He did his own inspection. Then he said, “They’re not gone, Keeper. They’ve left. Of their own volition.”

He glanced over, as if expecting her to argue, but she only nodded before heading back to the ladder. She didn’t ask what he’d found upstairs. Again, he’d tell her if it was good news.

They went out. He followed now, letting her and Daigo lead the way.

She should go home. That wall in her head quivered at the thought, but she pushed on. It would be the first place Ashyn would go.

They found blood just past the barracks, where the public buildings ended and the private homes began. A pool of crimson with an empty spot in the middle. A spot where someone had lain . . . then risen again.

They were about to pass the blood when Daigo stopped. His nose was to the ground, sniffing something. He lifted his head and grunted, calling Moria back.

She shone the lantern light on a bloodied print. A massive paw.

“Tova,” she whispered.

There was another, fainter print heading away.

“They passed here,” she said. “They saw the blood. Tova stepped in it.”

Daigo rolled his eyes. Dogs. Such clumsy beasts. Moria managed a half smile and slung her arm over his neck in a quick embrace. When she stood, Gavril was there, looking relieved.

“See?” he said. “I told you—”

“Stop telling me,” she said. “Please.”

“I’m only—”

She looked up at him. “Do you think I want to be proven right?”

He had the grace to dip his gaze and waved her on.

She began searching houses as they reached them. The doors were unlocked. That wasn’t unusual in Edgewood, where people only latched doors when a trade wagon was in town. Last night, though . . . After what happened in the forest? They would have locked their doors.

The first house was empty. So was the second. In the third, they found death. A woman, so bloodied and torn that Moria couldn’t be sure who it was, and preferred not to struggle to recall.

When Moria turned to leave, Gavril was blocking her path. She thought he was going to give some explanation for what they’d found, but his gaze was fixed on the corpse. She circled past, and he made no move to stop her. Only when she reached the road did she hear his boot steps behind her.

They found more bodies. More blood where there were no bodies. Sometimes the condition of the corpses meant Moria could pretend it wasn’t someone she’d known all her life. Other times, there was no doubt. Faces so familiar she knew them even in the half light. Faces fixed in looks of agony and horror, each one chipping a block from that wall, letting her feel a little more.