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“Come on, we’ve got to move fast,” I said, sliding past Kah and Raven to take the lead.

The light from the entrance quickly faded, and we had to use our hands to feel our way through the blackness. The air was still, smelling of damp earth and roots. The tunnel was wide enough for Kah, but not quite tall enough for me to stand in, so I had to crouch. I didn’t complain. None of us did, even when our shoes sank so deep into the cold mud that our toes went numb,and we had to battle against the suction to take a step forward. This was far better than fighting—and dying—at the black gates.

Time passed in heartbeats, not minutes, as the tunnel stretched onward. No one spoke. Every time I paused, I listened for Raven’s breathing to know she was there, that the map was safe. I couldn’t lose the map now, not after I was so close to finding the stone.

Even when I was sure we had to be well beyond the perimeter wall, there was no end in sight. We continued to trudge through the dark. Maybe we had taken a wrong turn at some point. Or maybe thiswasa cave.

When I started to become convinced that we were being led straight to the shadowlands, Raven touched my arm in the dark. For a second, I thought she was going to say what I was thinking—We’re lost, this is clearly a dead end—but within a few steps, a pale light brushed against the darkness in the distance.

“Look,” she breathed.

As we got closer, the ground became firmer, and we were able to pick up our pace. Soon, we pushed through a patch of dense evergreen shrubs and stepped into the daylight.

I listened for signs of danger. Kah sniffed the air. Wherever we were, the walls of Malengard were too far away to be seen, but that didn’t mean there weren’t Rathalan patrols nearby.

All was quiet.

“I told you we’d make it out of there,” I said to Kah, nudging him with my shoulder.

Kah snorted, rolling his eyes.

“Now what?” Raven said, surveying the bare forest that spanned in all directions.

“We need to get to the Market of End,” I said, checking the position of the sun before turning north.

“What’s there?” she asked, clenching her teeth to keep them from chattering. Her shoes and cloak were sopping with cold mud, and the cut on her arm was still bleeding.

“Safety,” I said. “We might be out of Malengard, but we’re still vulnerable crossing unclaimed lands. The Rathalans won’t be able to follow us inside the marketplace.”

“I thought the Rathalans went anywhere they wanted,” she said, breathing into her palms and rubbing them together for heat.

“Not yet,” I said, knowing that might not be true for much longer. “Come on. It’s at least a day’s walk on foot. Stay close and stay alert.” I gestured for her to follow me.

“Wait,” Raven said, not moving. “I don’t understand. Why are you helping me?” It was less of a question and more of a challenge.

Skies, did we have to have this conversation now?

Kah and I shared a look.

“Look, I felt bad about what happened in the mine. So, when later I overheard Commander Bloodbain saying he was planning to kill you, I got you out of there, k’da? But my efforts will go to waste if we don’t get as far away from here as possible. Come on.” It was all the information she needed for now until I could figure out my next step. How would she react if she knew I was using her to get to the Zavien stone? That the bear king wanted to harness its power for his own greedy purposes? That I cared more about saving Lila’s life than saving hers, Kah’s, or even my own?

Raven took a step backward. “Every prisoner in Malengard is going to be killed through work or the whip, and I don’t see you rescuing any of them. So, I’m asking you again: Why are you helpingme? What do you want?” Her midnight-blue eyes cut into me. For a fleeting second, I wondered if my skin had turnedto glass and she could see the heavy thoughts that had both weighed me down and propelled me forward these long months.

Meeting her gaze, I set my features back to neutral, building up mental walls to shield myself from her piercing stare as I formed a believable lie to tell her.

Before I could, voices carried from over the hill. My muscles tensed. Raven went still.

“They’re close,” I breathed. “Wait here with Kah. I’ll see what I can find out.”

Raven immediately took off after me.

“What are you doing? I said wait back there,” I said in a harsh whisper.

She pushed past me. “Thankfully, I don’t take orders from you.”

“Fine.” I exhaled, silently cursing the skies again for tying Lila’s fate to this frustrating girl. When I told her to stay with me, she ran off. When I told her to wait, she stuck to my side. How was I going to keep her alive long enough to get the map if she kept doing the opposite of what I said?

“I’ll keep watch,” Kah said, not getting in the middle of it.