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this. She might be able to do the cords we always piece out. Maybe even some finger weaving for the braiding around the cloth.”
    Uncle Tarik examined the braid carefully, then looked Sanuri over as she hummed and rocked in place. Kadar had heard his aunt explaining to Uncle Tarik how the girl had come into their care. “As long as no one is out there looking for her,” he said doubtfully.
    â€œOur family was chosen by the One to protect her,” Kadar reminded him, voice low so Dana wouldn’t hear.
    â€œWe don’t know what from. It could be the deities, it could be the city folk, or it could be someone in our own clans,” Uncle Tarik said, shaking his head. “But it’s like I told Raella, as Hasifels, when we are called to serve, we serve the One. And if we’re called on more often than other clans, it is our privilege, not our sorrow. Be very careful in your dealings while she is with us.”
    â€œDo you think she might need to go to a safer place?” Kadar asked, thinking of Ava and Sulis.
    â€œWe’ve sent word to your grandmother. She will commune with the One and know where this poor child needs to be. Until then, she is ours to protect and guide.”

 
    Chapter 4
    SULIS GRI N N E D , W A T C H I N G Ava stare wide-­eyed at the beast in front of her. Ava’s golden hair was wrapped in a long, pale scarf, similar to the one Sulis wore. The scarf could be pulled over the mouth and nose when winds whipped the sands around.
    â€œWatch out, they spit,” she advised, and Ava quickly stepped to one side.
    Sulis patted the long, dusty nose of the humpback in front of her. It had soft lips and a leathery tongue that could latch onto desert thornplants and chew the moisture out of them. It also had long ears, long legs, and a long neck. A bony back with a tall hump completed the dun animal’s strange physique.
    â€œThe hump is all fat,” Sulis told Ava. “It helps the animal survive for days without food and water.”
    â€œBut how do you even get on it?” she asked helplessly. “There aren’t any stirrups on the saddled ones I’ve seen, and it’s so tall! Can’t I ride another mule?”
    Sulis shook her head and turned away from the corral they were standing beside. Only golden sand met her eyes, as far as she could see.
    â€œWe’ve reached the Sands,” Sulis said. She gestured toward the dunes. “What you see is all that is out there. It can be two to three days between watering holes. A mule would be dead the first day. These creatures are the ‘ships of the desert,’ and are about the only pack animals that can travel across these dunes. It’s a lot like riding a mule—­don’t worry.”
    â€œWhy do they have pegs in their nose for the reins instead of a bit? How do you even control it without a bit?” Ava asked.
    â€œHumpbacks chew their cud, like cows, so they can’t have bits in their mouths. The reins are there to guide, but they’re mostly command driven. You don’t want to put too much pressure, or the pegs will tear up their nostrils.” Sulis grinned. “If it gets out of control, hang on to the saddle. It’s a long way down.”
    Ava gave her an exasperated look, then gazed thoughtfully over the sunlit dunes. “Is there any life out there at all? What will we eat and drink?”
    â€œYes, there’s life. Life at every watering hole, and at springs too small for us to even mark on our maps. Wild feli , rodents, certain types of antelope, and spiny plants only the antelope and humpbacks can eat.” Sulis stared over the dunes a moment, enthralled by the beauty of the shifting sands. Then she shook herself back to the present and reassured Ava. “As for us surviving out there, for every humpback carrying a human, there is one carrying supplies to get us through, and there are extra beasts to replace fallen humpbacks if