Chapter 949: A Real Concern

Charlotte smiled, then looked toward the distant tree line.

"I’ve been going through the scouting assignments since Edith passed along the revised restrictions. Patrol reports, approved routes, observation areas. All the wonderfully exciting things that come with being responsible for people who occasionally forget that wandering into dangerous territory is dangerous."

"Sounds familiar."

"I thought you might appreciate that."

Her tone remained light, but Liam noticed the change beneath it. Charlotte’s attention had shifted from entertaining herself to something she had clearly spent time considering.

He adjusted his posture slightly, resting one forearm across his knee.

"What’s the problem?"

"The restrictions themselves aren’t the problem," Charlotte answered. "Sheila’s right to limit eastern movement. I’m not particularly interested in sending scouts toward creatures that can tear through students before they understand what’s happening."

"A sensible preference."

"I have them occasionally."

"Try developing more."

Charlotte gave him an amused glance. "The problem is what happens afterward."

She gestured toward the forest beyond the wall.

"We’ve established a few routes we’re reasonably comfortable using. They’re short, they’re easy to account for, and most have enough visibility to keep scouts from wandering too far without realizing it. That’s useful for now."

"But?"

"But if we keep relying on those same routes, eventually we’ll know those routes extremely well and almost nothing about what’s changing beyond them."

Liam considered that.

Charlotte continued, "Veyrhold is becoming safer inside. That’s good. The walls are watched, people are following assignments, and Sheila’s keeping everyone organized. But walls don’t tell us what’s happening in the surrounding forest. Neither do patrols that only look at the same patch of ground every day."

"Unless something enters those patches."

"Exactly. Which means we notice the threat once it’s already close enough to enter our little comfortable area."

Liam glanced toward the eastern watch positions.

The observation was legitimate.

There was a difference between securing immediate approaches and maintaining effective reconnaissance. Restricting unnecessary movement reduced exposure, but insufficient information could produce another kind of vulnerability.

Charlotte seemed pleased that he was listening.

"And before you say anything," she added, "no, I’m not suggesting we go poking around the Apex pack’s territory."

"I was going to say you should keep talking."

She blinked.

Then smiled.

"Careful, Liam. Encouragement from you is dangerously addictive."

"Consider it a medical accident."

Charlotte chuckled before returning to the subject.

"Actually, I wanted to ask about those creatures."

Liam’s expression settled.

"What specifically?"

"How did they find you?"

He considered the question for a moment.

"We don’t know."

Charlotte stared at him.

"That was quick."

"You asked something we haven’t confirmed."

"You could at least pretend to think about it."

"I did. It took very little time."

She gave him an unimpressed look. "Fine. Did they appear to follow scent?"

"Possibly."

"Sound?"

"Likely involved."

"Myst?"

"Unconfirmed."

"Movement?"

"They could locate us while we were standing still."

Charlotte’s expression grew more thoughtful.

Liam continued, "They had no eyes. Their heads and necks contained structures that might have been sensory organs. They used hollow calls, and the pack responded to them. Whether those sounds were communication, environmental mapping, or both remains uncertain."

"Did the forest help them?"

"Concealment, yes. Their speed made that concealment considerably more dangerous. We forced first contact in open ground because the trees gave them too many blind approaches."

"And could they reach someone above them?"

"Yes. At least one could launch high enough to threaten Raven’s position from elevated terrain."

Charlotte frowned slightly. "That’s inconvenient."

"Especially for the person being eaten."

She gave him a brief sideways look.

"Thank you for that lovely image."

"You asked."

Charlotte tapped her fingers against the stone.

"Anything about their scent? Unusual residue? Tracks?"

"I wasn’t in a position to examine their trails carefully."

"That’s fair."

She considered his answers, then sighed.

"You really aren’t giving me much, are you?"

"I’m giving you what we know. Not what you’d prefer to hear."

Charlotte looked at him.

For once, she did not immediately answer with a joke.

Then she nodded.

"Fair enough."

Liam noticed the change in her expression. She understood that incomplete information was preferable to confident misinformation, especially when scouts might eventually act on it.

That was encouraging.

’At least she knows the difference between a report and a guess.’

Charlotte looked back toward the forest.

"Then I’ll have to approach the next part carefully."

"What next part?"

"The routes."

Liam waited.

Charlotte shifted on the parapet and pointed toward a stretch of woodland visible beyond the southern approach.

"Something else bothered me while I was reviewing the assignments. We’re using the same approaches repeatedly, and the new restrictions will make that even more common."

"Predictability."

She smiled. "Precisely."

He leaned back slightly. "Continue."

"If scouts leave around similar times, follow the same trails, pause at familiar observation points, and return through predictable approaches, we create patterns. Anyone observing those movements long enough could anticipate them."

"Anyone intelligent enough."

"Yes. Not necessarily those Apex creatures. We have no evidence they’re watching Veyrhold, and I’m not interested in inventing problems. But the weakness exists regardless."

Liam nodded faintly.

Charlotte continued, "Even ordinary hunters learn where animals travel. They watch feeding routes, watering areas, and places prey returns to out of habit. A predictable patrol isn’t much different if something intelligent decides to study it."

That was a considerably better observation than her earlier remarks about destiny.

Liam glanced at her.

’So she does have a professional setting.’

It had apparently been hidden beneath several layers of deliberate nonsense.

"What would you change?" he asked.

"Not the restrictions. Not yet. I’d change how we gather information within them."

Charlotte shifted her position so she could face him more directly.

"I’ve been thinking about temporary observation points along the approved routes. Elevated terrain, natural cover, places that offer decent sightlines without forcing students too far beyond the perimeter. Ideally, each position would have more than one practical retreat route."

"Temporary rather than permanent."

"At first, yes. If we occupy the same position every day, we eventually recreate the original problem."

"Reasonable."

"Some locations could be used only when needed. Others might support shorter observation periods with different approach routes. We could compare what scouts see from multiple positions instead of relying on one familiar lookout."

Liam considered the settlement’s surrounding terrain.

There were several elevated stretches beyond the nearer roads, along with old stone formations and broken structures that might provide useful sightlines. He had noticed some during his earlier movements, though he had not inspected them closely enough to judge their suitability as observation positions.

Charlotte was already anticipating that objection.

"Of course, a good view doesn’t make somewhere safe," she said. "A ruined lookout could be unstable. A high tree might have terrible escape options. A rocky ridge could leave you exposed from three directions. We’d need to evaluate each place before assigning anyone."

"And get them approved."

"Obviously."

Liam looked at her.

Charlotte smiled innocently.

"What?"

"You haven’t done that yet."

"I have a proposal."

"You have an idea for a proposal."

"That sounds unnecessarily cruel."

"Accuracy often does."

She laughed softly. "I haven’t even finished choosing the first locations."

"Then you’re several steps away from having an actual assignment."

"True."

"And Sheila hasn’t approved it."

"Also true."

Liam settled back against the stone support.

"Then let me know when she does."

Charlotte stared at him for a moment.

That was clearly not the response she had expected.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"That’s it?"

"What were you expecting?"

She gestured toward him. "You. Being considerably more interested in an opportunity to leave the walls."

"I am interested."

"You sound overwhelmed with excitement."

"I’m containing it."

"Very successfully."

Liam glanced down at the walkway.

The archers farther along were changing positions again, their movements orderly and unhurried. Beyond them, Veyrhold’s central structure rose above the surrounding districts, still damaged but increasingly occupied by students with work to complete.

Charlotte’s proposal had merit.

That did not make it urgent.

There was no approved route, no confirmed observation point requiring immediate inspection, and no clear reason to divert resources before the central structure’s restoration had progressed further.

Pursuing the idea solely because it might get him outside would be shortsighted.

’And then I’d have to explain to Sheila why I considered Charlotte’s unfinished proposal a suitable excuse to ignore her instructions.’

He could imagine the conversation.

He could also imagine disliking it.

Charlotte studied him with growing amusement.

"Oh, this is fascinating."

Liam sighed. "Here we go."

"You really have become responsible."

"An unfortunate condition."

"And obedient."

"Temporarily."

"Domesticated, perhaps?"

"Keep testing that theory and I’ll demonstrate otherwise."

Charlotte laughed. "You know, I almost miss the Liam who would have disappeared over the wall the moment someone told him to stay inside."

"That Liam would have been creating unnecessary complications."

"Listen to you."

"Try it sometime."

She rested her chin against one hand, smiling at him.

"Did Sheila replace you with a more agreeable version while I wasn’t looking?"

"If she had, he’d have stopped talking to you several minutes ago."

"Then I suppose you’re still the original."

"Unfortunately for both of us."

Charlotte’s laughter eased into a quieter smile.

"Seriously, though. Since when have you cared this much about following someone else’s orders