The scream that saved Elsie’s life? That was the same scream that shattered their anonymity, and Aeris got it the second those imperial horns echoed from less than a mile away.They’d done it, at least for a moment. When Coral retreated from the mill yard, victory almost felt real, a child pulled back from the brink, a mage driven off, and, for once, no fire-marked ruins left behind. For maybe an hour, they let themselves believe it. Then Elsie’s mother, breaking under relief, started to sob when she saw her daughter alive. Loudly. Loud enough that half of Hallow’s Bend poured into the street, curious and growing worried, until eventually someone in that sea of faces must have sprinted for the nearest garrison before dawn.“They aren’t just answering a disturbance,” Rask said, listening to the horns like only a soldier with six years of imperial training would. “That’s a confirmation signal. Someone already told them who did this, names, descriptions, the works.”“How fast do those re

Alba slept straight through the next morning. It was during that restless watch that Rask finally spoke the words she’d been carrying since the bridge collapsed.“I want to stay,” she said, slow and steady, like she’d practiced this speech a dozen times in her head. “Not just for one mage. Not until the next fork in the road. I mean for good. Whatever this hunt turns into, count me in.”Her words seemed to weigh down the camp for a beat. The fire threw little shadows on all their faces.“That’s a lot more than just helping us track down a single name,” Aeris said, eyes sliding from Rask to Rhea. “Why now?”Rask barely hesitated. “Because after yesterday, I know what I’ve suspected since the tunnel. Whatever’s happening to your sister, it’s tied up in the bloodline research Belt chased for years. I know things about that work you two don’t. I’m not just offering because I feel guilty. I’m offering because I’m useful, and honestly, I’ve got nowhere else left. If I run, Thorne’s people c

Getting an invitation wasn’t as hard as Aeris thought, just a lot more expensive than they wanted. Rask pulled strings with her insider knowledge of imperial bureaucracy, forging credentials that turned Rhea into a wealthy caravan-master from a far-off province. Supposedly important enough for Lord Vance to see privately, and “interested” enough in trade to skip the risk of a crowded guild dinner, where one wrong glance could ruin them. All this cost nearly every coin they had left, most of it went into bribing a lowly guild clerk to back their paperwork. Aeris spent a jittery day after that, chewing on how little room for error they still had.“This gets us in the door,” Rask told them, running over the plan for what felt like the hundredth time as the sky started turning gold. “Doesn’t put us anywhere close to proving Belt is using those orphan visits for something foul. And it’s definitely not enough to touch him.”“One step at a time,” Rhea said, checking the simple, expensive clo

“I don’t understand, my lord,” Alba said, keeping her voice small and frightened, though her mind raced through every possible answer that wouldn’t confirm what Vance already seemed to suspect.Somewhere in the back of her mind, she catalogued the study’s single exit, the distance to the corridor beyond it, the impossible odds of outrunning a Third of the Seven Mages even if she managed to reach the door before he could stop her. None of it mattered if he already knew the truth. She understood that even as she clung to the last thin thread of her cover story.“Of course you don’t,” Vance said gently, though something sharper flickered beneath the gentleness now. “Forgive me. Force of habit, evaluating potential wards for the charitable program. Your resonance signature is... unusually vivid, for someone so young. I noticed it the moment you crossed my threshold.” He leaned forward slightly. “Tell me truthfully, child. What is your real name?”Alba’s heart hammered, every instinct scre

The three mages attacked as one, and Aeris knew immediately he couldn’t treat this like the fight with Vane, who strutted on arrogance and bluster, or Coral’s icy, clinical attacks. This was something else entirely. The mages moved as a unit, covering each other’s defenses, hemming Aeris in. He barely had space to breathe, his guard split three ways and every time he looked for a counter, their rhythm closed the gap before he could strike. Force slammed into his shoulder, pale fire lashed his ribs. The hits kept coming, and every one chipped away at reserves he'd already spent recklessly, fighting nonstop since Hallow’s Bend. He tried to slip back toward Alba, who’d taken cover by the wall. Maybe if he could get closer, he could tighten his defenses instead of stretching himself across the ruined study. But the mages saw it coming and moved fast, fanning out to block the exact path he needed. These three hadn’t learned just ma