I ran to the living room nearly as fast as her. I was just in time to see footage of the haboob, as it rolled over a small city south of Phoenix. Even as someone who had done insane things with the weather, I was a little taken aback. The sandstorm was huge, stretching high in the air and spanning nearly forty miles. The cloud rolled into the city, engulfing it. The storms caused little direct damage but could be lethal for drivers suddenly deprived of visibility. The storm was also an excellent cover for a raid.

“This is live,” I said. “He’s got to be there right now.”

“It’s over an hour away,” she said with dismay. “He’ll be gone before we get there.”

My mind raced. “Yeah, but gone where?”

Fishing through my kitchen drawers, I dug out an old map of Arizona that Roland and I had marked up with gates a long time ago. I had most of them memorized but wanted to double-check. I put my finger on the city Pagiel was in and then looked for the closest gates.

“The nearest is in Phoenix proper,” I said. “Whether they’re on horseback or foot, they probably aren’t going to risk going through the city. There’s another north of Phoenix that goes to the Willow Land, but they’d have to ride around the city. This one, though ...” I tapped my finger on a spot closer to Tucson but off the main roads. “It’s remote and easier for them to get to.”

“You think they’ll jump back to the Otherworld?” she asked.

“I’m positive. They won’t risk being caught by humans, and we know they give away their goods to the gentry.”

“Pagiel’s probably strong enough to jump without a gate,” Jasmine reminded me.

“His followers aren’t,” I said with certainty. “He’ll go to the gate. And we’ll be waiting for him. We can beat him if we leave now.” This was a chance we weren’t going to get again. Any number of places would have too many gates to choose from or else be too far away.

Jasmine followed me as I grabbed my car keys and headed for the door. “Where’s the gate open up?”

“The Thorn Land, actually.”

“Ballsy,” she said.

I laughed. “I suppose so. But I think it’s a pretty remote part of the kingdom. Easy for him to hide out and also close to an Oak Land border.”