The Wind's Call (The Broken Lands #4) - T.A. White Page 0,99

his mouth and letting out a piercing whistle. The piebald pounded into view, stopping in front of Caden with a showy flourish.

“Do tell,” Darius murmured.

“For starters, I know the name of our enemy. He goes by Pierce.” Caden mounted and guided the horse to them. “His followers treat him like a god. He’s said to have strange abilities.”

“A myein then,” Darius said grimly.

“What’s that?” Eva asked.

“It’s what they call people like you,” Reece said. “Someone who is ‘more’, who has abilities others do not. At least that’s how my cousin explained it.”

Darius regard the pathfinder with a challenging smile. “Some might say pathfinders could be considered myein.”

“Hardly,” Reece scoffed.

“You don’t think so?” Darius raised an eyebrow. “How else would you describe a group who can navigate the treacherous depths of the mist and never get lost? A group possessing talents that most do not.”

Reece compressed his lips, looking thoughtful.

“The myein are rare among my people,” Caden told Eva. “But they are usually welcome, their gifts embraced.”

“Usually,” Darius qualified.

Eva shot Caden a grateful smile at his effort to reassure her, knowing he’d guessed her discomfort at having one more thing marking her as different from the Trateri.

He dipped his chin in silent acknowledgement before guiding the horse over to them. "The problem is bigger than we originally thought. Rebellion has taken root in several of the towns and it seems there is a new player on the board looking to take advantage of the innate abilities of certain mythologicals. This Pierce seems to be quite compelling. I can’t tell if he is the leader or whether he is simply one head among others. The men I talked to said he could charm you into doing anything—even at great harm to yourself."

Eva petted the fox, scratching his chin when he offered it to her as she considered the information shared.

"Numbers?" Darius asked, not seeming surprised at Caden’s news.

Eva's hand stilled on the fox's head. They knew about the rebellion—or at least suspected. None of the warriors who had accompanied them looked shocked.

Fiona caught Eva’s eye and winked, holding one finger to her lips in an unvoiced order not to question.

This was the true reason Fallon had sent Darius and these warriors with Eva, not to protect her, but to weed out a problem before it could truly take root.

Oh, Eva had no doubt they were tasked with keeping her alive until they reached the herd lands—Caden's actions were proof of that—but it wasn’t the only reason they had accompanied her. Otherwise, why not just put her on the back of the Kyren and send her on her way.

Machinations, wrapped in machinations. It seemed to be the Trateri way.

Caden shook his head. "Unknown. More than we suspected is my guess."

Darius sighed. "I should have let Braden take this one."

Caden's smile flashed. "We both know you'd never have let that happen."

"Damn my ego to the darkness and abyss."

Even Eva knew Darius didn't truly mean that.

Caden took a look around. "There are less of you than I expected."

"The rest are back at the main campsite, protecting the injured," Darius responded as he guided his horse back the way they'd come.

He didn't dispatch his people to look for survivors. Caden wasn't the type to make stupid mistakes. There would be no survivors. Anyone who had made it in one piece, had most likely beaten a hasty retreat and were long gone.

"Bad?" Caden asked.

Darius grunted, some of his normal good humor fading. Tiredness dragged at the corners of his mouth as his thoughts shifted to those he'd lost and others who hadn't come away from the encounter unscathed.

"We'll survive, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to send for reinforcements, especially if we're going up against what sounds like an army." Darius shook his head. "Unfortunately, it'd likely be a death sentence for anyone I sent back."

Caden grunted in agreement. "Especially since these were likely not the only ones following us. I suspect they have mythologicals in their pocket who can do a much better job of keeping an eye on us than any human."

Disgruntlement filled Darius's expression. "I miss the days when all we had to worry about were human enemies who might stab us in the back."

There were silent nods from those around Eva.

"We'll do what we can with what we have," Caden said.

"As always," Darius responded.

It was the last of their discussion as the pace increased. After that, talk became too difficult as they made their way back to the camp where they'd left