that. This will lead back to night elves. But the worgen . . . they need watching, too, do you not think?”
Neva gave Jarod a coy smile as she followed Maiev. After a moment the former guard captain trailed after. He was still angry with his sibling for her recklessness, although in retrospect he could see from her colored history how such a trait could have developed over the millennia. In some ways he suspected that her recklessness had been the difference between life and death for Maiev.
But I will not stand by while you do that again, Jarod swore. If they were to work together, Maiev would have to understand that her brother would be no one’s fool, not even hers. Their success—and possibly the stable existence of their people—depended on her understanding him.
It suddenly struck him that his anger at his sister made him feel more alive than any other moment after Shalasyr’s death. Aware of Jarod’s relationship with Maiev, Shalasyr would have found that amusing.
Ahead of him, Maiev muttered something to Neva, then chuckled. That stirred up another subject, one that he doubted Maiev would have found so funny. Jarod had learned something of interest during the encounter with the worgen—something his sister would have liked to know.
He had gradually recognized the voice of the leader of the group. It had been that of his rescuer. Jarod had not immediately made the connection due to the fact that when this worgen had rescued him, he had done so in his human form, using fingers rather than claws to grasp the injured night elf. He had also whispered then, as opposed to the gruffer, more commanding tone used during this encounter.
But even more important, there had been a look in the worgen’s human eyes that had indicated that he, in turn, had understood that Jarod recognized him. Even despite that, the worgen had ordered them released.
Jarod intended to find out why . . . and when he did, it would be without the impediment of his sister. Maiev would just have to wait until her brother returned from the worgen encampment.
Of course, that was assuming that they would let him leave alive a second time.
17
INTO THE FOREST
The next day came, and still the outpost was not attacked. Haldrissa would have taken heart save for the fact that by now she knew better. The Horde was merely implementing the next stage of whatever plan its commander in Ashenvale had in mind. She already knew that whoever was in charge was high among the leadership, certainly picked by the new warchief, Garrosh Hellscream.
An hour after dawn, the gates swung wide open and a force of mounted Sentinels supported by archers and warriors on foot rushed out to confront whoever might be there. Haldrissa led the charge herself, her nightsaber roaring eagerly as the scent of the orcs reached it.
But although they found traces of the archers, there were no actual sightings of the Horde. It was as if they had melted back into shadow once their foul task had been accomplished.
Denea was blunt in her assessment. “We should have charged out during the night. I knew we should have.”
Haldrissa ignored the slight to her decision. The commander considered her options again. Of all the outposts, the two most significant were her own—in great part due to its central proximity to the rest of those lining Alliance-held lands—and Silverwing. Silverwing was unique. It was a bastion of defense in, of all places, hostile territory, the Horde’s outpost of Splintertree not all that far to the northeast. Even when the orcs had pushed forward elsewhere, Silverwing had prevailed. It maintained itself through the bravery of its fighters and a thin patch of ground connecting it to the rest of the Alliance territory.
There had been no contact with Silverwing, but that did not mean that it had fallen. The smoke that they had seen from their position had been more to the north. Silverwing was slightly more south and across the Falfarren River. Haldrissa suspected that the smoke came from one of the lesser outposts, likely Forest Song. She hoped that the defenders there had managed to hold, especially since she could do nothing for them at the moment.
The fact that there had been no hint of Silverwing’s downfall encouraged the commander, but she knew that she had to act fast. If they could link up with Silverwing, they would present the Horde with a more solidified front.
There was no need to wait