Choose love, she thought bitterly. That joke has been played on every Gray Wolf queen since Hanalea.

Love, she thought, with a rush of understanding. You love these mountains. You love this town, with its crooked streets and stone staircases.

You love the people in this room—most of the time, anyway.

It would not fill the chasm in her heart. But it was something.

“All right,” she said. “I’m not going anywhere.”

C H A P T E R  F O R T Y - T W O

WALKING
OUT WITH
THE BAYARS

Han couldn’t say how long he’d hung on the wall before Fiona returned. Long enough so that his arms and wrists blazed with pain. He hadn’t quite abandoned hope, but he was close.

He awoke to the blaze of torchlight against his eyelids. The Bayars, father and daughter, carried torches and carry bags, as if they anticipated a long journey. Bayar winched Han down from the wall, and he collapsed in a heap.

“Fiona and I have discussed this at length,” Bayar said, gazing down at Han. “We will make a deal, Alister, considering our desperate situation. We will need all of our weapons, and every magical hand to win this war. Lead us to the armory, and we will set you free unharmed. We will settle our dispute once the flatlanders are driven out of the Fells.”

And if you believe that, Alister, you are truly a nick-ninny mark, Han thought. He knew they wouldn’t be here at all, if not for the Ardenine invasion.

He thrust out his shackled wrists. “Could you take these off, then?” he said, figuring there was no harm in trying. “It will be easier with my hands free.”

Lord Bayar laughed. “You’ve tried to murder me once, Alister,” he said, as if his own hands weren’t covered with blood. “I’ll give you your amulet back, but your hands stay bound until we reach the armory. You are not to touch the amulet without permission. Each time you do, you will tell us exactly what you are doing. If you forget, Fiona will help you remember.”

“Don’t test me, Alister,” Fiona added. She attached a length of chain to Han’s flash bracelets, wrapping the other end around her own wrist, so they were connected. “If you try anything, I will char your hands right off.”

“All right,” Han said. “I’ll do my best.”

Propping himself against the wall, Han eased to his feet, taking his time so as to appear more decrepit than he was. He was stiff and sore and weak, but he’d been moving about, strengthening himself in anticipation of the Bayars’ return.