grabbed the handle, whipped the door open, and stepped back.
Talen almost released his shaft. But he was happy he didn’t waste the arrow, for nobody rushed out.
“There’s no use hiding,” said Nettle. “Come out where we can see you.”
Nothing moved.
“Queen,” Talen called, hoping that she hadn’t already been killed by the creatures.
A few moments passed, then Queen emerged out of the dog warren.
All this time in the warren, Talen thought, and not one bark. Something was very wrong. It was as if the dogs were deaf and blind.
“Stu, girl!” Talen said to Queen and pointed at the open door. “Stu!”
Queen looked at the house and sniffed, but then she turned away and came to him, wagging her tail.
“Are you sure it went in here?” asked Nettle.
By this time both Ke and River had arrived, Ke with nothing but his underclothes on. “What are you hollering about?”
“We’ve got ourselves a hatchling,” said Nettle.
“Two,” said Talen.
“Where?”
Talen pointed at the open door, and, to his horror, Ke walked right in.
“There’s nothing in here,” said Ke. “Goh, you’re an idiot.”
But Talen had seen them. Right here. Where else could they be? Then he looked at the dog warren and everything made sense.
“They’re underneath,” he said to Nettle. “With the dogs!”
Talen ran to the hole where the side of the house met the ground and pointed his arrow into the blackness.
“Bring the torch.”
“No,” said Ke.
But Nettle paid him no mind. Talen took the torch and knelt to the side of the hole. He saw that the hole had been widened. He should have seen it before, but who would have thought they were down there? He stuck the torch down as far as he dared and quickly pulled it back out.
It was enough. What he saw with the brief illumination was a leg that quickly drew itself back into the shadow. Talen dropped the torch and scrambled back.
“They’re down there,” he said. “They’ve subverted the dogs.” He drew his bow and pointed it at the mouth of the hole.
“Put that down,” said Ke.
“You can’t doubt me now,” said Talen.
“River,” said Ke and motioned at the mouth of dog warren with his head.
River calmly walked to the side of the house and knelt by the dog warren.
“Stop!” Talen warned. “Get away!”
Ke’s hands closed around the bow. “Give me the bow, and shut up.”
“Didn’t you see the leg?”
Ke yanked the bow from his hands.
“What are you doing?”
“Get them,” Ke said.
Talen watched in horror as River’s head and torso disappeared into the blackness of the hole. He expected to hear her cry out or be pulled entirely in. But after a few moments, she backed out and extended her hand to help a girl and then a smaller boy out. The girl had long black hair and a scar on her cheek. She appeared to be about Talen’s age, maybe a bit older. The boy stared off at nothing.
The girl looked at him with no fear. She looked at him like a bird might a bug. Talen noticed she was wearing River’s trousers all rolled up on the leg.
“Douse that torch,” said Ke. And when Nettle didn’t move, Ke snatched it and ground its flame out in the dirt.
“What is this?” asked Talen.
“Will you shut up,” hissed Ke. He studied the woods.
And then Talen heard the voices of men in the distance. Or at least he thought he had.
“Get inside,” whispered Ke. “Now!”
Talen looked at his brother and sister. They were harboring Sleth. They were risking the anger of the Nine Clans and putting all of their lives in danger.
When Talen didn’t move, Ke handed the bow to River. He grabbed Talen by the nape of the neck with one hand and the back of his trousers by the other. Talen struggled, but Ke’s grip was like iron, and he marched Talen back into the house.
Talen watched in dismay as the girl hatchling led her brother to the hearth. When they were all in, River quietly barred the door and shuttered the window. She faced Ke. “I told Da it would never work.”
Someone called out in the woods.
River motioned for everyone to be still.
Ke turned to Talen. “If you’ve brought a pack of idiot hunters down on us,” he whispered, “I’m going to kill you.”
“Kill me?” said Talen. “Kill me? You two and Da, it appears, have already seen to that.”
“Shush,” said River.
They waited and listened. Queen barked twice and then fell still. Talen strained to hear what was going on outside, but heard nothing. Of course, that