn't think you'd be rescued?" Reid asked thoughtfully, after too short a silence. "Don't you have a family?"
    "They're dead," Ty said shortly, giving Reid a disparaging look.
    "And no friends? No lover ?" Reid pressed, stressing the word 'lover' like saying no would be tragic.
    "No," Ty snapped, tossing his apple core towards the horse. "Not that it's any of your business."
    "Poor thing," Reid cooed. "No wonder you're so unhappy."
    "You're a jackass," Ty retorted, irritated all over again that he infallibly rose to Reid's bait. Heartily sick of always being on the defensive, Ty opened his mouth and demanded, "Is that how you go that scar? You were an ass to the wrong person?"
    Reid's smile slipped from his face and Ty instantly regretted opening his mouth and stooping to Reid's tricks.
    "No. I go this scar rescuing another stupid mage like you," Reid replied, falling short of the mocking tone his words usually had.
    "I am not stupid." Ty's face heated and his fingers started to tingle, itching with the urge to reach out and throttle Reid. It was a sobering impulse—the anger drained away immediately and Ty stared at Reid, aghast.
    Reid scoffed, the familiar smirk twisting his lips. "So you didn't do something stupid like not take your suppressant or try to take out a supply depot of the drug? I doubt you were in prison for the view."
    "I was in prison—" Ty began woodenly before cutting himself off, shaking his head a little. "I wasn't in prison because of magic."
    Reid's mouth twisted in a frown, the smirk disappearing, and Ty stood up abruptly, wincing at the sudden movement.
    "Here." Ty handed the rest of the dried meat back to Reid. "Eat it or put it back. I'm going to sleep."
    Reid surprisingly didn't say anything, just nodded. He didn't say anything as Ty limped across the clearing to the bedding either. Ty collapsed down to the pallet painfully, ignoring that Reid would probably be joining him shortly. He didn't care. He just wanted to sleep and forget the conversation with Reid had ever happened.
    *~*~*
    Ty woke up suddenly, jerking away from the sword point at his throat with stiff muscles. Reid muttered something sleepily from behind him, but he didn't move and Ty felt a brief flash of annoyance that Reid was apparently sleeping through their capture.
    "Stand up," the guardsman directed. "Slowly."
    Ty nodded and the sword was retracted a few inches to give him breathing room. Pushing Reid's arm away a bit violently—Reid didn't even stir at that—Ty carefully stood up. He nearly toppled over when he put weight on his left leg, and