Page 108 of A Wayward Movement

“Sometimes,” she hedged. “Among other places.”

“And you’ve seen nothing strange out there?” Xavier pressed.

“I’ve already answered that question, Your Highness.” Ellen was looking increasingly cornered.

Xavier kept his tone pleasant. “Of course, my mistake. Your business must be thriving, I take it, to afford such fine new clothes.”

“I do all right, Your Highness,” she said. “I must be off.”

She started to walk past, but Xavier’s hand shot out, seizing her wrist so suddenly, Ellen’s companions all gasped.

“You’re really going to maintain you’ve seen nothing?” he said. “Why are you so close-lipped when anyone mentions the refinement site?”

Ellen bit her lip, harried. “Everyone sees things and hears things, Your Highness. But I have nothing to say.”

“And you’re fine with Benji and Alina paying the price of your silence?” Xavier shot back.

She wavered, discomfort crossing her face. Most of those taken had been easy targets because they hadn’t been local, just passing through. Benji and Alina were the first victims who really belonged to the town.

To Xavier’s annoyance, Captain Mitchell hailed him at that moment, providing Ellen with a moment of distraction she was quick to use. Bobbing a curtsy, she hurried away across the square. The other women scattered, too, as if afraid the prince was going to start interrogating them all about their clothing choices.

“Your Highness, do you—?”

“She’s seen something.” Xavier cut the captain off. “And her silence has been bought.”

“That woman there?” The captain looked after Ellen. “Are you sure, Your Highness?”

“Positive,” he said.

“Should we bring her in for questioning?” Captain Mitchell asked.

“By all means,” Xavier said. “But I can’t afford to wait for that. I need to get to the refinement site immediately. And I need most of the team with me. I have a strong suspicion that if I get close to the site, the linking enchantment will activate.”

For once, Captain Mitchell didn’t fight him. Within ten minutes, the majority of the team was mounted, and Xavier’s weariness lifted a little as they rode swiftly out of town. Finally moving—finally doing something—was the only relief he could get.

They completed the ride to the refinement site faster than should have been possible, Xavier barely allowing the group to slow to rest the horses. Zuzu, able now to hold her own, flew alongside him, rarely needing to rest on the horse’s flank. The air turned dry around them as the sun climbed steadily upward. Knowing he needed to keep a clear head, Xavier focused his mind on the rhythmic pounding of his horse’s hooves on the sand.

By the time the refinement site was within reach, the day had become sweltering. Xavier could see some of his companions flagging, but he pushed on more fiercely, calling for the craftsman.

The man pulled his horse alongside Xavier’s, looking faintly ill. He wasn’t much of a horseman, Xavier knew.

“If the link became activated when we got into range, what would it feel like?” Xavier demanded.

“At full strength, it should feel like a rope around your midriff, tugging you in a certain direction,” the craftsman told him. “Weakened as it is, I don’t know for sure. It could be the same. Or it could be more of a feeling. You would feel normal when heading in the right direction, but unsettled when going further away.”

“I’m feeling something,” Xavier told him, trying not to get his hopes up. “I wouldn’t call it as strong as a tug. But I can’t shake the sense that something around here,” he indicated his chest with a gesture, “wants me to continue going this way. When we sidetracked to go around that dune, it didn’t like it.”

“That’s good,” the craftsman said, excited. “We might be getting close!”

Xavier didn’t need further urging to push forward even harder. The refinement site itself finally came into view just around the time the sensation in Xavier’s middle suddenly hardened into something much more substantial. It was less a rope and more a silken strand, but it was definitely pulling him onward.

He let out a jubilant cry, only to pull up in irritation. The entrance to the site was barred, thanks to the now-completed fence. The group was forced to stop, and several members of the team dismounted, relieved to be out of the saddle.

Xavier stayed aloft. His horse was prancing, but he kept it under control with an iron hand on the reins. Zuzu swooped back and forth over him, sensing his agitation. Her mewls of annoyance were an excellent expression of his feelings. The tug in his middle wanted him to charge straight through into the site.

“Hello there!” Xavier called imperatively.

It felt like an age, but finally someone appeared at the locked gate. With relief, Xavier realized that it wasn’t the site manager, who may still harbor some resentment over the prince’s suspicions.