a hand into his.
His hand closed hard around hers. She caught the bleak look in his eyes when he glanced at her, the self-recrimination. Seconds later, his mask slapped back into place, but his hand remained in hers.
He'd defended them. If he hadn't, she and Jason might have died. She tried to communicate that to him but didn't know how successful she was when his hand gave hers one last squeeze before withdrawing.
Reece ran his hand through his hair looking more rattled than she’d ever seen him. "They weren't on the boards because they're not supposed to exist. We thought they were eradicated."
"Like the mythologicals were eradicated?" Caden rumbled.
Reece shook his head. "No, the mythologicals were sleeping. They faded from memory. The woodlings have long been a problem, but we thought we eliminated the last carrier."
"What are they?" Eva asked.
"A plague," he said baldly. "Carriers seed their plants in others—humans, beast. Anything living. It's a compulsion. Once they start, they can't stop. They do this." Reece gestured at the city. "They remake every living thing. When they're done, they move on to the next place and start again."
"They're human?" Eva asked.
Reece shrugged. "Maybe once, but I'm not even sure of that. We don't know how carriers are made except by other carriers. This should be impossible. Lainie hunted every last one down while Shea and I were infants. It's how our grandparents died and how my father died. It cost us quite a bit to stamp them out, and the Highlanders don't even realize how safe they are now that they're gone."
There was bitterness in his voice, behind his eyes.
"Obviously one of them slipped through," Darius drawled.
Reece shook his head. "But they shouldn't have."
He waved a hand. "Every living thing would have been turned even if they only meant to turn one or two. It's how they work. They can't stop once they start."
"You're saying it’s impossible for them to hide," Eva guessed, finally seeing where he was going with this.
His nod was weary.
"Somehow, one did," Caden said.
Reece spread his hands, looking as lost as any of them.
Eva glanced around feeling a shiver work its way down her back despite the bright sun shining overhead.
Darius let out a heavy sound as he reached up and rubbed his forehead. "Do I need to worry about my warriors turning into these things?"
Eva felt her heart jolt at that possibility.
Reece shook his head. "It's not airborne. They have bugs about this big." He held his thumb and forefinger apart. "They act like scorpions but they look like flowers with legs. Their stingers insert the seed. Five days later, you get this."
"So, don't get stung by a flower," Ghost said with an unhappy frown.
The Trateri around them shuffled further away from the flower beds. Eva caught more than one checking to make sure their weapons were in place.
"There's a poultice that has been known to draw the seed out as long as the wound is treated within a few hours," Reece admitted. "I can gather some of the herbs and work with your healer to see if we can create enough in case the carrier has lingered."
"I can help," Eva said.
"No, you're going back to the barracks for the night," Caden said before anyone else could speak.
She started to object.
"He's right. You're the one this plan hinges on. Some of my warriors can help Reece. We don't need to risk you getting infected by this seed when there isn't yet a cure," Darius said.
His words were law. Push him and he would not like it. Eva wasn't sure even her position as the Kyren’s intermediary would protect her from retribution.
There was a warning in Caden's gaze that told her she wasn't going to win this one. She jerked her head down in a nod.
Caden flicked his fingers at Jane and Drake, sending them to accompany her back to the house Fiona had shown her.
She couldn't leave without one last look at Caden. "Be careful."
*
Caden watched Eva disappear with his warriors.
"That progressed fast," Darius observed. "Not interested, my ass."
"Keep pushing," Caden warned. "And maybe I'll let Fallon know how you and a certain woman, formerly of the Snake clan, have begun to disappear together at night."
Darius narrowed his eyes at his friend. "Fair point."
Fallon wouldn't care that the woman was snake clan, but considering the amount of ribbing the warlord had gotten from his general when he fell for Shea, he'd be more than happy to dish it out in kind.
Caden didn't know if the