Her face was grim but otherwise unreadable. Her hands looked raw, burned, and his stomach clenched. He knew what that felt like.

“Oma, Ghrasia, what’s happened?” Ahkio said. “I arrived yesterday and they told me you’d be back by dark. And what’s… what’s that?”

Ghrasia glanced back at the creature following her. “It’s a long story,” she said.

“I’ll get you a physician,” he said, and glanced back at Caisa. “Can you call someone?”

Caisa ran off.

Ahkio held out his hands to her. He wanted to touch her, but was terrified to ask. He dropped his hands. “Tira, what happened?”

“I know where the assassins are,” Ghrasia said, “every last one of them. But you need to tell me who we’re fighting, Ahkio.”

Chapter 38

38

Roh and Kihin met Luna out in the chilly courtyard of Kuonrada. They borrowed bears from the kennel boys with a note from Ora Dasai, marked by Keeper Takanaa. The bears were bigger than Roh was used to and didn’t have the forked tongues of the bears in Dhai. Their feet were broader, their coats shaggier.

The little party traversed the slippery ways of Kuonrada, through the walls of the keep, to the threshold of the massive city wall. As the bears stepped onto the road, Roh gazed over the broken, craggy landscape of snow and ice. He hadn’t been outside the hold since he entered it many weeks before.

Kihin had the book Dasai had tasked them with delivering bundled up on the saddle behind him. “Fresh air, at least?”

“And fun,” Luna said. “You’ll like the Bone Festival.”

“It sounds… different,” Kihin said.

“You don’t kill people during it, do you?” Roh said.

“Roh, that’s very rude,” Kihin said.

“It’s a fair question,” Luna said. “Did you know that when the Dhai ruled here” – he made a sweeping gesture across the wintry landscape – “they used to feed the Saiduan to bears during ascendance ceremonies?”

“I get it, all right,” Roh said.

“Let’s go,” Kihin said. He hung back with Roh as Luna urged his bear forward, and said, “Try, just this once, to not talk so much. I’m surprised none of those dancers killed you.”

“We got along very well,” Roh said.

“I bet,” Kihin said.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, just… try to be nice.”

“I’m always nice!”

“Politic, then.”

“I don’t know what that means.”

Kihin sighed. “Just… let me do the talking this one time.”

“I’m not sure you’re a very strong speaker.”

“Roh…” Kihin made a sound of distress. “Just… be quiet.”

“Are you coming?” Luna called back at them.

“Yes!” Kihin said, and patted his bear forward.