“I know this trail.” Ezo had been getting that familiar feeling as they rode out of the valley and toward Mountain View, but there was no questioning it now.

“Jacob brought you to my house before,” Remec said. They were riding side by side through the pass.

“No, that’s not it. He brought me up here once to show me a cave that was hidden away from the known trails.”

Remec frowned. “He didn’t mention it to me. But then, Jacob would disappear for days on end. He traveled often, I think, to come to terms with his split from the Imperium. Whatever made him walk away caused him a lot of pain. Sometimes, he needed the solitude. But Jacob was always someone that needed to move.” He smiled as he talked about Jacob. “As a child, he was constantly on the run and never grew out of it.”

“You knew him as a child?” Kammon asked though Ezo recognized it wasn’t a question but an opening to get Remec to continue speaking.

“We were inseparable when we were younger. When the Imperium found him and took him to the University at Malla City, I went with him. I took whatever work I could to be there with him. Eventually, I settled into an apprenticeship as an apothecary and learned the trade. And he became War-Sworn. We fought over it, but Jacob couldn’t be swayed. They sent him away, and there was no way for me to follow. I didn’t see him for years after that.”

“You didn’t want him to become War-Sworn?” Kammon asked.

“No offense, but what happened to you is exactly why I didn’t want him to leave. You weren’t the first War-Sworn they pushed into battle and used to sell the war to the people of Distria. How long did it take for your name to become synonymous with Blood-craft? A year at the front? More like a month. Stories of what you did were legendary as soon as they happened. Jacob could have been you, but the war with Shafra hadn’t become bloody yet.”

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

“Jacob never talked about any of that with me,” Ezo said, his fingers pressing tighter into Jacob’s journal. “All I knew was that he didn’t want me to attend the University. I wish he’d trusted me instead of leaving behind a journal and a bunch of questions.”

Kammon’s hand on his waist pulled him closer, and he felt slightly better. It was a little infuriating how much solace he took from his lover’s touch. It would probably go to his head if Ezo mentioned it, so he kept the words to himself.

“Perhaps he explained himself better in the journal,” Kammon offered.

Ezo was distracted though, because he was sure his uncle had brought him on this exact path. “He did bring me here,” he said. He pulled at the reins and forced their horse to stop. Ezo put Jacob’s journal into the inside pocket of his jacket and hopped out of the saddle to start down an animal trail.

“Ezo? There’s nothing over there,” Remec said.

“There is,” he corrected. “This is where Jacob brought me. I thought I was remembering the times we came to see you, but that’s not it.”

He could feel Kammon behind them, and Ezo moved through the trees and underbrush. It wasn’t an animal trail but an old, overgrown path. He pulled the air around him and used that to push a way through that didn’t snag on his clothes or break the skin as branches caught and held.

Ezo pushed on even though sweat beaded his brow. He felt Kammon’s magic wrap around him, sharing the burden of blazing the trail even though he didn’t need it. He thought it was Kammon’s way of comforting him when he was too far away to touch. Damned if it didn’t work, and Ezo smiled as he continued forward.

“Ezo, do you know where this leads?” Remec asked.

“There’s a hidden cavern system here. Separate from the system that riddled the valley. He told me it was important that I remember how to get back here.”

“What was so important about it?”

“I don’t know. When we got to the cave, he kept me close and wouldn’t let me explore the rest. I was young enough that I never questioned it.”

Ezo reached the edge of the foothills and found a cave opening. He stopped, silent at what he felt.

“Ezo? What is that?” Kammon asked.

“What?” Remec wasn’t an elementalist so he couldn’t sense what Kammon already had.

“Magic,” Ezo said. “I didn’t notice as a child. What was Jacob hiding here?”

“It’s time to find out,” Kammon said.