It was raining harder when they reached Billen. It looked much like Holden, only smaller. Riley parked out front a diner. There were only a few other cars in the parking lot. Faith could barely see the stormy harbor from there. Vallen put his coat, gloves, and sunglasses on and pulled his hood low before the three of them got out of the car. The diner was quiet, with few other people there.

Faith, Riley, and Vallen sat in a booth by the window. There was an older man and a younger woman at the bar, and an older couple was holding hands at a table. Faith looked at the couple again. She hadn’t seen them in years, but it was definitely them. Hannah and Bradley Corwell, Collin’s parents. Thunder rumbled, shaking the windows. Faith caught sight of a messenger outside the window, sliding out of the rain. It wasn’t night yet.

Water dripped from the diner’s ceiling into two buckets. There was a bucket near the table where Faith, Riley, and Vallen sat. A wet, dark hand reached over the rim of the bucket. Another followed. Water flew out of both buckets at the same time the windows shattered. Riley pulled Faith down against the seat. She felt the glass cutting past, but knew he was feeling it more.

Cries split the air, followed by screams. Riley let go. They both only had a few cuts. Vallen’s coat was torn in places, but he seemed fine. The three of them got to their feet quickly. There were messengers everywhere. The older man and the younger woman ran toward the door, but messengers blocked their path. The cook was cutting through messengers with a cleaver.

Hannah and Bradley were backing away, along the aisle between the tables and the windows. Messengers moved toward them slowly. Faith grabbed a knife from the table and ran at the messengers, cutting into the cold water that became nothing more than a puddle. Vallen tore into them with his hands, and Riley had found another knife.

The messengers by the door came toward them from behind Collin’s parents. The two people by the door ran from the diner. Faith, Riley, and Vallen ran at the messengers behind Hannah and Bradley. The two were holding onto each other, their eyes wide. Faith, Riley, and Vallen took out half the messengers. The rest became puddles on the floor, along with the ones in the kitchen. Faith looked back at Hannah and Bradley. Neither seemed to be hurt.

Hannah frowned. “Faith?”

“What was that?” Bradley asked. “What were those things?” He stared at Faith, then he looked at Riley and Vallen. “What’s going on?”

Faith glanced at the cook on the other side of the bar. He was staring at the wet floor, cleaver still grasped tightly in his hand.

“Will they come back?” Hannah asked.

Bradley glanced around them, then at the wet floor. “We should get out of here.” He and Hannah headed for the door.

“You know them?” Riley asked.

Faith nodded. “Collin’s parents.”

Faith, Riley, and Vallen left the diner. Hannah and Bradley insisted the three of them go to their house and explain what happened. Faith knew they needed an explanation, but she didn’t want them dragged into this. Though after what had happened in the diner, had they been already? Faith had never seen messengers do something like that, especially during the day.

Faith drove, following Hannah and Bradley’s car to their house. It was in sight of the angry harbor, far along it. The docks couldn’t be seen from there. The two floor house was just as Faith remembered it. Small, cozy, and warm. They all sat in the living room, which had a dark brown and orange rug, matching the blanket over the back of the couch. Bradley lit a fire in the large stone hearth, then sat in one of the deep leather chairs. Hannah had the other chair. Faith, Riley, and Vallen were on the couch.

“What’s going on?” Bradley asked.

“What do you know about what Collin was looking into in Gull Bay?” Faith asked.

The two frowned at each other.

“He wouldn’t tell us much about it,” Bradley said. “He seemed worried about what he’d found and wanted us to leave Billen, go somewhere away from the sea. We didn’t see a reason to at the time.”

“People have been seeing things like those at the diner around Billen for a week,” Hannah said. “They’ve only shown up at night and they haven’t attacked how they did at the diner.” She shivered. “I saw one two nights ago, but it left and it didn’t attack.” She moved closer to the edge of her seat. “Faith, what’s going on? What did Collin find?”

They seemed willing to believe what was happening and had happened. Maybe if she told them, they would leave Billen and go somewhere safe. Faith told them what had happened, starting with Suzie’s disappearance in Silverfield. She left out the part about Vallen and the wyvern blood.

“And you know of a way to stop these beings?” Bradley asked.

Hannah frowned. “Who are these two?” She looked at Riley and Vallen.

“This is Riley Gault,” Faith said. “And Vallen Gwynn.”

Hannah continued to frown. She looked at Bradley.

“I’ll admit, it’s all very odd,” Bradley said. “How are you going to stop something that powerful if many have tried and failed before?”

“Because we know what mistakes they made,” Vallen said. “They were afraid to get close to the beings to end them.”

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“Did you find records of what they did?” Hannah asked.

Vallen said nothing for a moment, then he took his gloves and sunglasses off. He stood and took his coat off.

Hannah and Bradley stared at Vallen for a long moment. Neither of them spoke or moved. At first they seemed confused, but then they talked to each other quietly. Bradley grasped Hannah’s hand tightly on the arm of her chair.

“Alright,” Bradley said. “Clearly there are things going on that are beyond anything normal. Beyond anything we can reason with.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Hannah asked.

Vallen put his coat back on and sat.

“Leaving Billen would keep you safe,” Faith said. “Get as far from the sea as you can.”

“You’ll need all the help you can get,” Bradley said.

Hannah nodded. “Please, what can we do?”

“Getting to safety is the best help you can give,” Vallen said. “We’ll do what we can here, but the fewer there are to get hurt, the easier it will be to fight.”

Bradley and Hannah seemed to consider this, looking at each other again.

Hannah nodded. “We’ll go to Eads.”

“Do you want to stay here?” Bradley asked Faith.

“We should stay somewhere further from the harbor,” Riley said.

“Is there a hotel away from the harbor?” Faith asked.

“There is one,” Hannah said. “We’ll pay for it. I’m sure you’re low on money after all of this.”

Faith wanted to protest, but they had little money left. “Thank you.”

“Of course.” Bradley smiled nervously. “Be careful. Clearly you’ll need more than luck with what you’re up against.” He took out his wallet and gave Faith money. “Bring Suzie home.”

Faith nodded. “I will.”

Faith, Riley, and Vallen got back in the car. Riley drove them to the hotel, further into Billen, out of sight of the sea. Hannah and Bradley had said they would leave before night. It was a weight off Faith’s mind that they would be out of Elaita’s reach if she did wake up.

The hotel was small and almost full. Lots of people came to Billen to go sailing. With the storm, all of them were at the hotel. This one was cheaper than the one closer to the harbor. There was one room left, with two beds. Vallen was worried he would throw Riley off the bed with his wings.

“They’re big beds,” Faith said. “Riley can share with me.” She was hesitant to say it. She hadn’t shared a bed with someone since Collin had disappeared, but Riley was a friend. At least he wasn’t a stranger.

Riley nodded. He looked even more exhausted than before and sat on the edge of the bed. “Are we going to the harbor tonight?”

Vallen sat on the other bed, across from Riley. “As soon as the sun goes down.”

Faith sat next to Riley. “Should we bring weapons?”

“We’ll be fine using our hands,” Vallen said. “Especially Riley and I. At night, his nails are as sharp as mine.” He looked at Faith. “Even just reaching into a messenger can destroy it. It’s Elaita, Altunei, and Hew that will be harder to fight. Don’t forget, Altunei and Elaita fear our blood.”

“Why?” Faith asked.

“It hurts them if it touches them,” Vallen said. “It weakens them. We can use that to our advantage if we’re wounded. How’s your neck?”

“What happened to it?” Riley asked.

Faith reached back and touched her neck while Vallen explained about the feathers and what would happen if they were pulled out. There were a lot more feathers than before. The back of Faith’s neck was entirely covered. She felt something hard and smooth further down.

“A lot of feathers?” Vallen asked.

“And a few scales,” Faith said.

Vallen frowned hard. “We’ll find the wyvern, as soon as we’ve dealt with Altunei.”

The three of them waited in silence, though it wouldn’t be long before night. The already dark sky became darker, the rain relentless against the windows. Faith couldn’t see the moon or the sun, but she knew when night came. Riley’s hair turned white, starting at the roots. His eyes were a brighter blue. Blue scales spread over him, replacing his skin.

“Ready?” Vallen asked.

Faith and Riley nodded. The three of them left the hotel and went down to the harbor. It was even stormier now, with waves rising as high as buildings further out. Altunei stood where the docks began, with Hew and Suzie. At least forty messengers stood behind them. Others were climbing out of the water and walking out of the rain. Suzie stared straight ahead, her expression blank.

Other messengers came from further in Billen, walking into the sea. That’s what they’d done in Silverfield when Ninivus had almost woken up. Elaita was close to waking up. How many of these messengers belonged to Altunei? The messengers behind Altunei, Hew, and Suzie came closer. They moved slowly at first, then they ran at Faith, Riley, and Vallen. Vallen tossed his coat aside and spread his wings. Hew followed the messengers, but Suzie stayed back with Altunei.

Faith put her hand through a messenger and pulled against its water. It became part of the rainwater on the ground. She did the same to another, fighting her way toward the docks, toward Suzie. Altunei turned away, walking along the docks. He stepped off the end, into the stormy sea, vanishing beneath the waves.

Faith ran, pushing a messenger aside as hard as she could. Suzie was close. She hadn’t moved, still staring straight ahead. Faith took out the last messenger between them. Hew moved between Faith and Suzie, grabbing Faith’s shoulders. Hew was as strong as Destiny and Willet had been. He pulled her to the edge of the harbor. Faith fought against him, but he was too strong.

“I promise no harm will come to your daughter,” Hew said, then he threw Faith into the waves.