As the patrol approached a small group of peasants, Crow could tell that their presence was already setting the men on edge. He averted his gaze and bit his lip to suppress the smirk that threatened to take over his mouth, hoping the knights wouldn’t catch his expression. They hadn’t even struck up a conversation with the villagers, yet he could already tell that they had heard word of the investigation happening in Wheldrake. He just hoped they would be convincing enough to throw the knights off Jaxon’s scent.

When they came to a stop, Gavin glanced towards Crow, who just shrugged in response. It was clear that the knight wanted him to be the one to come up with the lie that would start the questioning, but he wasn’t about to offer his help. Gavin may have successfully kept the thief at his side, but that didn’t mean he was going to be compliant. If the knight wanted to get any information out of the villagers, he was just going to have to do it by himself.

Gavin shot Crow a cold look before turning back to give the men their usual introduction: asking the peasants if they had seen a large group pass through the area, saying that he was looking for a specific member, giving a fake reason for the search, et cetera, et cetera. When he had finished, he studied the villagers closely in wait of an answer.

The three men exchanged nervous looks before one of them finally stepped forward, “Yea, I seen the group yer lookin’ for, but ye won’t find ‘em here. They’re on their way t’ Azmar in the east.”

“Azmar?” Gavin’s eyes widened slightly, as if he was surprised there was any lead at all. The shock on his face was too much for Crow, who coughed into the crook of his arm to conceal a curt laugh. The knight glanced at him briefly before turning back to the villagers, “Do you have any other information? Perhaps when they left?”

“Don’t think so,” the man frowned, turning to his friends, who shook their heads. “That’s all we’ve got.”

“I see,” Gavin said, lowering his gaze thoughtfully for a moment before looking up at them again with a grateful nod, “Thank you for your help.” With nothing more to learn from the men, he turned to keep walking down the road, with Olivia and Crow trailing close behind.

As he passed by the villagers, Crow casted them a proud grin and—after double checking that the others weren’t looking his way—placed his hand on the shoulder of the man who had told the lie. “Thanks,” he muttered quietly before hurrying off to put some distance between himself and the other peasants before Gavin could notice his short delay.