Heavy crashing in the brush had me peering in the direction of the campsite. A glimpse of brown – too dark for Shane – then a splash of black warned me our unwelcome company had arrived.

I reached over and began scratching behind Milly's ears. Eager for another bout of attention, she leaned into it. A horn blast rang out, right where the campsite was. More horses crashed through the trees as they converged on the sound.

I scratched harder, and Milly practically shoved her entire head against my chest in approval. Very faint voices reached my ears as a few men called out to the approaching riders.

"Found their camp! Fire's cold, but they was here earlier today!"

"Over here! Found their trail! They're heading west."

"After them! Try to catch 'em. If nothing else, we'll chase 'em into the pass."

The horses swiftly cantered out of the abandoned camp and along my false trail, spreading out as they went.

"Good girl, Milly," I murmured, still scratching behind her ears as the sounds faded.

Movement caught my eye, and when I turned my head, I noticed three other horseback riders farther out, flanking their louder companions. I had been right. There were silent groups out here hoping to catch whatever evaded the soldiers. They also disappeared into the forest.

Questions kept chasing each other around my mind as relentlessly as a mosquito in a tent. Why were these people so determined to catch us? Who had that dead guy been? And why did he seem to mean so much to this sadistic Warlord? What power had he held?

And where in this infernal forest was Shane?

Answers were still nowhere to be found, although Milly was convinced that ear scratches were completely sufficient. Just in case there were more lurkers, I kept rubbing along her mane to keep her motionless and silent. The stupid rabbits were once more bumbling around and making noise, keeping me on edge.

After a while, Milly became interested in the vegetation, so I pulled out the cloak and finished the final touches. As the sky grew darker, I saddled Milly and got ready. I was glad I'd done my cooking at lunch and prepared the grilled bits of meat in a wrap ahead of time.

Then I noticed the rabbits were silent.

Even as I focused on the forest around me, distant shrubs quivered as a large, brown werewolf skulked directly toward me. When Shane saw me looking at him, he held a finger to his lips to mime for silence.

I almost rolled my eyes at Shane's warning. It was almost as if I wasn't already hiding in a different location because I knew various groups of soldiers were around.

But the necklace must work since he'd known exactly where I was hiding. The way he was keeping a low profile instead of bounding through the forest made me wonder what was around to prompt such caution.

As he got closer, Milly looked up and snorted at the large wolf. He paused, likely to avoid spooking her, and stood on his hind legs and reached toward his head. One moment, his hands were empty, but even as he reached toward his neck, his necklace appeared in his fingers like a glimmer of moonlight.

Like before, the moment it was looped around his neck, he shifted to his human form with the accompaniment of shimmering orange and green light.

I blinked slowly.

"These woods are crawling with soldiers. What happened?"

"They must have found our trail. I've been hiding over here for several hours. Here's a dinner wrap." I tossed the wrap to him.

He caught it and stared at it as if I had lost my mind and he hadn't just said that the forest was crawling with soldiers.

"What's the best way out of here? There are a few quiet groups sneaking around. They seem to think we're headed west, and one of them mentioned something about trying to chase us into a pass they blocked off." I took a bite of my own wrap and waited, not bothering to get to my feet just yet.

He shook his head to recollect his thoughts. "It won't be easy." He took a bite of the wrap and chewed, not making any move to immediately restart our journey like we normally did.

His eyes flickered across the trees, eventually saying, "Rivermere would have us traveling west, and I was worried about using the main pass before, but if they think they have it blocked, we can't chance it."

"They also said something about us not being able to double back because there's a group on the slopes. Can we alter our path eastward and go closer to the coast?"

He took another bite as his eyes narrowed in thought. "This mountain valley isn't that wide, and there's only a couple of main roads, all of which intersect at the pass. There are a few other paths they might not be aware of, but they're so small one or two men could easily block them. Even if we get through, there will be some nasty storms if we go that way."

"Then it's a good thing I had some spare material and made you this." I tossed the folded cloak to him.

He caught it and glanced between it and me with an uncomprehending expression. Setting his wrap on a nearby stone, he unfolded the wad of material to reveal the brown storm cloak. He gazed at it for quite some time.

"Thank you," he finally said, his voice subdued.

He put it on, and I was pleased to see that even though it was a bit loose, nothing was too tight or would bind as he moved. We ate in silence, with frequent glances at the trees around us.

"I assume we don't want to move until it's darker out?" I asked.

"The darker it is, the harder it will be to spot us. And even if they hear something, there's a lot of deer and wildlife also making noise."

I nodded. "I'd rather cover less distance than have someone see us from far away. How long will it take us to reach these other trails you were talking about?"

"It'll take two days to reach the pass, and we'll go to the one I discovered by accident, so they shouldn't know it exists. It's pretty steep in some spots, so I'm hoping your mule can turn into a goat. Otherwise, I'll have to find another way around certain sections."

"Milly isn't a goat, but she's nimbler than those big horses."

"That's what I'm counting on. I'll try to pick trails she can manage but the destriers can't."

"I'm hoping these guys give up or the warlord needs them elsewhere and calls them back."

"Let's hope so."

Neither of us sounded very optimistic.