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Theo looked at her like she was a lowly thing. “He’s dead. It’s untoward.”

“We’re alive. It’s necessary.”

“I’d prefer not to look through a dead man’s things,” Avy said, making the Tusk sign of warding. “But Ren’s right. Survival is all that matters. We can’t make a plan if we don’t know what we have to help us survive.”

Theo realized he was going to lose this particular battle. When Ren reached for the bag, though, he pulled it back and undid the buckles himself. His way of maintaining control. They all watched as he began setting out the contents. A few books. An extra sweater, which would be useful. He hesitated briefly before removing a small pipe and matching canister.

Avy snorted. “Is that what I think it is?”

“Breath,” Timmons confirmed. “A decent amount of it too.”

Cora chimed in. “That could be useful. It’s the closest thing we have to a sedative.”

“It also has recreational benefits,” Timmons said.

Theo rolled his eyes. “Getting high won’t help our survival chances.”

“For medical purposes, then,” Ren said. “Pack it and let’s get moving.”

Final arrangements were made. Ren agreed to carry the torn pages from their books. She watched as Theo finished going through Clyde’s things. The image of the hawk he’d drawn in Magical Ethics fell out of a notebook. Theo looked at it for a moment, one finger tracing the charcoal-colored lines. Ren watched as he folded it carefully and slid the sketch inside his own journal. A keepsake. She looked away before he could catch her studying him.

The others were packed and ready and fed. There was nothing else to do but begin.

“Keep track of your magic usage,” Ren said. “We don’t want to lose count of what we have left and end up doing guesswork once we’re in the mountains.”

As they started their journey, a crisp caw drew her eyes upward. Vega dutifully swooped overhead. Theo hadn’t looked too embarrassed by the revelation. That didn’t stop Ren from being embarrassed on his behalf. There were only fifty active livestone statues in all of Kathor. Now he was directly linked to two of them. There was the one he’d used as a bathroom attendant at his recent party and this one—which seemed more like a personal pet. Most of the known statues were contracted to the city’s defense. They patrolled during peacetime and converted into active soldiers when it was under attack. Casually owning one was like casually sleeping with a princess. Impressive in the worst way.

If not for Clyde’s death—and the uncertainty of what waited ahead—the day might have been perfect. Enough sunlight to warm them but enough of a breeze to keep them cool. Every now and again the surrounding forest would break, offering undeniably gorgeous glimpses of the mountains and valleys. Even the company was pleasant. Ren was almost lured in by it all.

Until she remembered she was in one of the most dangerous places in their world. A land that had turned away settlers for generations. It was a small comfort that they had no plans of staying, but eventually her thoughts circled back to Clyde. His body dragged off through the woods. And that image merged with the dead rabbit from the night before.

This place was bright and beautiful.

It was also hunting them.

17

Ren had never regretted her lack of wildlife training until now.

The limitations of her knowledge on that subject—and the spells associated with that knowledge—meant relying entirely on what Avy had learned on hiking trips as a boy. Ren could tell that he was thrilled to be their resident expert. He bounded ahead of their group like a child.

“Those are poisonous. ‘The dark tips of the leaves, ignored by the bees, always in threes.’ The rash is hideous, too. Pree got it when we were kids. Not that it mattered. I was always the more handsome of the two of us. Right, Ren?”

He grinned back at her.

“Out here? With nothing else to look at? Sure, you’re plenty handsome out here.”

He laughed at that. She noticed the way Theo glanced between them, uncomfortable with the exchange. She imagined him saying it was “untoward” and wanted to roll her eyes. Timmons seized on the conversation, all too eager to focus on anything that was a reminder of normal life at home.

“Ren went on a date with your brother?”

Avy nodded. “It was his first date. He even had someone shine his shoes, the prat.”

“I’m just trying to imagine what it’s like to go on a date with Ren,” Timmons said. “She probably gave historical accounts for various items on the menu. ‘Oh, hermitage soup? Well, did you know…’ ”

That earned a snort from Avy. Ren reached out and gave Timmons’s ponytail a small tug.

“Hermitage soup does have an interesting origin story.”