Page 120

Was I seeing things? Maybe some sort of color-changing bird? I'd swear that I'd seen it before, though, outside the barracks!

A head of brown hair popped up one rooftop over, familiar yellow eyes narrowing in the direction of the creature.

But the green form was already gone …

What the —

Japhire slowly stood, running his hand through his messy brown hair as he searched the surrounding rooftops for the missing creature.

With a frustrated shrug, he looked in my direction and nodded to himself. Then he ducked back out of sight.

I shook my head.

Why was Frexin sending one of her best Agents to hunt birds? Surely, she'd want him doing something more important …

And what was with that look?

I had to be careful around that man. More so than most others in this place. He was the traitorous asshole who'd betrayed his entire pack to Lady Frexin and that terrible bird relic — resulting in the deaths of dozens.

The wolf snarled at the memory, and for once, I didn't push away the outrage. We were in agreement about that mess …

A burst of Kaiya's anger threaded through the bond, and all thoughts of Japhire vanished. My body moved on its own, racing towards the med tent as Kaiya's voice rose, followed by Liam's.

Before I could reach the tent, though, Kaiya was storming out, her face red and angry. She noticed me and scowled, giving me an agitated shooing gesture with her hand.

I hesitated, wrestling between my desire to return to my observation spot against the fence … and the wolf's desperate need to punch Liam in the face for whatever he'd said to upset her.

But their relationship was none of my business, and despite what the wolf thought, the Witch could take care of herself.

Come on Tye. Just shut up and watch. Then report back to Frexin. That's all.

Forcing the wolf down, I returned to the fence and leaned against it.

The older couple were still in the tent talking with Liam, and Kaiya stood alone, looking around the small camp.

She pushed back the strands of hair that had escaped to curl around her face, twisting them into a messy knot at the back of her head.

They fell back down immediately …

She blew at them and wiped her hands on her hips, then continued to look around, lips pursed. I could feel her worry seeping through the bond.

What was wrong?

I moved to approach and ask her, but the older couple stepped out of the tent.

The old man said something and gestured to the rest of the tents, and Kaiya smiled — her emotions warming slightly.

With one more brief look over her shoulder at the tent, she nodded, then led the way — as though her insidesweren'ta giant pit of worry and guilt.

I returned to my spot near the fence and watched, determined to ignore the havoc her emotions were having on me.

Kaiya and the elders had been moving from group to group for half the day, but most prisoners refused toengage with Kaiya, ignoring her or turning their backs as she approached. Some had even run in the opposite direction.

As she'd moved through the camp, the pit of worry she held had been paired with a ball of frustration. It twisted inside her, only contained by the damn ocean of guilt she carried around.

I rubbed my thumb over a smooth rock I'd grabbed and rolled my shoulders, wolf prowling restlessly, watching for any chance to take advantage of my fraying nerves.

If she wasn't going to stand up for herself, he was determined to do it for her.