Some bolted for the trees, wild with terror.
I caught a glimpse of Luther through the smoke, blood running down the side of his face, as he sprinted for the forest and disappeared into the gloom.
But most weren’t so lucky.
The flames caught them mid-run, mid-scream, turning flesh to ash in a heartbeat.
When the firestorm finally abated, the clearing was a blackened wasteland; the ground charred and smoking, the few bodies left unrecognizable heaps of burned bone and cloth.
I pressed a shaking hand to my lips.
Ash rained down like gray snow, settling on the ruined earth.
Katama’s heavy green wings beat the air as she landed hard close to Kaelith, stirring the ash into swirling, choking clouds.
Remy slid from her saddle, boots hitting the scorched earth with a grunt. His eyes swept the ruined clearing, lingering on the smoking piles of what had once been men.
“What the fuck was that?” he demanded, striding toward us, his hand still hovering near the hilt of his blade.
“We were ambushed,” Zander said grimly, brushing ash from his leathers. His tone was clipped, furious.
Remy dragged a hand through his hair, frustration bleeding off him in waves. “You should’ve been more prepared.”
Zander narrowed his eyes. “Why are you here, Saulter?”
Remy exhaled hard. “I was tracking Luther. He deserted First Guild two days ago. Took off with a few others. Word is, he’s got contacts inside the Order.”
I wiped a smear of ash from my cheek, my muscles still burning from the fight. “I didn’t recognize any of the others,” I said, voice rough. “Only Luther.”
Remy’s mouth tightened into a hard line.
“He killed the warders,” I said, stepping closer, anger hardening my voice. “Probably a few guards. It was him.”
“Not all the warders,” Remy said, his voice dropping lower. “Not the ones stationed in the outer kingdoms.”
The implication hit like a blow to the gut.
I squared my shoulders. “How many have died?”
Remy hesitated, jaw flexing.
“About thirty so far,” he admitted, voice low, almost ashamed.
The squad exploded.
“Thirty?” Ferrula growled, her green eyes blazing. “And you haven’t warned anyone how bad it is. There is no way we have enough left to protect all the kingdoms.”
“You knew Luther was a traitor,” Jax said, stepping forward, his fists clenched. “Tracking him isn’t the same as letting him get this close to us. You used us as bait.”
Naia’s mouth twisted into a snarl. “Warders are supposed to be protected. That’s the godsdamn oath.”
Tae muttered a string of curses under his breath, kicking at the blackened dirt.
Cade spoke in a voice so cold it cut through the noise. “You let a traitor hunt us, Remy. Don’t expect us to forget that.”
Remy stood there and took it, shoulders squared, face grim.
But there was no excuse good enough to erase the blood that had already been spilled.
