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  Edmond opened the door with a smile and sat a small pile of rose thorns on the small table by the door. His hands were dotted with prick marks, and bleeding slightly. I frowned. "Are you okay?"

  "I'm fine. Just not the best gardener, it would seem. I thought you were studying."

  “I am. Just…in bed.” Under the covers, I gripped the jar of fogmoss tightly.

  Edmond shook his head and chuckled. “Alright. Just let me know when you want to eat dinner, okay?”

  As he closed the door, I called out, "Thank you!"

  Sinking into my soft mattress, under my fluffy covers, turning the small jar over and over again in my hand, I had never felt like such a terrible person before in my life.

  Chapter 8

  Was I really planning to poison a nice guy like Edmond, a boy who’d been my faithful guard ever since Maddox had been reassigned? And if I did, what did that say about me? Was I no better than crazy Instructor Baak? I slowly stirred my spoon around in my cup, swirling the tea, melting the sugar cube that was bobbing on the surface of the steaming liquid. Edmond and I had decided to stay in and relax after classes and extra duties the next day, and after watching the sun descend beyond the parlor’s window, I’d suggested that we snack on some cheeses and fruits while sipping some tea. As Edmond retrieved some snacks from the dining hall, I brewed the tea. He offered to help when he returned, but I declined. It was no problem, I assured him. I was happy to do it.

  Only I wasn’t happy. How could I be happy when I knew that I was administering a poison to a man who didn’t deserve it?

  My plan was as simple as any. Get Edmond to drink the fogmoss tea. Have him escort me to the north gate. Convince Maddox to let me outside the wall—not that it would take much convincing, I was certain. Maddox was on my side, no matter what—especially if it meant giving Quill a migraine. And then I’d head south to Kessler on my own, to my parents’ cabin.

  I’d given it a lot of thought, and if I could find my parents, not only would I know that they were alive and well, but my father would be the best person on Tril to assist me in locating both Darius and Trayton. He’d also be anxious to, once he heard about the lies that we’d been told regarding my Soulbound Barron. My father wasn’t one to put up with such things—especially from the Zettai Council.

  I’d initially thought of taking Edmond with me on my trip. He was a pretty tough Barron, well-educated, and I got the impression he felt at home out on patrol—all excellent traits for a travel companion. But once the fogmoss wore off, I was sure he’d insist on returning to Shadow Academy. He’d also probably be pretty terked about that whole poisoning him against his will thing.

  Up until a moment ago, I was determined to take Maddox along, but that changed the moment I recalled the sparkle in her eye at the mention of her new Healer, who would be here any day now. She was so excited to finally have a Healer. I couldn’t take that from her. But I also couldn’t wait around to meet her Healer before I left. I couldn’t explain it, but I felt like I was being replaced somehow, and I just couldn’t stomach the idea of meeting the person who was replacing me—even though they weren’t.

  Maddox would be heartbroken that I would miss her binding ceremony, but she would let me go. She would help me get outside the wall. She had to. It was what best friends did.

  I wondered how long it would take for the fogmoss to take effect, but then Edmond returned his cup to its saucer. He sat bolt upright, his eyes in a daze. With a tremble to my words that I was trying hard to ignore, I said, "Edmond? Are you done with your tea?"

  In a voice that slashed through my being with guilt after every obedient syllable, he replied, "Am I done with my tea?"

  There was a lump in my throat. One that refused to disappear, no matter how much I swallowed.

  "Yes. You are. Please stand." After he did as instructed, I stood as well, setting my tea next to his. Then I looked at him. While a part of me was eaten up with remorse at having poisoned Edmond, another part marveled that such an herb existed. I pushed the guilt away, determined to stay focused on my task. "You will escort me to the training supply room, and then to the south gate. To Maddox. Once I am outside the gate, you will come to your senses and explain that you were poisoned with fogmoss. Then you will tell everyone who asks about me that I wa sthe one who poisoned you, and that I was determined to travel south, to teh Zettai Council seat, to take up my concerns with them directly. Do you understand?"

  It was a lie, but one I had to make him believe. Quill wasn't an idiot. He'd assume I would seek out my parents, and what better place to look than Kessler? I had to do what I could to ensure that I had a small lead from whoever he'd send after me.

  "I understand."

  From under my bed, I retrieved a small satchel--one that I had stuffed with various foods and a few medicinal herbs. Then, with a deep breath locked tight in my lungs, I gave Edmond the lead and we moved out the door, and down the stairs. Before I knew it, we were crossing the cobblestone, Darius's window dark above us. I tried not to think about my former teacher, my Soulbound Barron, as we rounded the building and slipped inside. My training uniform and mask were tucked carefully inside a trunk just to the left of the door, and across the room, safely housed in its usual spot on the rack, I spied my katana. Relief flooded me to see it, and I knew that if it had the ability to feel, it would be absolutely relieved to see me as well. Once I changed into a training uniform and slipped the mask on over my face, I crossed the room, gripping my weapon and slipping it over my shoulder. There were too many memories attached to it, and much of them came flooding back to me the moment my fingers touched the handle. Memories of Trayton, teaching me how to hold the katana. But mostly, memories of Darius teaching me how to use it.

  I tried not to think too much about Darius. I pushed him from my thoughts as I exited the building. I tried not to think of him as we crossed the war-torn campus of Shadow Academy. It was all I could do, however, to keep him out of the forefront of my mind as we approached the north gate.

  Darius would approve of my actions. Trayton, most definitely, would not.

  The north gate was more rustic than the south gate, but maybe that was because of the constant repairs due to rampant Graplar attacks. As we approached, I counted ten guards, milling about in various places near the gate. But Maddox was nowhere to be found. Panic filled my chest as we moved closer and closer to the gate guard, and when Edmond spoke, I thought I might die from fright right then and there. What was I doing? This wasn't going as planned at all. I should just cut my losses and head back to my dorm to formulate a new plan. One where Maddox and I had maybe planned it all out together. One where I wasn't on my own.

  "Gareg. It's good to see you. Been too long." Edmond grasped wrists with the gate guard, each smiling at their reunion. "Have you seen Maddox? I'm supposed to meet her here."

  It amazed me how well the fogmoss was working. Edmond didn't seem drugged at all, or even hazy. He just seemed like himself. Only he was doing exactly what I'd wanted him to. He was trying to get me outside the gate. Gareg shook his head, looking a bit perplexed. "Haven't seen her. Maddox has guard duty off today. Sick, from what I'm told. Some kind of stomach bug."

  My doubts washed away as they spoke. Who was I kidding? I wasn't about to go back to my dorm with my tail tucked between my legs. People outside that wall needed me. And I needed to prove to myself that I wasn't just some lowly Healer. I was a strong person, who could take care of herself and those she cared about too. I was getting outside that wall, no matter the cost. I could do it. I just had to think.

  Edmond shook his head. "That's a shame. What about Raden? He still on post at the south gate? Or did he luck out and get assigned a Healer?"

  Gareg snorted with laughter. "No such luck for Raden. Or for any of us, really, apart from Maddox. He's still at the south gate. Tell him I said hello if you stop by to see him, would you?"

  Edmond patted him roughly on the shoulder. "Heading over there now. Be well, Gareg."
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br />   "Be well, Edmond. And your friend too." Gareg nodded to me and I returned the gesture silently.

  It amazed me how incredibly normal Edmond was acting, and I wondered if the fogmoss was still working or not. Perhaps it had worn off, and Edmond was simply being a great guy. How could I know? "Why are we going to the south gate, Edmond?"

  His tone became obedient once again, and I realized that the fogmoss was still working. Something about that made me feel just a bit sad. "The south gate is watched with more relaxed eyes. Raden is my closest friend. You want outside the wall. This is the easiest way."

  Before we reached the gate, Raden exited the guard shack, his eyes only briefly touching on me before moving to Edmond. Raden hurried over to him and slapped Edmond on the back roughly, a grin spreading across his face. "Edmond! Too long, sir. What brings you out here this late?"

  As they engaged in conversation, I slipped quietly over to the gate. Though my heart raced with excited fear, I realized that I wasn't afraid. I was anxious to get outside that wall, impatient to locate my family, but not frightened in the least. I was ready for this. I was ready to prove myself to the world.

  I had just managed to push the gate open about a foot when Raden cried out, "Where do you think you're off to, Barron? Not without clearance!"

  With a grunt, I shoved hard at the gate with my shoulder. All I needed was another few inches and I could squeeze out the gate and disappear in the growing darkness of the surrounding woods. But then Raden was on me, with several guards on his heels to assist. He gripped my bicep and pulled, his fingertips digging sharply into my flesh. With loud curses spilling out over my tongue, I shoved my body through the tiny opening, squeezing through until I burst through on the other side. I ran as fast as I was able to, with angry voices filling my ears. Down the hill, past so many trees I couldn't count them all. I didn't know how many guards would chase me, or for how long. I just knew that I was outside the wall.

  Outside the wall at last. And free.

  Chapter 9

  I ran through the woods, my feet slipping some on the forest floor, on fallen leaves and pine needles. My heart pounded in my ears, both from fear and exhilaration. The guards were behind me, their instructions to one another chasing me as I ran. As I descended the hill, I darted around trees and bushes, digging my heels into the soft earth. I had to force my breaths to come evenly. Endurance would be everything to outrunning the guards. At least as far as a half mile. They wouldn’t chase me after that. They couldn’t risk leaving the gate so lightly guarded.

  As the sounds of their voices and movement fell behind me, I slowed my pace, but only because I was starting to see spots from the rush of blood to my head from running so far without preparing my body. After some time, it felt like I was alone, and I slowed further until I was merely hiking through the forest at a brisk pace. I’d done it. I’d escaped the guards of Shadow Academy, that damned wall, and all it represented.

  That, or they would be on me in seconds, and I wouldn’t even see it coming.

  Turning back toward the academy for a moment, I surveyed the trees for any sign of the guards, but found none. Maybe I was right. Maybe I had escaped. Maybe I was safe.

  A horrible screech filled my ears, sending another, very different, rush of panic through me. A Graplar. A Graplar was in the near vicinity, and what's worse, it had marked something--someone--as its prey. Quickly, I scanned the trees around me, but saw nothing. An eerie quiet fell over the forest surrounding me. The slight breeze that had been rustling the leaves above waned. Birds that had been chirping just a moment before quieted. My hand found my katana's handle and gripped it, ready for what I knew was coming.

  Looking around slowly, it occurred to me that the last time that I had stood in this spot, I had faced a Graplar moments before meeting Darius. I'd been terrified, lost, and had no idea how I would survive the encounter. This time was different. This time, I didn't need anyone to save me from the beast. This time, I would kill it on my own.

  I drew my blade, certain to do so slowly, as to be as quiet as I possibly could, and waited for any sign of the Graplar. There was none. Knowing that noise would draw it out, I widened my stance, held my katana up in front of me, and said aloud, "Get on with it, already, you scale-covered monster."

  In response, the hulking beast dropped from the sky, from the tree directly in front of me, and landed on the ground. The sound of its massive body hitting the earth reverberated through my chest. The creature snarled, its massive jaws clenched, its beady, black, soulless eyes staring me down. I took a slow, deep breath in and blew it out through pursed lips.

  It wasn't as big as the beast that had chased me up the hill to Shadow Academy, but it might as well have been. It had the same rows of razor sharp teeth, the same drool dripping from its jaws, that same look of machine-like hunger driving its every heartbeat. Despite my fear, this time I didn't turn. I didn't run. This time, I raised my blade quickly and the beast dove at me. Ducking as I swung around, I raised my weapon and watched as its tip sliced through skin and sinewy tissue. Time slowed as the Graplar flew overhead and my eyes were locked on my katana as it continued its path through the creature's neck. Blood coated metal, then dripped through the air in dark droplets that spotted the ground below. As I pulled my weapon through, freeing the blade at last, the monster's hulking mass continued its descent, collapsing loudly on the forest floor. Its head landed feet from its body a moment later, then rolled for several yards before stopping at the base of a thin tree.

  Standing once again, but taller this time, somehow, I flicked my wrist, cleaning the beast's blood from my katana before returning it to the saya on my back. As I looked over the corpse, I vowed that I would kill them again and again until the fear that had welled up in me the day that Avery had been murdered was quenched at last. Then, with a confident stride, I turned south and began walking. Before I went anywhere, I was going home.

  It took me hours to make my way to Kessler, and by the time I reached the road that led to my family's cabin, I was very much in need of a hot meal and a long rest.

  The cabin's windows were completely dark. Not so much as a small candle's flicker lit up its insides. The building looked lifeless, as if it weren't my home, but instead the shadowed memory of that place. The gardens outside were overgrown and forgotten. The path leading up to the door was untrimmed. And none of the usual pervading scents hung in the air--no clean laundry, no freshly baked crumbleberry pie. It was empty. It was hollow. A shelled out representation of a life that I had once known.

  "Kaya? Is that you, girl?"

  Something about hearing Camra's familiar voice made the tension in my body leave then, and when I turned toward her, it was all I could do not to hug her. "Camra! It's so good to see a familiar face."

  She smiled, and it was difficult not to think of the last time I'd seen her, just moments before a Graplar had taken Avery's life. "It's good to see you as well, child. Where are your parents? It's been months since I've seen them last. It'll be good to have you all home again."

  Confusion filled me. Chasing its heels was the understanding that my parents were not in Kessler at all, and that I had no idea where they might be. "I was hoping you could tell me where they were."

  Camra's brow creased in concern. For some reason, she dropped her voice to a whisper, as if what we were discussing should remain between us. "Everyone in town assumed you all left in the dead of night last spring. They're not with you?"

  When I shook my head, dumbfounded at where my mother and father could possibly be, she frowned. Only once did she give my katana a sidelong look. Then she asked, "Do you have enough trinks to travel on?"

  It was a practicality that I hadn't been prepared for. Even though I knew that it was possible that my parents wouldn't be at the cabin, I had assumed that they would, and that my father would take care of everything. Especially travel money. Biting my bottom lip, I did a quick count in my mind of the coins I'd stashed in the satchel I'd brought. "
I have just under forty."

  "That's not nearly enough, if you plan on heading out to find your folks." Clucking her tongue, she dug around in the bag she was carrying and retrieved a small coin purse. As she forced it into my hand, she said, "Here. Take this. It's not much, but it's something. And in the morning, you stop over for a proper meal while I catch you up on the goings-on in Kessler since you've been away."

  I didn't want to take her money, but need won out over pride and I gripped the coin purse in my hand and met her eyes. "Thank you, Camra. I'll stop by in the morning, I promise."

  Then Camra leaned in close, whispering once again, her eyes sweeping the area around us. "There are strange times, Kaya girl. You be careful now. Strange times."

  Moving down the path toward our cabin, I frowned at the creepervines that had taken over the cabin's walls. It was a constant battle to keep the weeds at bay. If left untended, they were capable of pulling down whole structures. And now they were growing up the cabin's walls and wrapping around its support beams, entangling their thorny selves in the roof's thatch. My father and the vines had an ugly past, encompassing every summer of my childhood. The thing about creepervines is that they're only vulnerable in the summer months. If left untouched in the spring, fall, or winter months, the vines harden as they age to a consistency closely resembling stone. If my father were here to see the damage they were causing to our home, he'd be cursing so loudly that Headmaster Quill might hear him all the way from Shadow Academy.

  Luckily, none of the vines had claimed the cabin's front door, so when I squeezed the latch, it creaked open with ease. The space inside looked exactly as it had the day that I'd left for Shadow Academy. My father's tackle box was sitting by the back door. Clean dishes were stacked on the counter. My mother's handkerchief laid crumpled on the table. In fact, the only things that seemed out of place were the distinct lack of my parents and the thin layer of dust that covered every inch of the space. It felt strange, being here, when the place itself had been abandoned for reasons that I couldn't possibly understand. They hadn't mentioned anything at all about leaving Kessler when they put me on the wagon that night. I recalled that moment distinctly. My father, trying to be strong, putting a careful arm around my mother's shoulders as the wagon pulled away. And my mother, weeping so deeply that her shoulders shook under my father's arm.