The wagon creaked and rattled around Carissa as it rolled along the snowy road north to Pinewood. She was wedged into the corner, Aurora pressed up against her in the tight confines of their hiding place. She could feel her legs beginning to cramp from the awkward position they were forced to be in, and the swaying motions were beginning to make her queasy. She longed for a breath of fresh air, but the thick pelt that covered them was the only thing that shrouded them from the sight of the wagon that followed behind. She was beginning to curse Aurora for getting involved with Cade.

She still could not believe what she had seen a day earlier. She had been in the presence of channelers with substantial powers, yet none of them could do what this man had managed to accomplish with no training. She could project magic from her short staff, and could channel elemental forces, but no channeler she knew of, besides the masters themselves, could harness it to a weapon. This man’s powers were unimaginable, and he was completely unaware of it.

The wagon hit a rut, and jostled both women hard. Carissa gritted her teeth against a spike of pain in her aching legs.

“How much longer?” Aurora whispered in her ear.

“I don’t know,” Carissa replied quietly. “Try not to think about it.”

“I wish we could have just told Cade.”

“No. Not until we are sure.”

She heard Aurora huff out a quiet sigh, and subtly shift away from her in the cramped space. The sound was a familiar one to her. Aurora often avoided conflict, but the sigh signaled that she would be difficult. Carissa had always found this childish and irksome, and it often led to long periods when Aurora was intractable. This was not a time when Carissa could afford to be at odds with her sister. She decided to make a peace offering.

“You did well with that trader,” she whispered to Aurora.

“Thank you,” Aurora whispered back. “I was worried Cade would catch us. The trader was much easier.”

“How did you make him believe he saw and felt a rat?”

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“His mind is young, and not used to magic. I just put the suggestion there, and it took hold.”

Carissa felt a swell of pride within her. It wasn’t so long ago that Aurora had been almost useless, needing protection at all times. Now, it seemed that frightened girl was gone.

“Your powers are growing, Aurora. You also fooled the wolf.”

“No… I didn’t fool Zaka.”

That confused Carissa. She remembered the wolf coming towards them, and Aurora reached out and stroked its muzzle. After a moment, the wolf left them be, and their presence was not discovered by any of the others.

“What do you mean?” Carissa asked.

“I just connected with him, and he trusted me,” Aurora replied. “I can’t explain it, but I knew he wasn’t going to give us away. It’s like he knew we were here for a reason.”

Carissa felt herself grasping for words to respond, but she was awestruck at what her sister had just told her. Could the wolf truly know such things? Things like this always made her realize that her knowledge of magic was tragically limited. That was the way the masters controlled their servants, and that was why Carissa had taken Aurora and run.

Frustration began to seep into Carissa’s thoughts. Why now was she putting them back in the path of their people? Why was she leading her sister right back into the waiting arms of a sure trap? What made her think that there was a chance they could do anything to save Cade? She felt Aurora take her hand in the dark and grip it tightly.

“Because it is the right thing to do,” Aurora whispered.

Carissa’s anger flashed.

“I told you not to read my thoughts!” she hissed.

“I didn’t try to. You were projecting them out again. You know I can’t help it when you do that.”

Carissa tried to tamp down her flaring emotions, but she often found it hard to keep her more volatile ones in check. Aurora’s latent ability to sense emotions ran deeper when it came to Carissa, and she would often pick up thoughts as well.

“I’m sorry,” Aurora whispered.

Carissa let out a long breath, and said, “It’s alright. I know you can’t help it with the strong ones.”

“So what will we do when we get to Pinewood?”

“Find somewhere to hide, then scout around. Hopefully, we have time before Silas’s men show up.”

“When will we warn Cade?”

“As soon as we can, but I won’t risk walking in there to get ourselves caught unless I know we can get out.”

“I know you didn’t want to do this.”

“We do stupid things for the ones we love, dear sister.”

Carissa squeezed Aurora’s hand, and they fell silent as the wagon rolled on through the snow towards Pinewood.