“Do I know you?” Baylor asked the man who appeared to be the leader of the group.
The man smiled, showing stained, jagged teeth. “I knew your father. He was the one who banished me.”
“Gerard?” Baylor seemed to lose his composure for a moment. “How have you survived this hostile wilderness for so long?”
“Oh, it’s not so hostile to me. I control the wild, you might say. Makes it easy to track you. And your father.”
Baylor tensed up. “My father was killed by a nightstalk.”
Gerard gave a soft chuckle. “That’s what we wanted you to think. I couldn’t let Lance know I was still alive.” His cold eyes narrowed. “I took pleasure in carrying out my revenge on your father, and it’s a pleasure to throw it in your face now. He died slowly—I made sure of that.”
“I don’t believe you,” said Baylor, his voice shaking.
“Oh, you don’t, huh?” Gerard’s nostrils flared. “Do you know how nightstalks kill? They go for the heart! When it’s frozen solid with fear, they cut it out with their fingernails. And they always cut from the front so they’re eye to eye with their victim. Keeps them in control, you see? But if you remember, your father’s heart was cut from the back. I wanted his face in the dirt so he knew where he stood with me. The best part was, he got more of a shock outta seeing me than a nightstalk. Who thought I’d survive twenty years out here?” Gerard roared with laughter and his men joined in.
Baylor’s body convulsed, his veins bulging through the muscle in his arms. He opened his mouth, released a broken gasp, and fell forward onto his knees. The laughter grew louder. Alina crouched by him with Jade on her back.
“Don’t worry,” Gerard scoffed. “It’s the girl we want. Hand her over, and no one will get hurt. At least not by us,” he added, and the men chuckled again. “I think there’s a group of nightstalks heading this way, and it’s unlikely you’ll escape them. Act quickly and maybe you’ll have a chance.” He flashed his vile teeth.
Alina hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward, lowering Jade from her back. “Take me, then.”
Rex went pale. “No, Alina.”
“I’ll be fine,” she whispered. “They can’t do anything to me.”
“Yes, they can,” Baylor warned, regaining his composure.
“We have no other choice,” Alina said, tears coming to her eyes. She leaned in, hoping the men couldn’t hear. “You go on to Millflower, and I’ll find a way to meet you there. I promise.”
Baylor looked around at the guns pointed at them. Beads of sweat covered his bald head. “We’ll send help for you,” he whispered. “Protect yourself until then.”
Alina stood and faced Gerard. “I’ll stand here as they leave. You must allow them to pass through, and once they’re gone, you can take me.”
“Are you giving orders to me?” Gerard laughed. “You’re lucky I’m letting them go at all.”
Jade’s face betrayed her panic as Baylor led her away. Alina forced a smile, hoping to reassure her. Rex’s eyes darted around them, as if looking for a way to save her and still escape. He dropped his head in defeat and followed Baylor.
Alina’s entire body trembled, but she set her jaw, determined not to look afraid. How much did they know about her?
Gerard circled her, leering from head to toe. He stopped in front of her face. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Alina.” His breath was rank.
She wanted to punch him but restrained herself. The others were not yet at a safe distance.
“Tie her up,” Gerard commanded. “We have a long walk to the Blue Forest. We don’t want her slipping away.”
Alina started. “The Blue Forest?”
“Why yes! Heard of it?” He smirked. “Our dear friend Sampson is anxious for your return.”
Alina swallowed as a man tied her wrists behind her back. “Are you from Pria?”
“No. We’re the rejects of Carthem. People here have found our ideas too—how’d you call it—radical for their liking.” He tilted his head to her ear. “I know what you are,” he whispered. “We all do. Don’t assume it’ll give you an edge. We can’t kill you, but there are plenty of other things we can do. Your strength’s limited, you know.” He drew a grimy finger across her cheek from her ear to her chin. Alina shuddered, her heart sinking at his words.
Gerard chuckled to himself as he walked away. He was right. Although the rope didn’t hurt her wrists, it bound them tightly together. She couldn’t move.
The group traveled briskly, and Alina kept their pace, her eyes focused on the path ahead of her. The men surrounded her as they walked—ogling from every angle and taking pleasure in the discomfort this brought her. Though she wanted to cry, she lifted her chin and ignored their stares as she tried to think of a plan. They were traveling north toward the mountains. If she found a way to escape and go east, she might find the search party from Millflower.
Gerard slunk up beside her. “So, Alina,” he said, his hand touching her neck under her hair, “we’re feeling pretty lucky. You don’t know this, but there’s a hefty price on your head.”
She recoiled at his touch and tried to steady her voice. “I know how valuable I am.”
He chuckled. “Yes, so valuable to both sides. Poor Lance. Poor Baylor! Stolen from right under his nose.”
She set her teeth. “If you hate Baylor so much, why didn’t you stalk and kill him like you did his father? He travels this wilderness a lot.”
He sensed her sarcasm. “You don’t believe I killed his father?”
Alina didn’t answer.
“I would have killed Baylor long ago, but I’m not usually in this part of Carthem. I have better places to be. But I agreed to come when Sampson asked me to fetch you
