Their road was a crooked series of stone steps carved into the mountain side, but the mules knew every inch of it, and Jasper’s beast of a warhorse followed closely, unburdened by pounds of armor and supplies Jasper would usually have on her. Jasper was glad the mules were so well trained. Here and there the stone was shattered from the strain of countless seasons, with all their thaws and freezes. Patches of snow clung to the rock on either side of the path, blinding white. The sun was bright, the sky was blue, and there were falcons circling ahead, riding on the winds.
Up where the slopes were steepest, the steps wound back and forth rather than plunging straight down. Jasper had gone up the mountain. Who came back down was left to be discerned.
She closed her eyes and loosed the reigns, allowing the bold warhorse to duck its head down to watch its footing. For a beast trained to bite and kick and trample fearlessly, he did well.
She did, however, lean forward to get the woman in front of her’s attention. “Pass the wineskin?”