Leif sighed. “I’m amazed we made it to Sitia without being discovered.” He paused and considered. “I think I’m actually going to miss them.”

“I always do.”

We set a time and place for everyone to rendezvous, knowing the cottage would no longer be safe. I said goodbye to Leif and the others and we headed west, hoping to reach the Krystal Clan’s border by nightfall. We would follow the border south to the Stormdance lands. Then cross through Stormdance and Bloodgood before reaching Jewelrose’s border.

Should anyone stop us on the road, we concocted a cover story. We were delivering samples of quartz to the Jewelrose Clan. Irys’s clan cut and polished gems and stones of all types. They designed and produced almost all the jewelry in Sitia.

Disguised as a man, I used the name Ellion, and asked everyone to call me by that name.

The day turned warm in the bright sunshine and we set a quick pace. Valek hoped the temperate weather would draw people onto the roads.

“Why?” Tauno asked.

“Then we will be one of many instead of the only ones,” Valek explained. They rode together and talked about how best to find the barn that held the Councilors’ family members.

Kiki stayed beside Topaz. She had missed his company and I wondered if Cahil mourned the loss of his horse. They had been together since Cahil was young. My eyes rested on Garnet. I cringed when I imagined facing the Stable Master’s wrath. Garnet had been with us so long and I had lost the Avibian honey I had bought to appease the Stable Master. He would make me clean tack and scrub stalls for weeks. I snorted with amusement. I had found one positive thing about spending eternity with the Fire Warper: no mucking out.

And no bat. My new friend hung from the edge of my hood. His weight rested comfortably in the small of my back. He seemed content to sleep away the daylight hours with me.

Marrok remained quiet throughout the day, but I wanted to know what had happened to him at the Citadel.

“Cahil tricked me,” he said when I asked. “I fell for his lies about remaining with Ferde to discover the extent of the Daviians’ operations. Applauded his plan to lure Ferde back to the Citadel. Commiserated over your ill-timed interference. He convinced me to confess and name you and Leif as accomplices. It would help him persuade the Council to attack Ixia. He promised…” Marrok paused, rubbing a hand along his right cheek. “After I confessed, he turned on me. A mistake I paid for…” He shuddered. “Am still paying for.”

“Betrayals are brutal,” I agreed.

Marrok looked at me in surprise. “Don’t you think leaving us in Ixia was a betrayal?”

“No. That wasn’t my intention. I wanted to protect you and was honest with all of you from the start. I just wasn’t honest with myself. A mistake.”

“You’re still paying for?” Marrok smiled. The gesture smoothed out the lines of worry and time on his rugged face, erasing years from his age.

“Yes. It’s the problem with mistakes, they tend to linger. But once we’re done with the Vermin and Cahil, I will have paid for all my mistakes. In full.”

Marrok gave me a questioning glance, but I didn’t want to elaborate. Instead, I asked, “Do you remember your rescue from the Citadel?”

He grinned ruefully. “Sorry, no. At the time, I was in no condition to think. Moon Man is a wonder. I owe him my life.” He glanced around then lowered his voice. “Being here without him, I feel…fragile. And that’s hard for an old soldier to admit.”

We rode the rest of the way in silence. Around midnight we set up camp. Funny how we automatically attended to the chores without discussion. Tauno hunted for rabbits and I cared for the horses. Valek searched for firewood and Marrok prepared the meal.

“I’m used to soldiers’ rations on the road, so don’t expect this to taste like Leif’s,” Marrok said as he dished out his version of rabbit stew.

The stew tasted a little bland but filled our stomachs. After dinner, we arranged our sleeping mats and set a watch schedule. I shared a blanket with Valek, wanting to be near him. I clutched him tight.

“What’s the matter, love,” he whispered in my ear. “You’re rarely this quiet.”

“Just worried about the Councilors’ families.”

“I think we have things well in hand. Between my sleeping potion for the guards, your Curare for the Warpers and the element of surprise, we should rescue them in no time.”

“But what if one of the captives is sick? Or dying? If I use my magic, I risk letting the Vermin know where I am and what I’ve been doing.”

“Then you’ll have to decide what is more important—one person’s life or the success of the mission for Sitia’s future. It’s pointless to worry. Instead, use your energy to decide how you would react to each contingency you can imagine. It’s more prudent to prepare for all possibilities than fret.”

He was right. Eventually, I slept.

Shadows haunted my sleep. They roamed the shadow world, lost and afraid.

Whenever the bright heat would appear, they hid and waited for the hot hunter to dissipate. Each time, the hunter captured more of them in his net of fire. They didn’t understand why he came and they knew nothing about the bridge to the sky. They clung to this world, desiring revenge and justice. The shadows needed a guide to convince them to let go and to show them the way.

“Ellion…Ellion…Yelena! Wake up.”