“Yes, sir,” his guards replied.
“Excellent,” Relam muttered. A rumble of hoof beats caused him to turn around and glance over his shoulder. “And here come our reinforcements.”
Forty riders skidded to a halt in a loose semicircle around Relam and his guards, gripping their weapons and looking around worriedly. Relam surveyed their ranks grimly, then nodded once.
“Let’s move,” he said, then rode into the forest.
The Midwood was silent, as it had been the previous day. In fact, much was the same. Relam took the lead, bent over, staring at the ground, following tracks and correcting his course with the reins every now and then. His guards followed behind, watching for threats. But today, the hunt was not for sport. Today, the hunt could be a matter of life and death.
They followed the tracks of the king’s hunting party until midday, winding amongst the gray trunks of leafless trees, searching, always searching for the missing monarch. But the only signs continued to be hoof prints, steady and constant and evenly spaced, marching forever off into the distance.
The hunt wore on, and the sun passed overhead. When the dispassionate yellow eye was three hours past its zenith, Relam stopped and sighed.
“Take a break,” he told his men. “Ten minutes, no more. We’ll continue for another hour, then ride to the road and head back.”
A babble of conversation broke out among the riders. Relam urged his horse forward a few paces, separating himself from the rest. Not a moment passed before his guards were around him, protecting him.
“Your highness, maybe Eckle has found him,” Galen suggested. “We could break off now and return to the road. Remember, the days are short this time of year.”
“So they are,” Relam agreed. “And the nights long and cold. A badly injured man may survive one such night, but two? And when he has been lying in the snow a full day?”
“We still don’t know for certain that his majesty has been injured, or that he’s out here,” Eric pointed out. “For all we know, he is back at the capital now worrying about you being in here.”
“Possible,” Relam agreed. “But not likely.”
The guards exchanged helpless glances. Finally, Galen shrugged. “All right,” he said, “You’re the prince, after all. It’s your call. Go back, or go forward.”
“Forward,” Relam said immediately. “We must be nearing the place where they ended yesterday.”
“Prepare to move out!” Eric called back to the riders. Those men who had dismounted swung into the saddle once more, and the column hastily reformed. The moment everything was in order, Relam set out again, following the tracks in the snow.
The day wore on. Even though the tracks were still fresh and clear, Relam was beginning to think that they would have to return soon. The trail had taken them far to the south and west and it would take upwards of an hour to make their way back to Etares. He was just about to give the order to turn north, towards the road, when he emerged into a space where the trees did not grow so close together, and large outcrops of rock dotted the landscape. The snow on the ground was churned up and trampled, mixed with dirt and mud and leaves.
“What in the world?” Relam murmured, looking around the clearing.
“A fight happened here,” Galen said, his voice strained. “See the broken saplings on the far side? Something large came crashing through there, something in a hurry.”
“And the tracks are confused here,” Wil added, having moved a little ahead of Relam and the others. “Overlapping each other and going this way and that. Looks like the horses were circling and prancing. Like something spooked them.”
“Something?” Relam asked joining Wil and peering down at the tracks. “Or someone?”
The rest of the search party hung back, to avoid disturbing the tracks. Relam and his guards dismounted and began searching on foot, trying to make sense of what had happened. Moments in, Johann let out a startled yell and fell backwards in the snow, scrambling to get his feet back under him.
“Stop fooling around!” Eric snapped irritably.
“Not fooling,” Johann replied. “Just . . . found something you may want to take a look at.”
Eric rolled his eyes. “I’ll take care of this, your highness, you keep working.”
“Thanks,” Relam muttered, kneeling to examine a unique print. It was a boot print, if he was any judge. But larger than he would have thought his father or his guards would leave. Maybe it had widened as the snow melted? That would account for some of the lack of definition but-
“Sir?” Eric said, breaking in on Relam’s thoughts. “For once Johann actually did something right. You need to see this.”
Relam stood, brushed snow from his clothes, and joined Eric and Johann where they stood, looking down at one of the boulders. As the prince moved to stand beside them, he realized that the boulder was not a boulder at all, but a man, curled up in the fetal position, his dark, snow crusted cloak looking like a rock from a distance. The man’s eyes gazed sightlessly towards the sky, his mouth hanging open. Blood stained the snow around him, and his armor was rent in parallel slashes all over, bloody furrows visible behind the torn metal and fabric.
“Who is he?” Relam asked, covering his mouth with a hand.
“One of your father’s guards,” Eric said grimly. “Kel, I think.”
“Yes,” Johann agreed. “That’s Kel. One of Eckle’s favorites, as I recall.”
Relam’s head spun. “We need to find my father,” he said. “Quickly. This was done by a beast of immense strength. A beast with claws.”
“Looks like a bear after all,” Eric agreed, shaking his head. “Going after a
