Thatcher went hours without talking much to the two women. For the most part, Roxane and Diana left the man to dwell within his own mind.
Even when they stopped for the night and began to set up camp, they interrupted him only when they noticed he hadn't eaten his serving. Roxane was the one to shake him from his daze. Then he quickly ate and then retreated to his bedroll, laying down to stare up at the night sky with a contemplative look on his face.
Roxane would wish the man would speak to them. She noticed Diana had picked up on his behavior and had begun to worry.
As they slept, she felt Diana's restless body stir in the night. She, herself, didn't get much sleep as she kept thinking about the caravan and how Thatcher had kept his eyes on them even after they had left. It was completely unsettling to her and she didn't want to close her eyes even if she knew Thatcher was keeping watch throughout the night.
She had no choice, as her tired eyes closed by themselves and she was sent into a dark abyss. She woke up only at the sound of the morning birds chirping away above their heads.
Roxane rolled over to her side and her eyes landed on Diana's sleeping figure just a couple of paces away from her. She was relieved they had woken up and nothing had happened to them during the night, but her relief was soon cut short as she turned her head and saw Thatcher's empty bedroll.
She shot up from her own bedroll, her blanket fell around her as she frantically looked around the camp for any sign of Thatcher. Her heart was beating loudly inside her chest as with every second that passed and she didn't see Thatcher, she began to think the worst had happened.
He disappeared. He was taken in the night by monsters and Roxane and Diana were next. He had gone off to fight the bandits and was out there somewhere, injured and bleeding out. She hoped the man wasn't, but she couldn't stop another thought from bubbling up into her mind.
He had left them.
She looked off to the side as she heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Roxane watched with anticipation in the direction she heard the sound coming from. She saw the rustling of the bushes before she saw the brown-haired male peek his head out.
"Good morning." He said to her as he ran one of his hands through his hair. A leaf that was stuck to his head fell onto the floor as he did.
She glared at him, earning her a confused look from Thatcher as she rose from her bedroll. As she was making her way over to Diana to wake her up, she was stopped by Thatcher.
"I need to speak with you." She regarded him carefully, noticing his grey eyes looked much clearer than he did yesterday, despite the fact that he had kept watch all night.
"What is it?"
"Should we be attacked on our way to the border, and should they be the bandits the man had spoken about," he spoke with such certainty that she knew they most likely would be attacked, "I don't want you to transform."
His request stunned her. She looked at him as he had managed to leave her speechless. She didn't know how to fight well in her human form, as being strong could only get her so far when it came to fighting off numerous people. At least in her dragon form, she would be able to help and even fend off attacks. They could avoid an altercation altogether if she transformed and scared them off.
"I know you think differently, but please listen to me. Your dragon form is too conspicuous. We don't want there to be talk about a dragon suddenly appearing."
"You can't take on a whole group of bandits by yourself." She found her voice again. "You'll need me."
"I will be able to take care of it myself."
She was about to argue with him but she clamped her mouth shut when she heard Diana start to wake up from her slumber. The two of them looked at each other, and they wordlessly came to an agreement to not speak anymore while Diana was within earshot.
"Good morning." Diana lifted herself up halfway from her bedroll, rubbing her sleep-laden eyes.
"Good morning." Roxane and Thatcher replied to the beauty. The both of them walked in opposite directions to work on getting the camp packed and ready to set out on the road again.
Diana tilted her head to the side as she watched them packing up. She made no comment as she folded her blanket and rolled up her bed.
They set off after eating breakfast. The cool morning air made Diana shiver and she pulled the cloak that Thatcher had bought her tighter around her.
"Today we are reaching the border," Thatcher told the women riding behind him. Him taking the front had not gone unnoticed by Roxane who had been on edge since the night. "We're not taking as many breaks today so we can reach the town a little earlier."
Roxane felt her friend's arms tighten around her waist after listening to Thatcher. She looked grimly out to the road, her green eyes alert.
The day seemed to drag on as they rode, and neither Roxane nor Diana could fully appreciate the breathtaking views of their trip as they kept vigilance. Diana hadn't even pointed out any of the wildlife or flowers she saw. It was heartbreaking to see.
A movement out of the corner of her eye made Roxane instantly focus in its direction. She held her breath as she stopped her horse. They were trekking through a valley path where they were surrounded by trees and foliage on either side of the dirt path.
Thatcher had also stopped his horse when he saw Roxane's reaction, his hand ready on the hilt of his sword. The three of them waited as the noise came towards them until the thing burst from the overgrowth and onto the road, dangerously close to Roxane and Diana.
The frantic wild boar charging at them spooked their horse, and Roxane tried to hold on to the reigns as her horse reared its head back, lifting the two women up as it got on its hind legs. Diana screamed as she held onto Roxane with all her might.
Then their horse took off, galloping past Thatcher at a speed Roxane thought wasn't possible for a horse to reach. She held on to the reigns so firmly she could feel her nails cutting into the palms of her hands. Even so, she did not look down as they went barreling down the road, reaching the end of the valley where the path opened up.
She heard the sound of horses coming through on either side of them and when she turned her head she was filled with dread at the sight of the many men chasing after them. She knew they weren't friendly, as they wielded weapons in their pursuit.
She saw one man throw up in the air a long piece of rope that had been tied into a circle on the end. Her eyes lost sight of the rope for a split second, and her heart plummeted as she figured out where it had gone.
Roxane felt a jolt as the rope closed around her, and then she was slammed back into the ground. Pain instantly flashed through her golden eyes as she quickly tried to regain her bearings.
She looked up just in time to see Diana being thrown off by the horse. She fell down to the ground with a scream and the horse took off again, this time without the two women on its back. It didn't matter though, as the horse was promptly cornered in by three of the men on horseback.
"Look what we have here!" Roxane's head whipped up at the sound and the most hideous sight she had ever seen came into view.
The man on horseback had greasy black hair and his black goatee was appallingly unkempt, a mole on his cheek kept Roxane from looking anywhere else before she caught sight of his disgusting smile. Her golden eyes watched as his rotten teeth appeared behind his lips. The gold in his teeth winked at her.