Kael
The first wheel stopped before I reached Draven.
I heard the handle knock against Aiden's palm. Then the scrape of wood, a short curse, and Valeria telling him not to pull harder.
Draven looked past me.
That was the first bad sign.
I had moved toward the open side of the main approach, leaving enough space behind my shoulder to suggest I had made a mistake. If he followed, Aiden could bring the first cart through the turn while I kept him occupied.
Draven did not follow.
He lowered one hand.
Water from the shallow course channel spread across the lane ahead of the cart. It froze in a low ridge, thickest beneath the nearer wheel.
Nothing rose high enough to deserve a cheer.
The cart stopped anyway.
From my angle, the ridge looked low enough to step across without thinking. The wheel had no such choice. Its loaded rim pressed against the ice while the handle shifted in Aiden's grip.
