The fire that enshrouded the blade of Cade’s dirk continued to throw flickering light around the small clearing. He saw that neither of the women had weapons in their hands, and they had not moved since he had rounded to face them.

“Explain yourself,” he said to Carissa.

He saw her eyes narrow, and her posture became rigid. Apparently, she did not like being talked to in a curt manner.

“The man that was once our master, Silas, is now in search of you,” she said stiffly. “If he is not on his way already, he will be soon.”

“What does he want with me?”

“He recruits or kidnaps channelers from the empire to serve his masters, and you are too powerful for him to not move.”

Cade looked at Aurora, who didn’t seem to want to meet his gaze.

“Why are you trying to help me?” he asked her.

“Because it’s the right thing to do,” she replied, her eyes rising to meet his. “Silas and those he serves are a blight upon this world, and I don’t want you to suffer that fate in their hands.”

Cade took in everything the two women had told him. The past several days had turned his life upside down, and now he was being hunted for something he just learned of. He closed his eyes, and focused on controlling the emotions that were feeding the fire on his dirk. He felt cold rush back into his body, and saw the glow fade through his eyelids.

When he opened his eyes again, the clearing was again cast in only moonlight. The women had not moved, and Zaka was still by his side. He sheathed his dirk, and knelt to recover his father’s box, his eyes never leaving the two across the clearing. He stood again, and walked towards them, stopping a few feet away.

“What about my family?” he asked.

“We need to get them out of here as soon as possible,” Carissa said. “Covenhall is the safest place in the region.”

“Are you sure about this? How can I trust you?”

Carissa straightened, her eyes hardening at the questions.

“It’s your only choice, unless you want to join the masters,” she replied coldly.

Before Cade could reply, his attention was caught by Zaka, who was moving slowly back towards town, snuffling the air. He moved past Carissa and Aurora and walked deeper into the dark woods. A faint odor hung in the air, but he couldn’t discern it. He continued forward, until he saw the bright orange glow of fire through the trees. The smell was wood smoke, and the town was on fire.

He took off in a run, and the others were close on his heels. When he broke from the forest, he had to skid to a stop. The entire town was engulfed in flames, and the heat was enough to drive him back several feet. His heart felt as if someone had grabbed ahold of it, and his breaths came in shallow ragged gulps. He wheeled around, expecting to see his home burning, but it was untouched. He sprinted for the door, and slammed it open. The main room was empty, and the house was silent. He staggered into the house, and had to lean on the table with both hands.

Anger, grief, and frustration coursed through him like a tidal wave, and he felt himself losing control. He heard footsteps behind him, and then a woman’s gasp. He turned his head to see Carissa and Aurora both staring at something on the front door.

“Come look at this,” Carissa said to him.

Cade closed his eyes, and struggled to reign in his emotions. His ability to control himself had become difficult in the past few days, and he worked to contain the blossoming heat in his core. After a moment, he straightened, and faced the door. Carissa had swung the door fully open, and on the surface was a scorched sigil of a coiled snake.

“That is Silas’s mark,” Carissa said. “He wanted you to know that he was here.”

Cade stared at the sigil, unable to move. He felt the emotions that had been warring inside of him over the past several days and the heat that he was attempting to contain congealed into a single searing point of burning hatred for Silas.

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“He left this house standing for a reason,” Cade said. “Why?”

“I don’t think he killed your family,” Aurora said. “I think he took them, so you would follow.”

“Took them where?”

“His fortress, Skethold, lies on the other side of the Akal Mountains,” Carissa replied.

Cade stared at Carissa, confused by her words.

“That’s impossible,” He said. “No one lives outside the empire.”

“An entire society lives outside the empire,” Carissa replied. “The masters have hidden its existence for years. Silas has been in charge of protecting the border and bringing in resources since the beginning. Skethold is the gateway into the master’s realm.”

Cade absorbed her words, and felt like his world was shifting more out of balance. Part of him yearned to return to the simple existence that he sought to escape from for so long.

“Can you show me where it is on a map?” he asked Carissa.

“I should be able to,” she replied.

Cade turned and went to a basket, which contained several large oilskin tubes. He removed one and took it to the table. He saw Zaka slip in the open door and come to his side. He scratched the wolf behind the ears, and felt his mind calm.

He returned his attention to the oilskin, untying the cords that secured it. He rolled it flat upon the table, using two heavy candle holders to hold down the edges, and motioned for the women to join him. He heard the door close, and then saw both of them come around the table to look at the map he had unfurled.

“Here is this region of the empire,” he said.

“The border is here,” he added, dragging his finger across the map, “along the Akals.”

Carissa leaned down and studied the map, noting the positions of the towns. She stabbed her finger at a point on the map that fell outside the borders of the empire.

“Here. This is where Skethold is,” she said.

Cade saw that it was directly east from Pinewood.

“How did they cross into the empire?”

Carissa pointed to a section of the mountains that was south of the fortress.

“There is a gap here that is passable, but we can’t go that way.”

“Why not?” Cade asked.

“The pass is in full view of the fortress. We would be seen, and captured. Silas needs you, but he would kill us for running away.”

“Maybe, if we are lucky,” Aurora interjected quietly. “It would be a kindness if he killed us. He could do so much worse.”

Cade’s hands curled into fists, and the leather of his gloves creaked as his fingers dug deep into his palms.

“Is there any other way across the mountains?” he asked.

“Yes, but that way could kill us sooner than the other.”

Cade looked up at Carissa inquiringly. She pointed to the mountains that were east of Pinewood.

“That is crag territory.”

“Crag? Are you talkin’ about those creatures from Quill Market?”

“Yes. Those were nothing compared to the wild ones that roam in the mountain pass. There will be several packs of them, and there will be an alpha.”

Cade remembered how vicious the ones at Quill Market had been, and felt his stomach tighten at the thought of facing ones that were more brutal.

“I have to save my family,” he told her. “I won’t leave them in the hands of that man, and if I have to go through a bunch of crags to do it, then so be it.”

“It will take us at least a day to reach the Akals,” Carissa said. “After that, it all depends on what happens with the crags. We may make it to the fortress in four or five days.”

“How long will it take Silas to make it back?”

“Two days, maybe three depending on the weather.”

“Fine, we leave now,” Cade said.

“No,” Carissa said quickly. “We need to wait for daybreak.”

“Why in the hell would we wait?”

“We need time to rest and to prepare.”

Cade stared at her in disbelief. He struggled to find a response that didn’t involve him saying things he would regret. Aurora moved around the table and stood beside him. She touched his face gently, turning it so their eyes met.

“If it wasn’t your family in danger, what would you tell someone to do?” she asked quietly.

He thought for a moment, and then closed his eyes as he felt all of the pent up emotions flow out of him. He felt exhausted and drained, and knew what the right answer was as he opened his eyes again.

“I would tell them that we should set out at daybreak,” he replied heavily.

A small but warm smile came to Aurora’s lips and her hand dropped from his face.

“Go get some rest,” Carissa said. “We will wake you when dawn is approaching.”

Cade nodded and stared hard at the map one last time. He reached inside of his jacket, pulled out one of his knives, and stabbed it down on the point that Carissa indicated as Skethold, lodging it deep into the wood of the table.

“When we get to that bastard’s fortress,” he said as he walked away from the table, “that’s the knife I’m going to stick in his fucking heart.”