Galen rejoined them in the sitting room. The red lines on his neck, forehead and cheek appeared bright beneath the glistening ointment. They lent weight to the murderous look he threw at Hunter.

“Looks like someone can’t handle a few little scratches,” Kem said.

“My face… in on fire!” Galen said through gritted teeth.

“It’s too bad he didn’t grab your tongue,” Kem said.

“Do you have any more of those pills?” Galen asked. “The ones you gave Rai?”

“You want me to help you?” Taryn asked. He had to be in a lot of pain to forgo Rai’s honorific. And Hunter was the one who hurt him so she felt duty-bound to help. But only if he asked.

“Yes, you! Is there someone else handing out pain relieving pills?”

Taryn took that as permission. It was probably as good an invitation as she would get. Now she only needed a cover; something to explain the sudden relief. “Maybe you could try more ointment.”

“Did you use the burn remedy?” With Hunter still cradled in her arm, Rai rose to meet him.

He held out a hand to keep her, and Hunter, at bay. “Keep that thing away from me.”

“He isn’t going to attack you again,” Taryn said. “Hunter only attacks people he doesn’t know. And that only if they’re threatening him.”

Galen allowed Rai to lead him to the couch, where she inspected his wounds and massaged the skin around the scratches. Galen winced, but he didn’t pull away. And Taryn had her cover. She did her work and he breathed easier.

“You see?” Taryn said. “He knows you’re not a danger to him because he’s already established his dominance over you.”

“That is perfect,” Kem laughed. “Galen the Grinder, reduced to a cat’s play thing.”

“It’s not funny,” Rai said.

“Neither of you are funny,” Galen said. “It’s clear he gets this mean streak from his owner. Tell me, this lunatic who gave you license to care for another living creature, did they know you would train it to be so vicious against humans?”

“Actually, I was expressly forbidden from ever having a pet.” Vares had given the command because of the LAAMP’s vehement insistences that mutants only used animals to practice torture unhindered by the rule of law. They told him that allowing her to keep a pet would only grow her desire to see human blood spilled. And he’d sided with them over her.

“So how did you end up with him?” Rai asked. “You never said.”

Because she hated lying to them. And she wasn’t sure she could tell them without mentioning that she’d transported a bloody cat to the palace physician because if she fainted, then Hunter and his litter would have suffocated inside of their mother’s corpse. Or the great lengths she took to hide the truth from the King for six months before a teary-eyed rage-storm and promises to run away finally convinced him to let her keep him.

“I knew his mother,” Taryn finally said. “She was a street cat I’d come across during my trips through the city. A group of boys had gotten into the habit of tormenting her and I tried to bring her home, to keep her safe. But I had to take her back. For months I’d check in on her; every couple of days or so. Until one of the children received a crossbow for his birthday and they decided to use her for target practice.

“She didn’t survive. But she had a litter with her. Six baby kittens. I hid them. I fed them everyday until they were strong enough to fend for themselves. Then I released them. But this guy… One of his legs was… weak.” Mangled was a more appropriate description but Taryn hated to remember him that way; his paw dragging behind him when he walked, the claws splayed out in a rigid array – unable to retract. “He wouldn’t have survived alone. So I kept him. I hid him for six months, until he recovered and started wandering away. But he is strong now. And we’ve had countless adventures together.”

“I am so sorry,” Kem said. “I nearly cooked him.”

“You couldn’t have know,” Taryn said. “I’m just glad I figured it out in time.”

“Well, I don’t want this to be the only time we see him,” Rai said. “Mama won’t like him in the bakery but you could bring him for the race, couldn’t you?”

“That might not happen,” Galen said. “We’re on the verge of a Black Alert. And those so-called ‘princes’ are still out there. It wouldn’t be safe.”

“It can’t be any more dangerous than making deliveries,” Rai said.

“And the Guard is reconsidering the Black,” Kem chimed. “They don’t want to cause any more panic. It’s been a week and no one has heard or seen any sign of that mutant. We might go Red with the rest of the city but they’re almost sure he isn’t in Pine Keep anymore.”

Though he tried to be subtle, Taryn saw his eyes move her way as he spoke. “It’s like I said before. They’ve figured out he’s not their problem anymore. Haven’t the boys been in the washroom a while?” she added before their curious stares turned into questions. “It can’t take longer than a few minutes for them to wash up.”

“Argh,” Galen groaned. “Kemmy, get them out.”

“They’re your brothers.”

“And they wouldn’t be in there at all if it weren’t for you.”

Suddenly, a door slammed. The sounds of giggling, pounding and a muffled whining invaded from down the hall and Kem leaned back in his seat to see what all the fuss was about.

“What is it?” Galen asked. “What are they doing?”

“They’re holding the door shut,” Kem reported. “I think Gerrie’s still in there.”

Galen rolled his eyes. “If I don’t see all of you in here in three seconds,” he shouted, “I’m taking you home and sending you straight to bed. One!”

The door opened.

“No!” Gerrie shouted. “Let go of me!”

“Two!”

“Hurry up!” Andon said over the hurried scuffle.

“Three!”

“We’re here!” Kaz yelled as they emerged from behind the stairs. The two older boys held the younger, squirming between them. “We’re here. Can we eat now?”

“Too slow,” Galen said.

“No fair!” Gerrie said.

“You should have thought of that before you decided that playing was more important than eating.”

Gerrie broke free and crossed his arms over his chest. Angry lines drew a glare on his face and he directed it at Taryn, not Galen. “I asked to hold him first!”

“Who cares?” Kaz said. “He just said we won’t get to eat.”

“No,” Rai said. “No one is leaving here without supper.”

“Rai,” Galen began. “Darling–”

“My kitchen, my rules,” Rai cut in. “Everyone eats. Come here, Gerrie.” She had the boy sit between her and Galen, then transferred Hunter to his lap. Andon and Kaz crowded around him, sticking their tongues out as they passed Galen.

“His leg is hurt,” Rai warned them. “So don’t give him any reason to run from you.”

“Or you’ll end up looking like Galen,” Kem said.

“Don’t listen to him,” Rai said. “Supper should be ready soon. You can hold him until then. I’m sure he’ll need to eat too.”

“Can I feed him?” Gerrie asked, petting Hunter from his head to the tail.

Andon turned to Taryn. “Oh! Can we kill a rat for him?”

“He usually hunts his own dinner,” Taryn said. “But he’s had a rough night. He could do for some pampering. Meat should do, with some gravy.”

“So we’ll need to pack an extra bowl,” Kem said.

“Oh, no. We aren’t going up tonight,” Rai said. “There are so many of us I thought we could use the dining room.”

“But I already promised the boys,” Kem said.

“And you said he was in charge,” Andon reminded Galen.

“Not anymore,” Galen said. “I can’t trust you not to run around and get yourselves killed up there.”

“Then we’ll set some rules.” Kem stood and faced the boys. “No running, no fighting. We’ll lay out a blanketed area for you away from the edge, and you’re only allowed leave it if one of us is with them.”

“Do I really need to explain the relationship that little boys have with rules?” Galen asked.

“If any of them breaks these rules, then everyone comes inside,” Kem said. “They’ll never be allowed back onto my course and Taryn won’t teach them any more sequences.”

“No! We’ll behave,” Andon said. “I promise.”

“Please, Galen. Please,” Kaz begged.

“Fine,” Galen said. “But if any of you even looks like you’re thinking about doing something stupid, everyone goes home.”

“What about dessert?” Rai said. “I’ve barely started on it.”

“We’ve been home for hours. What have you two been–?” Kem shut his eyes and held up his hands. “Never mind. I don’t want to know.”

“Since half of my apples went missing I had to think of something else. I wanted to make paper cakes. I thought it would be fun to let everyone add their own filling. We can’t do that if everyone is on the roof.”

Kem considered a moment. “What if you can?”

Rai shook her head. “Just because I don’t feel the pain in my legs, doesn’t mean I want to run up and down those stairs all night taking orders and making deliveries.”

“You won’t have to,” Kem said. “We can take the brazier up from the patio to make a fire. Then all you need is a griddle. Pick one from the kitchen and I’ll take it all up. Galen will help. You’ll have everything you need.”

“Why are you trying to rope me into a mission she clearly doesn’t want?”

“Just think,” Kem said. “You’ll be able to keep soups and cider warm.”

“It would be nice to have a bigger fire,” Rai said.

“It’ll only be more work in the long run,” Galen said. “With the extra firewood and the cleaning. It’s not worth it.”

“But if we can make it warmer on cold nights, we could stay up there longer,” Rai reasoned. She didn’t need to add that Mama Kebar didn’t like to venture out on cold nights.

And so it was decided.

Rai laid out everything she’d need from the kitchen. Taryn supervised the boys as they gathered and packed blankets and bowls and spoons and kettles. After she sent them up to help Galen and Kem prepare their picnic sites, Taryn went into the kitchen to help Rai.

“Where’s Hunter?” Rai asked. She used a large spoon to scoop steaming rice from an iron pot into a wooden bowl.

Taryn grabbed a ladle and did the same with the stew. “I sent him up with Gerrie. I think he might have found his next favorite person.”

“That one has always had a soft spot for animals,” Rai said. “Gale says he likes to name the carcasses that come through the shop. He makes up stories for how they end up in his supper. How are you feeling?”

“Well, I’m suddenly finding myself very concerned for Hunter,” Taryn said.

“Gerrie would never hurt him. He only makes up the stories if they’re already dead.” Rai draped a moist cloth over the bowl and studied Taryn’s face. “You seem… better.”

“I have Hunter, and all of you. Even if it isn’t everything I want, its enough.” Taryn couldn’t help glancing in the direction of Kem’s room as the foreign flame stirred restlessly within.

“So you picked up on that, too,” Rai said, following her gaze. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why Kem is being so obtuse.”

“I didn’t give him much of a choice,” Taryn said.

“But he does have a choice: to fight for you or wait for you. Unfortunately, Kem has never been very good at fighting for the things he wants.”

So this was him waiting? Telling her that he wouldn’t give up even while someone else waited in his bedroom? Taryn took a breath to calm herself before she began to lose herself again.

“What’s all this for?” she asked. ‘All this’ was a careful arrangement of ingredients that still decorated the table; a sack of flour, half a dozen eggs, a jug of milk and jars of powdered sugar, creme and three kinds of preserves.

“Paper cakes,” Rai said. “They’re like griddlecakes but very, very thin. Like paper. Hence the name. Its quite popular in the western counties. ”

“You mean crepes?” Taryn asked.

Rai shrugged. “I’ve never heard it called that. The guild has only just received the recipe several weeks ago. Maybe you’re confused?”

Taryn doubted that. Crepes had been on the palace’s midday meal rotation at least once a month for the past year. The description and ingredients certainly fit. “Wouldn’t it be better to mix the batter and bring a bowl up, instead of coming back for all of this?”

“Oh, no. I’m not coming back for all of this,” Rai said. “Kem wanted everyone on the roof. He’ll do the work for it.”

And he did. Even when Rai sent him back for more milk and eggs because she’d underestimated how many Taryn and the boys would eat. Even when each of the boys needed an escort to the washroom. Taryn felt bad after his fourth trip down and back again. He collapsed in a breathless heap onto the rooftop blanket bed after the seventh and still found no reprieve. Andon and Kaz wanted to stand at the edge of the roof and strategize how they might navigate his course to victory. They also discussed the changes necessary to accommodate their smaller size and Galen’s less fun requirements for safety.

Gerrie spent most of the night at Taryn’s side, since Hunter refused to stray far from her – and the bits of beef Galen kept feeding him. The child fell asleep next to the feline’s curled form and Rai stifled laughter as Taryn took the chance to teach her how to twist messy braids into his hair.

Rai sat back and admired her work. “He’d be so adorable if we braided ribbons into his hair.”

“You are not putting ribbons in my brother’s hair,” Galen said.

“What about beads?” Taryn said. She reached for one of the hand-carved wooden beads entwined in her own hair.

“No,” Galen said. “In fact, you’ll undo all of this before the other monsters see him.”

“Fine,” Rai pouted.

“I can show you some other time,” Taryn said as she began to undo the boy’s braids. “I’ll bring one of my larger sets from home and we can practice in Galen’s hair.”

“Your fingers aren’t coming anywhere near my head,” he said. “Since you’re in such a teaching mood, I wonder if I can learn a few things from you myself.”

Taryn combed her fingers through the loosened hair to smooth out some of the curl. “Like what?”

“When you…” Galen glanced at the two older boys, chatting excitedly with Kem on the other end of the roof. Then he leaned forward and spoke with a low voice. “When you help these mutants, is it to escape the city or to stay here in secret?”

Taryn wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but it wasn’t that. “Mutants are illegal in the city.”

“So is helping them,” he said. “You don’t seem to have a problem with that.”

“Gale!”

“I’m sorry,” he said quickly, and he seemed sincere. “I don’t mean to accuse you of anything and I’m sorry if it sound like I’m judging you. That’s not what I mean to do at all.”

“What do you mean, then?”

He took a moment to search for his words. “I know why you do this. You believe you’re doing the right thing and I can accept that. But what do you actually do for them? Or with them? Do you help every mutant you find? Even the dangerous ones?” he asked. “Or is that something else you can’t share?”

Taryn considered his questions carefully. She was forbidden from sharing her mutant status, or her connection to the palace. Her immunity agreement made no mention of her extralegal activities. Apart from mandating a daily sweep of the city in search of potential mutant threats and forbidding the exercise of her telekinesis against they city’s law-abiding citizens, it shied away from the use of her abilities completely. So as long as she told them what she did, without mentioning how, she wouldn’t be risking whatever future she still had by telling them the truth.

“I don’t condone the release of dangerous mutants,” Taryn said. “If I find that a mutant is a threat to the city or the Seat, I will help ensure that mutant’s capture. I’ve done it more often than I’ve helped any escape.” Many of the mutants who risked entering the city were frustrated with their lives; the forced inhibitor regimen, the ridicule, the persecution. They blamed the monarchy for the things they’d lost and came seeking vengeance, or justice, which was sometimes the same thing to them. If they could not be swayed, then Taryn didn’t allow them freedom. Very rarely did she encounter a malicious mutant; one who has made a life out of hurting people. And just as rare were people like Denan.

“So do you work alone?” Galen asked. “Or do you work with any mutants to help you find and shelter others?”

Taryn considered Commander Kura. She thought of him as an ally, but he wouldn’t help her shelter or free any mutants, dangerous or not. George would, if he ever stayed long enough. And Vares allowed her to do what she believed was right, as long as no one ever knew. As long as their secret was safe, he didn’t care much what she did. “I work alone,” she said.

“Then how do you know?” Rai asked. “How do you know who to help and who to hinder?”

“I ask them,” Taryn said. “About their lives, about their intentions. I observe their behavior.”

“Like when you followed Denan,” Rai said. “You said you watched him as he moved through the city.”

“Yes,” Taryn said. “That usually indicates whether I can trust what they tell me or not.”

Galen scratched his head at this. “So you just watch them for… what? A few minutes? And that’s enough for you seek a face to face encounter? You’re not simply risking your freedom here, Taryn. You’re risking your life. And the lives of everyone else who crosses paths with these maniacs.”

“We’ve been over this, Galen. I wouldn’t let a dangerous mutant free and I don’t actually meet with them. I lure them into a trap and question them from a distance.”

“If you don’t get close enough for them to see you, then you can’t get close enough to inhibit them.” Rai said.

“How can you trap an uninhibited mutant?” Galen asked. “Won’t they just… escape?”

“Mutants can’t fly,” Taryn said. “Stick them in a hole deep enough, they’re as defenseless as any middling.”

“But they really aren’t,” Galen said. “It can move something into the hole to get itself out.”

“If a mutant doesn’t know a thing is out there, most mutants can’t move it. Even if they did know, they need to be able to see the thing. Or at least have an understanding of how heavy it is and know exactly where it is – particularly in relation to themselves. They need to know how much of their power is required to move it the way they want to. If they use too little power, they’re expending secarin with little to no reward. If they use too much, they run the risk of causing harm to others as well as unconsciousness or even death to themselves.”

“How do you know all of this?” Rai asked.

Taryn shrugged. “I ask people who know.”

“You mean mutants,” Galen said. “They aren’t people.”

“Gale, you said you weren’t going to judge. This is my safe place. I don’t want you two fighting.”

“I’m sorry,” Galen said. “You’re right. I’m sorry,” he added to Taryn. “I don’t want to pick a fight with you. I just want to understand. By your reasoning, or as far as I can understand based on what you’ve just said, no mutant has ever hurt anyone by accident. When someone is maimed, when buildings are demolished, when people are killed, its never an accident and anyone who claims otherwise is a liar. There has to be clear intent behind every move. So how can you sympathize with a mutant knowing that? How do you justify helping any of them even when they say they never meant to hurt anyone?”

“You’ve misunderstood,” Taryn said. By that reasoning, she would have to mad to believe any mutant’s claim to innocence. But the truth was proving difficult to explain. Taryn’s understanding came from experience and Galen would not understand unless he had the same. Taryn stood. They still had three eggs that didn’t make it into the batter. She grabbed one and moved a ways off.

“Try to catch this,” she said, then hurled the egg towards Galen’s face with all her strength.

His face twisted into a grimace. Both of his hands moved up to intercept the missile. They closed around the egg and crushed it, spraying gooey yolk all over his face and hair.

“What are you doing!?” Rai screamed.

“I’m sorry,” Taryn said. Though she’d expected the mess, that didn’t make it any less amusing. Andon and Kaz agreed and ran over to throw some eggs of their own.

Rai shielded the bowl that held the last two from them. “No one is throwing anymore eggs!”

“And you two came over here without an escort.” Galen wiped yolk and bits of shell from his face and shook it onto the ground. “You know what that means.”

“No!”

“You can’t expect us to just watch this happen and not join in.” Andon spoke with all the conviction of an impatient nine-year-old trying to convince a blind man that the sky was blue, not black. “Its impossible!”

“I’m sorry,” Taryn said. “You don’t have to go inside yet. I’m just trying to teach Galen a lesson here.”

“Like hells they don’t,” Galen said. “If you don’t enforce the rules, they will run wild.”

“Keep your voice down,” Taryn said. Hunter lashed out when he was roused from his sleep and Gerrie’s little face would catch the worst of it. “This was my fault. Let them stay and I’ll let you throw an egg at me.”

That piqued his interest. He looked to Rai, who hugged the bowl tighter and shook her head in disapproval.

“I promise, there is a point to this,” Taryn said. “We don’t need any more eggs tonight.”

“You want breakfast, don’t you?” Rai asked.

“If this egg breaks, I will raid a chicken coop,” Taryn said. “I promise.”

“You’re that sure that you’ll catch it?” Galen asked.

“Of course.”

“Please,” Galen said to Rai. “She is literally asking for it.”

With a heavy sigh, Rai conceded. She handed Galen the bowl and the boys got excited again. Galen stood, stretched his throwing arm, and let loose with all the strength that he had.

Taryn rounded her palm to create a soft pocket in the path of the projectile. She pulled her arm back sharply, just before the egg hit, and closed her fingers around it as she spun to slow the egg without breaking it. When she presented the egg whole between her fingers, Galen looked disappointed.

“How did you do that?” Andon tugged at her arm to get a closer look at the egg.

“You have to teach us how to do that,” Kaz said.

“And that is the point of this.” Taryn rejoined Galen and Rai and placed the egg back into the bowl. “When most mutants use their abilities, they do it much like Galen just did in catching the egg. The catch was intentional but you didn’t mean to break it. You didn’t know that there was a way to catch an egg moving that fast without breaking it. I was able to do it with a little practice and a basic understanding of the laws of physics. Mutants are the same. They have no experience or understanding of how to move a thing with precision and control. They don’t want to hurt people any more than you wanted to break that egg. They need to be taught.”

“Wait a minute.” Andon looked between Taryn and Galen, his eyes narrow slits under his scrunched brow. “What are you two talking about?”

“If you want to stay up here, you’ll go back to your designated area,” Galen said.

“But I want–”

“Now!” The disappointment was gone from Galen’s face. The annoyance at having been egged, the excitement at the chance to return the favor; it had all melted away to anger.

The boys stomped away. Andon dropped onto the blanketed prison with a feral frown, leaving Kaz to answer Kem’s worried questions.

“It is one thing to help someone who is lost, confused, and possibly off their regimen.” Galen’s words grounded out from behind his teeth in a harsh whisper. “But to actively encourage the use of mutant abilities? That is insane! If mutants were taught to use their abilities, they’d be more dangerous than they already are. A trained mutant is a trained killer!”

“You’re assuming that all mutants are the same,” Taryn said calmly. “All of humanity is not punished for the crimes of one. Why should it be different for mutants?”

“Two words,” Galen said, holding up two fingers. “Mind. Control.”

Mind control was the reason Taryn wasn’t allowed near the palace prisoners or to even to cast her Sentry into their cells. It was the reason why she was discouraged from delving into the minds of any mutants she found in the city, and one of the reasons her residence was a royal secret. The LAAMP Administrators, Dr. Seir and even Vares were afraid that another mutant would become aware of her presence and take advantage of the connection she established to control her. With her access to Vares and the palace, Taryn could be driven to do a lot of damage to the kingdom’s governing body. None of them believed her insistences that she would never allow that to happen.

“In order to truly control a mind, one would have to constantly repress the will of another,” Taryn explained. She’d met an exceptionally powerful reader once who’d made it his life’s mission to do as much, to as many people as possible, with little success. Tanas had allowed her into his mind so that he could try to take hers. He was the one who’d ‘taught’ her that if she entered someone’s mind-scape and pulled the eyes out of their subconscious self, the person would be blind in the real world. Or if she bound them in an immovable trap, the person would feel paralyzed. He was the one who taught her how she could lay waste to someone physically without ever leaving a mark.

“The controller would have to remain close to the controlled and endure the brutal resistance of a dying and desperate mental defense. The strain on the secarin supply alone would be too much for an advanced reader to even attempt without endangering their own lives. Even a phantom wouldn’t last longer than a few minutes against the average middling mind, let alone another mutant.” She couldn’t definitively say what would happen to the would-be controller, but she was sure that the consequence of such an attempt was a two year varn-like state for the victimized mutant.

“And you don’t believe mutants could come to exceed those limits if they were taught?” Rai asked.

“There are ways to protect a mind. Anyone can learn them.” Thanks to Tanas, Taryn knew she was strong enough to protect her mind from anything she could think of; and that list was longer than the Path of Kings.

“But it wouldn’t be enough,” Galen pressed. “If we allow mutants to learn how to use their abilities, we’d have a world full of berserkers and phantoms. It would only take one, just one phantom, to grow powerful enough to control an army of berserkers and destroy humanity. Can’t you realize that?”

Taryn obviously wasn’t getting through to him. He’d asked for this lesson but he refused to accept anything she said that contradicted what he already believed to be true. Well, if he wasn’t going to accept any of her truths, maybe he’ll respond to his own. “It is a scientific fact that every generation of mutants is stronger than the last.”

Galen scoffed. “You can’t just make up wild statements and call them fact.”

“For the Thousand Arm Warriors, a powerful mover was anyone who can drive a spear through someone’s skull with the throw of an arm. Now, mutants can lift entire homes with little more than a concentrated thought. Do you deny the truth of these statements?” Taryn asked.

“No.” The word grated from Galen’s lips.

“Since the Thousand Arm Warriors, there have been over fifty generations of mutant evolution. Even allowing that the power of Lothor Kings suppressed mutant abilities, Lothoria hasn’t had a Gifted King in 727 years; that’s thirty-six generations of unrestrained evolution. If the Thousand Arm Warriors had been able to control minds, even to the slightest degree, then it would be possible today. Rampant even. It would only require a handful of such mutants to walk into the city unopposed and take command of the King and the Fallen. Then mutants would rule this kingdom rather than live as criminals and outcasts.”

“Its astounding, truly, how mutant sympathizers have an argument prepared for everything,” Galen said. “And you’re probably the worst of them all because you’ve studied the history. You know that an army of mutants united against humanity is a historical fact. The Red Purge happened and mutants have been trying to finish it for the last thousand years. If we don’t want it to be a part of our future, mutants can’t be allowed to learn to use their abilities. They can’t be trusted to walk these city streets or roam the counties uninhibited. That is madness!”

Taryn had to remind herself that she couldn’t argue against what passed for history in the palace city. “If the Thousand Arm Warriors of history are reborn, it will be because the kingdom fears them so much, not because they actually existed.”

Galen shook his head as if to clear it of some disturbing thought. Even Rai seemed stunned by her words.

“I’m… I’m sorry. I thought…” he stammered. “I was under the impression that you were a well learned historian.”

“I am,” Taryn said. “The Thousand Arm Warriors stood a hundred mutants strong. They set out to rid the world of middlings and preached mutant supremacy. But there were enough mutants in the world to fill this city and the surrounding counties. I cannot believe that all of them were complicit in the Thousand Arm Warriors’ cause. I cannot believe that none of them rebelled against TAW rule. History says they used mind control and threats to force compliance but we’ve already established that half of that couldn’t possibly have been the truth. And there were only a hundred of them. They could not have policed their internal threats and managed their enemies at the same time. Even if a great number of their adversaries were caught and tortured and killed. I cannot imagine that Thousand Arm Warriors were so fearsome that none of their enemies escaped them.”

“What are you getting at?” Rai asked.

“What you understand as history is wrong,” Taryn said.

“So you’re not just perverse, you’re a living contradiction,” Galen marveled. “How can you be friends with this?” he asked Rai.

“Any one who gave it a modicum of thought would see that the stories concerning the might of the Thousand Arm Warriors are greatly exaggerated,” Taryn said. “They built this city in 468 A.D. But they didn’t start killing middlings until four years later. And then, they didn’t even start with their surrounding territories. They started in Damville. Why?”

“I believe the thinking was to begin in the Lady’s presence to gain power, favor or approval,” Rai said.

“But why stop there?” Taryn challenged. “The First killed them a year later and he had to come to the palace to do it. So they decimated Damville, then they went home. What were they doing in that year? Why did they retreat to the palace when there were still so many middlings between here and Damville if they were so set on wiping out middlings? Furthermore, there aren't any records of anyone being killed for defiance during the TAW reign. There are hardly any records of TAW reign at all. So how can anyone know that what we learn as history is really true?”

“Maybe… we can’t know,” Rai offered.

“Think about it,” Taryn said. “According to ‘history,’ the massacre at Damville was a blood ritual performed to add to the power of the Thousand Arm Warriors so that they could defeat their enemies. If that were true, then the First would not have been able to defeat them. This was a time when magic still existed. One man armed with magic cannot win against a hundred mutants armed with the same.”

“The Lothors are descended from the gods,” Galen said. “Their power is divine.”

“So is the Lady,” Taryn said. “If we’re going to accept mythology as truth then you need to accept it all. Lorria wrote that there were six gods in heaven. The Lady and the King were evenly matched. Neither one of them could have destroyed the other. If mutants have her power, then a hundred of them could not have fallen to one King.”

“One soul freely given is more powerful than a century stolen through unmaking,” Rai recited.

“But not more powerful than an entire Age of souls,” Taryn said. “Even if he had given all of himself to the First and the Lady had only given pieces of her power, the King was dessicated for an entire Age while the Lady feasted. That math doesn’t work no matter how you look at it. Therefore, we can logically, mythologically, and historically conclude that the Thousand Arm Warriors did not massacre Damville a thousand years ago in order to gain power for themselves.”

“So why do you think they did it?” Galen asked. “How do you justify the slaughter of an entire village and not see wickedness in the hearts of the culprits?”

“You tell me,” Taryn said. “I don’t know any more about this than you do. We all know that the TAW believed that the world was in some kind of danger. We all know that they believed they had been sent to save it. But all we can say that they did was build a city full of mutants they “allegedly” suppressed with fear and massacre a small village at the bottom of the world. Then they did nothing for an entire year and waited for the First to come kill them. If they didn’t kill all those people to get rid of middlings, if they didn’t do it to add to their power, why, then, did they do it?” Taryn leaned forward, challenging, daring them to see it for themselves or tell her something she didn’t know and prove that she was wrong.

“So you want us to believe that the Thousand Arm Warriors were justified because they did it to save humanity?” Galen asked. “The lesser of two evils is still evil, Taryn.”

Taryn sat back, shaking her head in disappointment. “It astounds me, truly, how everyone seems to forget that the entire world was at war. The War of the Royals didn’t end until the Fallen Kings submitted to the First. And that was after he’d defeated the Thousand Arm Warriors. Until then, villages were razed and massacred almost constantly. Homesteads were put to flames and innocents were murdered in the streets for no reason greater than the desires of one man – a lord or a king – who wanted to conquer and command the entire world. One man who wanted to send a clear message to his enemies. This went on for centuries, yet we don’t call them wicked. We call them the descendants of the gods and their children rule this kingdom to this day.

“Meanwhile, when a group of mutants gets together and decides to do the same, they’re branded as evil. No matter that they thought they were doing good. No matter that they believed they acted in the service of a god. The only god, mind you, that the world knew of at the time. And now everyone who shares their power is forced to suppress it or die. Does that sound right to you?”

“No,” Rai said. “No, no, no, no, no. She made them forget. The Lady made everyone forget the other gods.”

“Sure,” Taryn said. “If you believe Lorria’s prophecies. But those were written during the War of the Royals. The Lady’s Fountain pre-dates all of that. In fact, all the stories and myths of the time are filled with heroes embarking on adventures and quests to show themselves worthy of receiving healing from the waters of the Lady’s Fountain; not curses, not mutant power. If you look at historical records, even the old kings sponsored pilgrimages to worship at the Lady’s Fountain. But what you don’t see in all of that are any references to the Seat of the Gods. Or the Prince’s Mirror. Or the Saint’s Cup.

“The Lady may have been able to make the people forget that the other gods existed but she could not have hidden the relics of their power. Someone would have noticed a massive, shining chair that could purify evil spirits, or a pond that could transport you from one place to another. Those things didn’t exist until Lorria and her followers started writing their prophecies.” Even to this day, the mystics had only been able to locate two of the Lorric relics. The Lady’s Fountain, which hadn’t healed anyone in centuries, and the Seat of the Gods. In a thousand years of Lothor reign, only one person had been burned by the Seat of the Gods, and Taryn had her doubts about that whole affair.

Galen opened his mouth but he had no words. He turned a confused look to Rai, who returned a desperate glance back at him. Taryn hadn’t told them anything they didn’t already know and neither of them knew what to say against it.

“Why does it matter,” Galen finally managed, “that the Lady is older than the other gods? She is still the dark goddess. And if there can be a dark goddess, then there has to be one for light. The Lady’s Fountain is shrouded by a presence that is particularly opposed to Lothor Kings.”

Rai nodded. “Whenever a Lothor acts against mutants in the presence of the Lady’s Fountain, they fall on their own Sword,” Rai recited.

“Exactly,” Galen said. “That is a fact.”

“That is more myth. It’s happened twice. A thousand years apart. Neither of those accounts is clear on what actually happened. The First died in a berserker attack a few generations before the induction of the King’s Arsenal. There was no Sword to turn against him, only the actual weapon he held in his hand. And if you understand how berserker attacks work, that entire claim looses all of its power. We already know that berserker attacks can happen anywhere, not just at the Lady’s Fountain. There was nothing supernatural about his death.”

“And what of this King, and his Sword?” Galen asked. “Those men train from boyhood to defend the Lothor line. What logical, not mythical reason would the Sword-in-Training have to attack his Prince when they should have been unified in the plight to defeat the Maronai forces?”

“I don’t know,” Taryn said. “People do terrible things for so many reasons. It could have been a misguided bid for power. Or a hidden hatred; Varun was not a beloved King and not all of those boys were willing servants of the Seat. Or maybe his Sword-in-Training hid a mutation of his own, and felt outraged at the senseless slaughter of innocents. Half the time, Rai, you’re even convinced that Vares and his Sword were in love with the same woman. So you can’t tell me that you also believe that his Sword betrayed him under the influence of some supernatural entity.”

“Love is supernatural,” Rai said. “It’s the most powerful thing in the world.”

“But it isn’t darkness,” Taryn said. “I don’t know why Vares’s Sword turned against him. I don’t think we ever will.” Vares kept her from that part of his mind and he never talked about that part of his life. “What I do know, what I am absolutely sure of, is that mutants are not inherently evil and Lothors are not inherently good. They’re just human. We are all human. And that is the truth.”

Rai suddenly rose to her feet. She began stacking bowls and folding blankets, silent tears welling in her eyes.

“Rai.” Taryn reached for her. “What’s wrong?”

“Don’t.” Rai held held her hands out, the blanket she held a quilted barrier Taryn was forbidden from crossing.

“You’re upset with me?” Taryn asked. “I don’t understand.”

“It’s fine,” Rai said. “We wanted the truth and… This is yours. Just… Gale, can you take care of this for me? I need to be alone.” She draped the blanket across his arm and left, still wiping tears from her face.

“What just happened?” Taryn asked as she watched her friend disappear down the stairs.

“She believes her father is watching over her from the stars,” Galen said. “It was the only thing that got her through his death and you’ve just told her that was all a lie. Did you think she would thank you for that?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Taryn said. In truth, she hadn’t even considered it.

“Then I guess we’re all guilty of accidentally hurting the ones we love,” Galen said.

Taryn stood to follow after her.

“Don’t,” Galen said. “She doesn’t want to hear what you have to say.”

“I don’t like her being upset with me.”

“No one does,” Galen said. “But if you go after her now, she’ll end up saying things she won’t mean; you’ll hear things you wish you hadn’t. One of you will cry, or get angry, or both and I’ll have to hear about it for days on end. Its a grand stinking mess she wants to spare us all from. Let her.”

Taryn hated to admit it but he was right. She couldn’t lie to Rai. She couldn’t pretend to believe the pieces of the myths that Rai held closest to her heart. Yet, she couldn’t tell her the truth, either. She wouldn’t dare. If this was too much for Rai, she would never accept the full truth of her. And that was the more troubling truth. That all the hopes she’d built in the last year; all that arguments she made against the LAAMP; all the work she’d put into disproving their lies; they were all for naught.

Suddenly, a shrill scream sounded from the kitchen beneath them. Followed swiftly by the sound of ceramic shattering to pieces. It roused Gerrie and drew the attentions of everyone on the rooftop.

“Keep an eye on Hunter for me.” Taryn didn’t bother with the stairs, opting instead to dangle herself from the roof’s ledge and drop down to the landing below. She did the same to speed her going from the ledge to the ground and raced inside the home before anyone else had even made it to the stairs.

“Wait!” Kem called after her.

She found Rai pressed against the patio doors; hand splayed over her chest, wide eyed staring into the kitchen. Taryn cast her mind into the lone flame in the kitchen as she moved. She heard raged breaths. Saw the broken pieces of a blue rimmed bowl scattered around the splash of brown gravy. And a knife, small and bloody in a trembling hand.

Taryn returned to herself and swallowed her nausea as she stopped between Rai and the open kitchen. Facing the front door, she could see the shape of the assailant from the side of her eyes. He was injured, and not very confident. One quick glance should be all she’d need to plan her advance and disarm him. One quick glance… and she was confused.

It was a child, thin and trembling as he brandished that bloody knife. Not much older than Andon and Kaz, his right ankle was wrapped in tan bandage strips and he stood barefoot before a splash of hot stew and shards. His face was covered in cuts and scrapes that had long since healed but whatever had been done to his other arm was fairly recent. It was bound in a sling made from Kem’s blue shirt.

“Taryn, wait!” Kem barreled down the hall towards her. He brushed past her into the kitchen and she watched the terror in the child’s eyes disappear when he saw Kem. Then Kem snatched the weapon from the boy’s grip and flicked his forehead.

“Ow!” The boy rubbed his head and glowered at Kem.

“That’s my sister!” Kem said.

“She scared me,” the boy said. “You said no one was gonna be here.”

“So you pull a knife? Where’d you even get this?” Kem studied the weapon, then frowned at the boy. “You said it was all your blood.”

“It was.”

“So what, did you cut yourself?” Kem held the handle of the knife between his fingers so that the blood-stained blade dangled freely. Taryn looked away.

“I gotta protect myself,” she heard the boy say. “Ow!”

“This isn’t the streets, Dash. My friends are here. My family sleeps here. You can’t bring things like this when you come here.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m not the one you need to apologize to.”

“I’m sorry, okay?” Dash mumbled.

Taryn heard Galen and the boys make their way inside and she peeked through one eye in time to see Kem fold the blade back into the handle and tucked the weapon into his boot. The three boys filed past with sleepy stares into the sitting room. Galen stood beside Rai to take in the situation in the kitchen.

“Where’s Hunter?” Taryn asked.

“I’m not touching that thing,” Galen said. “What is this? What’s going on?”

“I don’t know,” Rai said. “Kem, who is this boy?”

“I’m going to lift you up, okay?”

“I’m not a doll,” the boy said. “I can move myself.”

Kem ignored his protests. He swept the child into his arms and carried him across the sharp, slippery mess so he could glower at him from the safety of the table. “This is Dashiro.”

“It’s Footpad Dash!”

“Kemmy caught a thief?” Galen marveled.

“He doesn’t do that anymore.” Kem stepped around the mess to grab another bowl and spoon from the cupboard. He scooped a spoonful of rice and two ladles of the stew into the bowl before setting it down on the table next to Dash.

“Why is he here, then?” Rai asked.

“That’s none of your business!” Dash said.

“It is now. Dash, I have to tell them,” Kem said.

The boy pouted. He shoved a spoonful in his mouth and stared death at Kem while he launched a violent assault on his meal with his teeth.

Kem searched around until he found a towel. He used it to sweep up the spilled stew and bowl shards. “He tried to pick my pocket several months ago,” Kem said.

“I didn’t try,” Dash said around a mouthful. “I got you!”

“But he didn’t get away. Not from me, anyways. He managed to escape the bluebacks but they kept his loot – about a week’s wage. He found me a few days later. Apparently, his… friends still wanted that purse and Dash here thought that I was responsible. I agreed to pay it if he stopped picking pockets and started apprenticing for an honest coin.”

“These friends of yours,” Taryn said. “Did they give you these injuries?”

Dash looked to Kem, who nodded. “They wanted–”

“No,” Taryn said. Kem was withholding details and Taryn though she knew why. “You don’t have to explain. I understand.”

“Well, I don’t,” Rai said. “This is our home. Why would you bring him here? As ridiculous as your arrangement was, you should have been able to pay off what he owed months ago.”

Kem threw the towel into the sink and pumped water over it. “A few months ago, Dash’s old crew made peace with one of their rivals. When they merged, the rules changed. They started threatening Dash to try to poach him back. He still has some friends in the fold but every day that the others catch him on the streets…” He made a general gesture to the child as a whole and his meaning was clear. “They wanted more money to cover the loss of all he’d bring in over the course of his life. A week’s wage every month for as long as he lived.”

“Stop talking,” Taryn said. “Please.”

“Listen.” Galen leaned his head closer to Taryn and spoke in a low voice. “I know these things can be confusing for you sometimes, but you should be happy right now. This is obviously what he’s been hiding in his room. Not another lover. You should want to hear more. That’s the appropriate response here.”

Taryn didn’t need to hear more because she was familiar with the ploy. The demand would only increase until Dash either rejoined or they decided to kill him. Even if he did rejoin, they’d never trust him again. They’d find a way to make an example of him, then they’d kill him. It was a ploy to promote loyalty within their ranks and discourage deserters. It was a ploy from the twisted mind of the King of the Lane.

“But they kept asking for more,” Kem continued, “until I just refused to pay. They wanted a week’s wage every week or a year’s worth in one sum to leave him alone for good. I started hiding him here during the day and sneaking him off to the bakery at night. They were going to kill him, Rai. It’s the only place I knew he’d be safe. That was two days ago,” he finished quietly.

“Two days?” Rai was on the verge of tears. As much as she assured everyone that she wasn’t bothered or worried, her attack was still fresh in her mind and it didn’t take her long to piece together that the day after Kem angered a street gang who thought nothing of beating their own members bloody, a hundred and fifty-seven people were attacked in the city, Rai included.

“I’m sorry,” Kem said.

“No.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“No!” Rai said. “This was never about you. This was never about me!”

“Hey,” Galen said. He reached for her hand and held her tight against his chest, one hand stroking gently the soft curls of her head. Bowing his head so she’d hear him the best, he lowered his voice and quietly said,

“What have they done to my Lovely Rai?

They have troubled her mind with ugly lies.

They have battered and bruised and tried to bring about demise.

They have made salty pools of the light of her eyes.

But what shall I do for my Lovely Rai?

The one who inspires every joy in my life?

The one who speaks as a soothing fife?

The one whose touch is a surgeon’s knife?

I will hold her close and be forever by her side.

I will kiss the bitterness until her eyes have dried.

I will sing back to her all the love she has supplied.

I will take her and make her my beloved… guide.

This will I do for the Lovely Rai.

This will I do until the end of time.

So what can they do to my Lovely Rai,

But keep her forever in these arms of mine?”

It was uncomfortable and sweet and emulous to see how her tears turned to laughter when his love flowed free.

“Your friends are weird,” Dash whispered.

“A surgeon’s knife?” Rai asked.

“It was the first thing that came to mind,” Galen said. “Did you like it?”

Rai wrapped her arms around him. “Do you have to go tonight? The boys are already half asleep. They could all bunk here.”

“I’ll come back,” Galen said. “I’ll stay until your mother comes home. Once I’ve handed them over to my parents and Mr. Belur, I’ll come back for you.”

Rai made a disappointed noise and buried her face in his chest.

Galen peered over her head and glowered at Kem. “You and I need to have a talk about this.” There no poetry in his words, no sweet rhymes. Only hard lines in his arms as they clenched around Rai and the promise of a reckoning.

“No,” Rai said. “No fighting. It’s not his fault.”

Galen took a breath before he responded. “If he hadn’t gotten involved with and then pissed off this street gang, they never would have laid a hand on you.”

“What about the hundred and fifty-six others?” Rai asked. “And the batch from today, and tomorrow, and the hundreds from all the tomorrows until this is over? Will they be Kem’s fault, too?”

“I don’t care about any of them,” Galen said.

Rai touched his face and kissed the crook of his neck. “It isn’t his fault.” She held on to his hand and turned to her brother. “This isn’t your fault. None of this is anyone’s fault.”

“She’s right,” Taryn said. “The King of the Lane wants this city. He wants us afraid and fighting each other when we should be fighting him.”

Dash scoffed. “That’s how people die.”

“Not the way I fight.” Taryn stepped into the kitchen and leaned her arms against the back of the chair across from Dash. “If you’re dealing with these people, then you know how to reach them. Do you think you can you arrange a meeting for me with the person in charge?”

Dash recoiled. “The Ax Man? What do you want to meet him for?”

Taryn knew Kol wouldn’t be running these gangs himself. He would have sent someone over from his ranks in Larisport, someone who’d managed to cross in to Pine Keep without her noticing. One face to face meeting and she could learn the truth about how Kol shielded his mind, and the minds of his most trusted followers. Then she could figure out how to track them. “If he’s the one giving the orders, then I want to speak to him.”

“No, Taryn, you can’t get involved,” Rai said. “You’ll only make things worse.”

“Things will get worse whether I’m involved or not,” Taryn said, straightening to face her. “What they’ve done with Kem and Dash, they’ll do to all of Pine Keep. They’ll keep raising the stakes until this looks like Larisport. I might be able to put a stop to it if I can speak with whoever is in charge.”

“Or you might speed it up,” Kem said. “I’ve met these people. They’re very dangerous.”

“Which is why I need to speak to them.”

“Wait a minute. I know you.” Dash’s eyes narrowed as sized her up, them bulged as he realized – “You’re the one who attacked the King! Kem, you didn’t tell me you knew the Weapon Slayer!”

“Because we don’t call her that. And it isn’t true,” Kem said.

Dash shook his head. “I can’t help you. It’s not just us and the Dawgs he put together. But all the crews he could find. They won’t let you near enough to hurt him. And if they find out I sent you their way, they’ll double the price on my head. Or just kill me!”

Taryn had guessed that. He couldn’t have gathered a force of over two hundred from a couple of street gangs. “I’ll pay off the price on your head,” Taryn said.

Dash stopped a meaty spoonful halfway to his mouth and gaped at her. “Really?”

“No,” Kem said. “This is my mess. I don’t want you involved in this.”

“How much do they want?” Taryn asked.

“A hundred fifty-seven coppers a week.” Dash shoved the spoonful in his mouth and used his shoulder to wipe gravy from his chin. “Forever.”

“But a year’s worth to leave you alone for good, right?” Taryn asked. “That should come out to…eighty-one–”

“Eighty-five gold,” Dash blurted. “Finder’s fee.”

“Fine,” Taryn said. If she played this right, she wouldn’t have to give up more than a few coins before she could dismantle their union and break their grip on Pine Keep. “But I’ll deliver it myself, and only to this Ax Man. Can you arrange that?”

“He can’t arrange anything,” Kem said. “Look at him. They’ll kill him if he goes anywhere near them.”

“Not with eighty-five gold on the line,” Taryn said. Not with her watching him.

“Eighty-five minus my fee,” Dash put in. “But I can’t make any promises until I have proof that you can actually deliver.”

“You have my word,” Taryn said.

Dash shook his head. “If you want the Ax Man, I’ll need more than words to get through those doors. And nothing opens doors better than Bellautorex gold.”

For a moment, Taryn considered just how much of her sword fund she could afford to lose. “Tomorrow,” she finally said. “I can get you five gold tomorrow. You’ll arrange the meet and I’ll bring the rest the day of.”

“No,” Kem said, moving to stand between them. “If you’re determined to do this, I’ll go. I’ll deliver the gold, I’ll ask for the meeting.”

“Absolutely not.” If things went badly, Taryn could accept revealing her abilities to rescue Dash. She could accept making him forget. But she could not do that to Kem. She wouldn’t.

“So it’s more acceptable to put a child in harm’s way?” Galen asked, Rai frowning at his side.

“No. It’s not… I’m not…” Taryn scrambled to defend herself. “Weapon Slayer or not, these people won’t take me seriously if Kem is my representative. I need someone from their world. And Kem is too… He’s not…”

Galen nodded knowingly. “He’s a little marshal.”

“Yes,” Taryn said.

“Ow!” Galen rubbed his arm where Rai had pinched him.

“She’s right,” Dash put in. “You’re more gull than goon. I should be the one to go.”

“So.” Kem stepped around the table towards Taryn. “You don’t think I can be… intimidating?”

He stopped about a half-step away from her. His blue eyes seemed dark in the weakened light of the kitchen. And when he looked down at her, his eyes both raging and teasing as they bore into hers, it took everything Taryn had to keep her hands from fidgeting as she looked away.

“I didn’t say that,” she said quietly.

“If you want to meet this Ax Man, you’ll have to deal with me. I can handle myself,” Kem said. “But Dash isn’t going anywhere near them.”

“No one should go near them!” Rai shouted. “Gods! Do you hear yourselves? These are violent thugs. And you’re arguing about which one of you gets to endanger yourselves. For nothing!”

Taryn could help thinking that Rai was right. She didn’t actually need anyone to put themselves in danger in order to reach the Ax Man. With her Echoes, she could send any message she wanted directly into the mind of any of the Princes of the Fall she’d been able to identify so far. Hells, she could send a message to all the ones she’d identified. And she could do it every day until someone led her to the man himself. Sure, she wouldn’t be able to conceal her mutant status when they finally did meet, but that wouldn’t matter after her sixteenth birthday.

“Not for nothing,” Kem said softly.

Something in his voice made Taryn glance up at him. His eyes were no longer teasing. They were focused on Rai. Specifically, the purple bruises that speckled her face; the dark hand print that circled her neck; the stillness of her arm. And Taryn didn’t need her abilities to understand the anger that broiled behind those eyes. She knew that there was nothing anyone could every say or do that would stop her from avenging Rai. And that had to be doubly true for Kem. He was going to find a way to make Rai safe again and it would be safer for him if Taryn was involved.

“Fine,” Taryn said with a sigh. “Kem goes.”

“What?” Dash said. “He’ll get creamed.”

“No, he won’t,” Taryn said quickly. “If they really are afraid of the Weapon Slayer, they wouldn’t dare harm her messenger. You’ll be safe,” she added to Kem. “I promise.” Her heart raced as she spoke. She wasn’t sure she was ready to pay the cost of keeping that promise. And the possibility of Kem discovering what she was sent a ripple of panic through her mind. Taryn balled her fists against it.

“But you don’t even know who to pitch,” Dash said. “You could end up with a runner who’ll take the gold for himself and the Ax Man’ll never hear about a meet.”

Kem turned to face the boy, his arms crossed. “Is that what you were planning?”

Dash shrugged and shoved a spoonful of gravy soaked vegetables into his mouth. “Five gold can get me out of the city,” he said.

“Then we need a way to make sure the Ax Man hears about it,” Taryn said. More than that, she needed a way to make sure they really were afraid of her. She considered taking a more direct approach against them; thwarting enough of their attacks and terrorizing enough of their number that they’d think twice about harming anyone she cared for.

“These boys all used to be rivals,” Kem said. “I could get the word out to members from a few different gangs and offer the finder’s fee to the first one to come back with a response.”

“And they’ll race each other to get it done. That’s… that’s brilliant,” Taryn said. Putting the rival gangs in competition with each other could work to erode their unity. And if she could find a way to break their faith in the Ax Man, they might well disband altogether. That was a much better deterrent than setting herself loose against them, which might have only served to unite them against her. “Now I just need to think of a message – something the Ax Man can’t refuse. What can you tell me about him?” she added to Dash.

“Why don’t we just take what he knows to the Guard?” Rai asked. “It’s their job to deal with this. We’ll all be safer if we let them.”

“No!” Dash raised his eyes to Kem. “We had a deal. I see a shield, I’m gone.”

“I know, I know but…” Kem rubbed at his chin, considering. “I don’t know, Dash. This has gotten pretty out of hand. We might need their help.”

“Not. Happening.”

“You won’t have anything to worry about,” Galen said. “You’re not a criminal anymore. You’re the victim here. The best Taryn can do is buy you a reprieve. But if they’re arrested, they’ll never be able to come back to do this again.”

“I talk to her.” Dash pointed at Taryn with his spoon, then flinched back with a wince, his arm resting across his stomach. “If I squeal to a shield they won’t care about the money.”

“Alright,” Taryn said. “No bluebacks. But you can’t hold anything back from me, Dash. I need to know everything; every name you’ve heard, every hideout you’ve visited or suspected, everything you know about what they’re planning and what they want. I need to know it all.” Taryn unclenched her fists and breathed easier. The more they decided, the more she believed that she could do this without any exposure. Finding out everything Dash knew would certainly help.

Dash set his spot now and leaned back in his seat. “Where do you want to start?”

“Later,” Taryn said. He was willing to share what he knew with her. That was all the invitation Taryn needed. Besides, she was close enough to him to catch the scent of rust staining the air. “Are you… bleeding somewhere?”

Dash’s arm tightened around his stomach. “No.”

Kem eased his arm away and slowly lifted his shirt.

The faint trace became a crisp scent and Taryn closed her eyes against the sight of blood seeping from a hastily stitched gash that ran across his abdomen. “He needs a physician. I’ll go–”

“No!” Dash and Kem said together.

“Its only a torn stitch,” Kem said. “From all the excitement. He needs to rest.”

“I need to eat.”

“You can eat in bed,” Kem said. He bent to pick the child up again but Dash held him off with his good hand.

“Hands to yourself, guy!” Dash said. “I can walk.”

Kem offered a hand to help the boy down but he ignored it and leapt down on his good leg. He landed with a pained huff, took a few bracing breaths and limped out of the kitchen. Kem ladled more stew into his bowl and followed him.