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Farah expected the Nidur tribe to appear at any moment—with every creak of the trees and breath she huffed. Her body wouldn’t keep up, no matter how hard she pushed herself. And she still had to make the return trip to Rohan . She thought about how pale he had been, how dark the blood looked against his skin, and ran faster.

Being back in the forest had done more than rejuvenate her magic. It comforted a part of her that she had ignored for far too long. For duty.

For Nitya .

Farah shoved thoughts of her sister aside for the moment. The ache in her leg was constant now and expanding. And she was out of breath. Despite being away from the woods for months, her feet knew where to step. She danced from tree to tree until she reached the village. Like all Wood Elves , their homes were in the trees.

She circled the settlement, keeping to the shadows and out of sight of the sentries, looking for the naturopath who generally distributed the herbs for each village. Their homes were marked with a set of three stars in a triangle and antlers that signified who they were. Farah found the house on the far side of the community.

After another look to make sure no one was near, she crept toward the door. It was shut, but some of the shutters on the windows were open. She stayed low and moved to squat beneath a window to peer inside. There was a table and chairs, so she hurried to the other open window. Frustration mounted when she looked within and found the bed with a form beneath the covers. As she crouched back down, she spotted a table to the right where several bottles of herbs sat.

Farah inched forward to the next closed window. She gave it a gentle push, adding some magic until it unlatched. She kept her excitement contained and reached inside. The instant her fingers brushed one of the jars, she grabbed it and stuffed the bottle between her shirt and belt. Then she turned to scan the trees for sentries.

One came into view just as she was about to creep out. She froze instantly. Luck was on her side because they didn’t notice her. The moment they were out of sight, she hurried away. She raced to Rohan , hoping she got there in time.

There was a stitch in her side by the time she reached him. Her knee buckled when she tried to straddle the limb in front of him. She landed hard on her arse, but he didn’t so much as stir. Farah gave him a little shake, which earned her a grunt of annoyance. He was alive. For a moment, she feared he had succumbed to the head wound since he hadn’t stayed awake as she bade.

Her hands shook from fatigue as she mixed a big pinch of herbs into the water flask and gave it a quick shake. She took several long swallows, then brought the flask to Rohan’s lips. He half-heartedly attempted to push it away, and much of the water ran down the corners of his mouth. But he drank.

Was it enough? Only time would tell.

His upper body tipped to the side. She caught him and sat him up before moving onto the nearby branch to rest her back against the trunk. She stretched out her legs in front of her and crossed them at the ankles. Her eyelids fell closed as sleep tugged at her.

Something bumped into her shoulder, rousing her. She blinked several times to wake herself up, instantly on alert, only to realize it was Rohan . He had listed toward her again. She tried to sit him up again, but he wouldn’t stay there. Farah had no choice but to let him lean on her. Within moments, she was asleep once more.

Her dreams were plagued by visions of Nitya when they snuck off to the coast. But something was different. Nitya wasn’t acting right. The dream took a dark turn when she found herself staring into the man’s weathered face. This time, he successfully locked the necklace around her. She called out for Nitya , but her sister was gone.

Farah saw Rohan standing to the side. She yelled his name, but he didn’t come to her aid. Instead , he turned away. She fought against her captor, but he just laughed at her piddly attempts to free herself. Then she was in Mortham . Golshan and Amarjeet were there, circling her with predatory smiles until they began beating her.

She screamed, but no sound came out. She fought against them, knowing what would happen. Somehow , she got free. She ran down the halls of Mortham , soaked in blood and looking for a way out, but all the exits had been changed. The doors were different, too. She tripped and fell hard on her shoulder. Footsteps echoed in the corridor, approaching fast. She pushed to her feet and ran, an eerie laugh following her.

She didn’t get far before she fell again. When she lifted her head, she was no longer in the hallway. She was in a room. Inside were various instruments of torture, but it was the see-through, elf-sized box that sent a chill of foreboding down her spine.

“ You can’t run from me,” a voice whispered in her ear.

Farah jerked away, her eyes darting left and right. It took her a second to comprehend that she was awake. The dream—nay, the nightmare—had felt so real. She brought a shaky hand to her forehead to push away strands of hair that had come loose from her braid.

Dawn had broken. Bright morning light streamed through the trees, chasing away the night. It wasn’t until she tried to move her leg that she realized something wasn’t right. She looked down to find Rohan’s head on her lap. Dried blood covered the side of his face and matted his hair, but his coloring looked good, and his breathing was even. She didn’t know where the wound had been, and she didn’t want to search through his hair for it. Farah yawned and listened to the birdsong as the woods came alive.

Her leg felt better. She was rested, but she wouldn’t mind another hour or two of sleep. When she closed her eyes, though, she saw the clear box from her nightmare. That’s when she decided she had gotten all the sleep she needed.

She looked down at Rohan . A strand of dark brown hair had curled into his ear. She smoothed it away without thinking, then quickly pulled her hand back. What was she doing? He was the enemy. Or he had been. He wasn’t a friend. What did that make him, then? She was the one with a price on her head. With the knowledge he had of her, he could turn on her at any second.

Farah had never thought too much about humans. Her village was remote enough that they hadn’t seen many except for the travelers who came their way the same time every year. They were friendly, and her tribe had welcomed them. It wasn’t until she traveled to Rannora that she saw the vast divide between the elves and humans. And the hatred among both.

Was it any wonder Rohan and his people preferred the solitude of their village? She couldn’t blame him for his animosity toward her kind. Humans didn’t have it easy in Shecrish . Those who chose to live in the cities seemed to have it even worse, though. How many more settlements like Rohan’s did no one know about?

There was so much corruption and violence in their country. It wasn’t as if they could remove everyone and start again, thinking to right mistakes. They would only make new ones. But things needed to change. Starting with the downfall of the Masters and their entire regime. Their foothold in Shecrish went deeper and farther than anyone could have guessed.

It was a reminder that she had intel to get to Durga . She couldn’t go into Rannora herself. Everyone would be looking for her. But they wouldn’t be looking for Rohan . Maybe she could talk him into delivering a message to Durga so they could meet before she and Rohan went to Mortham .

Farah shook her head and snorted. Here she was, planning on returning to Mortham , where she would live out her days hiding. How different was that from being hunted and brought in? The difference of a slave necklace, that’s what. She needed to take a good, long look at the forests because it would likely be the last time she saw them—or had her magic.

Her thoughts drifted to her parents. She should see them, but she couldn’t chance even that. A letter was too impersonal, but it was better than nothing. She would leave something with Durga to send on. To think she had left home to find Nitya , and now her parents were losing both of their daughters. She should’ve remained in her village. She hadn’t accomplished anything she had set out to do, and there were no answers, no closure. Nothing but regret and guilt.

And shame.

Rohan drew in a deep breath and shifted. She knew the instant he came awake and realized where he was lying when he stiffened. She remained still, letting him adjust to the day and all that had transpired. He used his hand to push himself up. Pale celadon eyes swung to her.

“ Morning ,” she said. “ How do you feel?”

He cleared his throat. “ Morn ’,” he croaked.

She handed him the remaining water that she had saved for him. That hit on the head had really done a number on him. He downed the last of the herbs in a few swallows.

Rohan nodded his thanks. “ I feel better.” His brows drew together. “ Did you leave? Or was that a dream?”

“ I left. Do you remember falling?”

He wrinkled his nose in distaste. “ That , I do recall.”

“ You weren’t in good shape. I left you here and went to get the herbs. You were supposed to stay awake, but you were out cold when I got back. I managed to get some of the herbs into your system.”

“ Thank you.” He cleared his throat again as he tested the area at his hairline. “ I don’t feel the laceration anymore. What about your leg?”

She shrugged. “ I had some herbs, too. No pain for me.”

He looked around, taking in the trees. “ I don’t think I’ve been this far north. Where are we?”

“ Not somewhere we should stay if we want to remain hidden.”

“ South ? Or west?”

She hesitated as she rubbed her lips together. Then she looked at him. “ We need to make a stop before we go to Mortham .”

“ You’re serious, then? You’re really going to return?”

“ Like I said, no one will look for me there.”

His forehead furrowed. “ You’ll be a prisoner, though.”

“ Perhaps . But it works out for you.”

He stared at her for a long time. “ Why do you really want to go back?”

For a brief second, she almost told him about Nitya . Instead , she said, “ It’s my only option. I thought you’d be happy about this. You did blackmail me, remember?”

He grunted in reply. “ What’s this stop you want to make?”

“ Rannora .”