“Syrani, you seem different.” I tried not to sound callous. “I mean, at ease. I didn’t think you liked my clan. You called us barbarians.”

Her mouth opened and her hands flew out in front of her. “Oh, I know. I’m terrible. I was terrible. I mean, I’m trying to change. I’m trying to figure myself out. Oh, how do I say this?” She wrung her hands together and began pacing back and forth. “Your clan is…yes…backwards and a little barbaric, but Thalia! No one knows who I am.”

“They know you are a Denai, Syrani,” I cocked my head to the side and crossed my arms.

“Of course they know that. It’s obvious by my looks, but they don’t know anything about my family, my parents, and my heritage. They don’t treat me any different than…um, you.”

“Why would they? My clan doesn’t care about the Denai or their culture at all.”

“Exactly! They don’t know that my father is a powerful leader, or that we’re rich. I’ve never been allowed to do anything, because I had to have a servant do it all. I’ve always been expected to do whatever my family wanted. I’ve never cooked, cleaned, sewn. All of those things you did at the Citadel, I would never even be allowed to touch, or it would get back to my father. Here, Gentri is making me learn to bake and sew. But once I burned the bread, she had me clean out a storage shed and I found the potter’s wheel. Fenri pulled it out and I’ve been at it for days. With my gift, I’m able to do some really amazing things even without the wheel. But I’d never be able to sell it or trade it or let anyone know I made it. Here, the women are already lining up and placing orders. They want something from me! They want something I’ve made.” She reached out and grabbed my hands and did a little dance in excitement.

I was too shocked to do anything more than a few jumps of excitement with her. “Really? That’s great!”

“I know. I think so too!” Syrani flung her arms around my neck and—after a brief moment—pulled back awkwardly. “I’ve got to get going. I just needed a breath of fresh air before I went back to work. The air up here in the mountains feels different than back home and it smells wonderful.” She waved at me and headed back to the main road.

I suspected that the real difference was freedom. I was completely humbled by what I’d just witnessed—and a little unsettled. Was that all it took to change Syrani? A chance to be something other than what she was raised to be?

Isn’t that what I wanted? Suddenly I was jealous of her happiness and wanted a chance to start over too.

Reluctantly, I waited over the next hour. It had grown dark. A slight chill filled the air, but I refused to move from my position. Even my growling stomach didn’t deter me from my mission. I did find a barrel and move it close to the window just under the sill. It was a perfect solution for my sore legs. It seemed the clan couldn’t reach a decision over whose side to fight with if it came to war. The families that were housing the Denai had been won over and voted to pledge allegiance to Calandry along with quite a few others. But there were still a good portion that refused to side with Queen Lilyana, while others wanted to remain neutral.

Twice more, I heard mention of the convoy King Tieren continued sending to Valdyrstal.

I had never seen anyone ever come into our lands, so there had to be a meeting place in the mountains. I remembered months ago when my father had watched the pass, and he rode into the mountains with Odin and Fenri. They’d refused to let me follow. Had it been for some sort of private meeting? Had my father been secretly meeting with messengers from Sinnendor?

Lying in bed, I stared at the large beam that crossed my ceiling and I placed my hand over my heart. As I felt its strong beat, I thought of Kael. Please, stay strong Kael. I’m coming for you. I promise. Somehow, I’ll find you. I’d become grateful for our bond. Because no matter what the Septori did to him, he would survive as long as I did.

Slow tears fell upon my pillow as they had every night since I lost him. I knew that the same tears of guilt and worry would fall every night until I found him. More questions without answers swirled through my head, and I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed.

I hoped sleep would bring me answers. Because if I didn’t hear from Kael by tomorrow, I was determined to go to find Kael myself.

Chapter 19

The trail was a small one, hidden along a cliff and barely discernible.

During the winter months it would be completely blocked by snow. Even now, snow started to fall gently, covering the pines and leaving a white blanket across the higher peaks. It wasn’t cold enough to stick, but in another few months it would be impassable. My breath left a white trail in the air as Faraway and I continued up a cliff opposite of Sumner Pass. Gotte said they had been watching this pass, and I wanted to confirm with my own eyes who was coming and going.

This wasn’t a stealth operation. I knew that Gotte or one of his men would have seen me already riding up on my horse. Faraway’s white coat was a beacon in the valley. Still, now that we were heading north, he had a better chance of blending in among the light flurries and gray rocks.

Once we found a comfortable perch on a ledge to wait and watch, I donned a thick wool cloak and sat. The chances were slim of catching anyone using the pass. I imagined I could sit here for weeks and not see a hint of life. Well, that wasn’t true. I’d already seen movement on the other side of the pass. I’d recognized the stance and red fox fur wrap of Fenri, before he moved and hid behind a tree, taking up watch across the pass from me. But he was trying to be seen. He had noticed me across the way and had waved his arms and gestured angrily toward the village.

I pretended I never saw him.

A few hours later, after I had accidentally eaten most of my day’s rations out of boredom, things changed. I heard something before I saw anything—the echo of horse hooves on rock. Instantly alert, I crouched low and watched with anticipation. Six horses with riders walked single file down the pass below, still a great distance off. Five of them were dressed in metal armor ready for battle. The man in front, the one with a trimmed mustache, wore a brown wool cloak and leather gloves. Very official looking.

Movement across the way distracted me as Fenri raced from his position and down the mountain. He pointed up at me angrily and mouthed the words, Stay there! With his hands, he pointed to me and signaled me to stay put. He slid down a path to his horse tethered at the bottom of the mountain and raced off toward the village.

I watched in interest as the riders passed beneath me. The finely dressed noble rode ahead of the others, while the fighters scanned both sides of the pass. I ducked behind a large rock and waited until I couldn’t hear the sound of their horses’ hooves clapping against the rocky path.

“Hoowah,” someone called just enough to echo across the pass. I peeked over the top of my boulder and saw Gotte standing there. He looked grim and had a bow and arrow nocked, ready to release. I ducked back down as he shot the arrow into the tree closest to my hiding place. It only took a moment to spot the arrow and see the slim parchment tied to the shaft.

I pulled it down and opened up the message.

King Tieren’s men.

Stay hidden.

Of course I couldn’t obey. If someone got hurt, they might need me. I could see Gotte mutter something when he saw me run for Faraway. Like the arrow that had flown toward me, we made it quickly to our destination. At the bottom of the mountain, Faraway took off, sprinting across the field. We were still miles from the village, but I could see that the convoy of Tieren’s men would never make it that far.