He took a place next to her, and for a while, they watched the stars together. There was something comforting about his silent presence next to her. Behind them, the fire crackled and popped, casting shadows on the ground.

“Tristam, did you really come here against orders?”

There was the slightest hesitation before he responded. “I did.”

“Will they give you trouble when we get back?”

Again, a pause. “The consequences I face will be nothing compared to Martin’s fate. I’ll be fine.”

He’d avoided giving her a straight answer. “I’m sorry,” she said.

“Don’t be. I came of my own choice, as did Martin.” There was a haunted quality to his voice. His face was drawn, and he was staring intently into the forest, though Kyra was sure he couldn’t see anything. “Yet I can’t help but wonder if I should have stopped him. As much as I chafe against Councilman Willem’s leadership, I can’t deny that I led Martin to his death.”

Kyra thought again of the young Red Shield, with his infectious smile. Then she remembered his dying screams, and her insides twisted.

“Why do you think Martin came with you?” she asked.

“He looked up to me, and trusted me.”

“But he wouldn’t risk his life simply for that.”

For a moment, it looked as if Tristam was going to argue. But then he nodded. “You’re right. He disagreed with Councilman Willem. If a knight had been lost, we would have tried to rescue him. The knight’s kin would have forced Willem to do something. But for a common soldier, or a criminal like you with no one to vouch for them…Willem saw you as a disposable chess piece. I couldn’t condone that, and Martin agreed.”

“You don’t like Willem,” she said.

He shook his head. “I don’t know anymore. I’ve always believed in the knights of Forge, in the Council, in their mission. And to some degree, I still do. My father and brothers serve well in the road patrols. The citizens they guard are genuinely grateful for their protection. But in the city, things are less clear. Maybe there are just too many people. It gets too loud, with everyone shouting to be heard, and some people get drowned out.”

“Do you think it has to be like that?” asked Kyra.

“You mean, do I think things could change?” Tristam tipped his head up again and looked at the trees. “Malikel does things differently, and sometimes others follow his lead. But there are many in the Council who think like Willem.”

“James thought he could change things,” said Kyra. She thought again of the fires. You can’t change a river’s course with a shovel. You need an earthquake, he’d said. Funny that the assassin, with all his talk of bringing the wallhuggers down, also saw fit to sacrifice the lives of his fellow citizens.