"The rest wish to move on as soon as possible," Darius was saying.
"I don't blame them. There’s something wrong with this place."
The wrongness permeated the air. It crawled across the skin as if seeking a way inside.
Caden wasn't often given to fanciful thoughts, but when his instincts told him something, he listened. In his experience, warriors who ignored their gut rarely lasted long.
"You think? Perhaps the fact this place could house thousands and yet we can't find a single living creature within its walls is making you paranoid," Darius said sarcastically.
Caden's attention sharpened on him, his plans for Eva momentarily put on hold. "Not one?"
Darius shook his head. "The humans aren't the only ones missing. There’s no trace of pets or livestock, not even a rat that I've seen."
That was truly unusual. Where humans congregated, rats and other pests tended to follow.
"We're not going anywhere with the mist crouched outside our door," Caden said grimly.
Darius grunted in agreement. "The pathfinder keeps telling me the mist can't be controlled by anyone."
Caden slanted him a look. "Do you really think that’s true? We both know what happens when humans get their hands on things they shouldn’t."
Griffin had used a beast call to lure beasts to the Lowlands. He'd used it again to summon his army during the battle for the Keep.
"Shea said that was destroyed, and it never called the mist," Darius pointed out.
"Yet, here we are, trapped like mice in a maze," Caden observed.
Darius's gaze went back to the mist. Both men were quiet as they considered if another tool like the beast call—one that might be able to summon the mist—might be out there. If there was, they'd need to find it. The mist was too dangerous a foe to have it be influenced by another.
"What did you see out there?" Darius asked.
"The throwaways are gone."
"All of them?"
"Were any in your party?" Caden cocked an eyebrow.
Darius's lips twisted. It was all the answer Caden needed.
"They're making their move then," Darius said with a heavy exhale.
Caden grunted.
"I don't have to tell you the repercussions if the throwaways are responsible for this rebellion." Darius stared into the mist again, careful not to look at Caden.
Caden's jaw tightened. No, he didn't. It would have consequences for anyone who was a throwaway. The prickly herd mistress included.
"I told Fallon they would eventually try to bite the hand that fed them," Darius said, shaking his head regretfully.
"It's our job to make sure that doesn't happen and to put down any who step out of line as an example to others," Caden said grimly.
They shared a look.
"Even if your little herd mistress is at the center of this?" Darius said.
Caden felt an instinctive denial.
"You're perilously close to questioning my honor," Caden said, his words a whip.
