"If you'd ever been caught in a flood, you would be too," Reece defended.
"Ah ha," Fiona drawled.
"Any news?" Caden asked.
Roscoe was the first to answer. "Buck spotted a couple of their scouts a few miles back. They've discovered our trail."
"It won't be hard for them to track us from here on out. There's not too many ways people can go out here," Reece said.
"The countdown has begun," Caden said, his gaze toward Caia and her rider.
Fiona, Van, and Roscoe traded looks. Far from the fear you'd expect to see, there was only excitement.
Van exhaled and rolled his shoulders, practically quivering with anticipation.
A thrill stole through Caden. Along with an adrenaline rush that made him feel alive.
It was a feeling he'd almost forgotten after all this time. Then something happened, and he was reminded all over again of how different he was from normal people.
"Storm might change things," Fiona noted with a nod at the dark clouds.
"We'll adjust," Caden responded.
"That we will," Fiona agreed.
Roscoe let out a whoop.
Reece jerked away from the other man and scowled. "Didn't I just demonstrate how this place echoes? For people wanting to move like ghosts across the land, you're not doing a good job of it."
"For a ghost of a Trateri, we're right on the mark," Roscoe said.
Reece flapped a hand at the man before focusing on Caden. "Trail continues for quite a ways. There's no guarantee there is an exit until I travel it's length."
"How long would that take?" Van asked.
Reece gave a negligent shrug. "Hours. Days. Depends on how far it goes."
“What about the Kyren? He could fly over this place and have it mapped out in an hour,” Gawain suggested.
“The only person Sebastian listens to is Eva. Unless we’re comfortable sending her out there with him—” Fiona trailed off.
Caden shook his head. “Not an option.”
For more than one reason.
Eva wasn’t a warrior. Nor was she a scout or a pathfinder. She didn’t have the skills necessary for such a task. If anything happened, she’d be on her own. While she wasn’t defenseless, Caden wasn’t willing to risk it.
“The enemy is probably hoping we do exactly that,” Reece said. “From the air, the Kyren would be easy to spot. They’d be able to guess our location.”
That was Caden’s concern too.
Van made a face. “This entire thing would be easier if we could make use of the tools in our arsenal.”
“Maybe it’s that kind of thinking that led to the current state of events,” Gawain returned.
“Sebastian is only here because of Eva. Asking him to intercede would only confirm the Kyrens’ belief that we’re not worthy,” Caden said.
Besides, if worse came to worst, Caden planned to have Sebastian fly Eva to safety. In Caden’s mind, that was a far more valuable use of his presence than using him as a scout.
