I shivered as I approached Lar’s place. After circling his property, I held my candle inside the stable. No horse. He had been walking when I saw him on the street earlier. If they still suspected him, they wouldn’t have allowed him to go home and get his horse.

  I clenched my jaw, realizing that proving my innocence would be more difficult if they cleared him so quickly. After scanning the area to make sure nobody was watching, I made my way to his front door.

  “Do you think he’s home?” Kiri asked as she shuffled beside me.

  Shaking my head, I said, “His horse isn’t here.”

  The door opened when I pulled on it. Lar wasn’t a wealthy man, so he likely only barred entry when he was inside. I moved to the fireplace, warming myself with the low flames. Kiri followed me in, while Sani waited outside.

  Despite the light given off by the fire, the room was dark. I snatched a candle from a table and lit it with mine, then I handed it to Kiri. We both rummaged through Lar’s belongings.

  “Found something,” Kiri said.

  I joined her at his dresser.

  She held up a pentacle. “What do you think it does?”

  I shuttered. “I have no idea.” While we were forbidden from crafting potions, we would use the ones the royals had sanctioned when performing our duties. But they would never allow us to wear a pentacle. The foreign magic was considered too dangerous, even for royal use.

  “Should we get the guards?” I asked.

  She bit her lip. “What will we tell them?”

  “We’ll show them what we found.”

  “Will they not think we put it here?” She raised her eyebrows.

  My shoulders slumped. I hadn’t worked out the details of this plan. Even if we found a slew of potion-creating ingredients, we couldn’t prove they were already here when we arrived. “At the very least, we should take anything related to magic, so he doesn’t have it to use.”

  “Hurry,” she suggested. “He might come back.”

  I paused, wondering where he could be. After almost getting caught, and losing his supplies, he wouldn’t be making spells. But once cleared, where would he go?

  For a moment, I considered he might have other friends he practices the dark arts with. He could have met with them to conspire against us. But the idea seemed far-fetched—a secret cabal of Nasar Wigons working with magic without the royals knowing.

  I pondered Lar’s recent promotion and the duties it entailed. “Perhaps the council called an emergency meeting.”

  Her eyes widened. “If so, they are planning our capture as we speak.”

  I nodded. “We must get out of town. We need to grab some supplies from my cottage first.”

  She shook her head. “They might wait there for us.”

  “You’re right.” I fingered my chin. “Take anything useful. A good sleeping bag and a tent would be nice.”

  She nodded as she stuffed the pentacle into her pocket. I found two bags and gave her one of them. We scoured the entire room until the bags were filled.

  “Go wait with Sani,” I said.

  “What about you?”

  “I’ll be out shortly.” Lar would get away with his treachery for now. I couldn’t do much. But I wanted to at least make his life a little less comfortable. I grabbed the stray sacks that made up his mattress and threw them in the fire. The warmth of the raging flames felt good against my cold skin.

  I snuck out of his cottage and joined Sani and Kiri.

  “Are we thieves now?” Sani asked.

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  I shrugged. “At this point, we survive.” I pointed back at the house. “Besides, we only took from the person who put us in this situation.”

  As we walked away, Kiri glanced at Sani. “Nobody detected you when you hid in the shadows. You even snatch the items Lar dropped without being seen.”

  He nodded. “Part of my training.”

  “Do you think you can get close enough to the council to listen in on their meeting?”

  His brow wrinkled. “Depends on where they meet.”

  “We shouldn’t take such a risk,” I said.

  Kiri put her hands on her hips. “If we know what they are planning, we can better avoid falling into any traps they set.”

  I huffed. “We’ll get eyes on the meeting house. But will only have Sani go in if he’s certain he can do so without being detected.” Moving down a side road, I led us in that direction.

  Kiri raised her eyebrows and stared at Sani.

  “What?” he asked.

  “What if you didn’t go in as you?”

  “Don’t you think going in as a bird will draw their attention?” I asked.

  “What about a cute little field mouse?” Kiri giggled.

  Sani shook his head. “My grandfather once kept the mind of a bear for an entire night. But I lack his experience. I can only occupy a small creature for a few moments.”

  “Perhaps that’s all we will need,” Kiri said. “Be the mouse long enough to find a hidden way into the building.”

  “You just want to see me use my powers,” he sighed. “I must be careful. A mind can become corrupted when occupying another.”

  “There it is,” I said, pointing at a building on top of a hill that wasn’t much larger than Lar’s cottage. Unlike his wooden cottage, this structure was built of stone. Smoke trickled out of the chimney, confirming they were meeting inside.

  When I first arrived in Palla Cahua, I was brought before the council so they could question my experience. I remembered the layout. A single room with a long wooden table on one end. The rest was used for standing room, in case the council invited others to speak or observe.

  As we got closer, I saw four horses tied to the post. Each council member would have brought one. The fourth must have belonged to a guard. I was surprised they had such limited security.

  Sani found a large tree and sat against it, with his back to the building. “When I enter the other plane, hold me down.” He closed his eyes and held out his arms. His hands clenched then released repeatedly.

  “What is he doing?” Kiri asked.

  I shrugged.

  “I’m trying to sense a mouse, which would be easier if I could concentrate.” He continued his hand movement for a few moments, then paused. His eyes shot open. They were whiter than I’ve seen. At first, I thought they might propel a beam of light.

  Kiri gripped my arm and hugged it against her body as she watched. I wasn’t sure if it was scaring her or exciting her. Either way, her nails dug into my skin when Sani’s face began to contour.

  His body tensed, making him sit up straight. His lips curled and his nostrils flared. He released a huff of air. His face and body relaxed, making him collapse back on the tree. His arms dangled at his side.

  “Is he okay?” Kiri asked.

  As if hearing us, his eyes shot open. Looking around frantically, he leaned forward, climbing onto his hands and knees. His head darted in the air as he sniffed, like a mouse trying to find some cheese.

  “Sani?” I asked.

  Instead of answering, he scurried toward the council building.

  “Aren’t we to be holding him down?” Kiri asked.

  “Shit.” I rushed forward, leaping, but landing behind him. Before he wiggled out of reach, I snatched his ankle.

  He turned his head to face me, then lunged, trying to bite at my hand.

  Kiri grabbed his arm and yanked, causing him to change his attack and snap at her. She pulled her hands free right before he clenched down. “What the hell?”

  Sani glared at me and bared his teeth. I released his leg and put my arms up. His eyes turned white again and his body went limp, sending him crashing onto his back.

  After regaining his composure, he peered up at us with wide eyes.

  “You tried to bite me,” Kiri said.

  “Not me.” He looked to his right, then to his left. His brow wrinkled. “I told you to hold me down.”

  “Ah.” Kiri put her hands on her hips and leaned forward. “I know who tried to bite me.”

  “When I enter the mouse, the mouse enters me.”

  “Perhaps you should find a better way to phrase that,” I suggested.

  “Why?” He threw up his hands. An expression of confusion plastered across his face. “The mouse takes control when it enters me.”

  “We get it,” Kiri suppressed a giggle. “Your minds swap.”

  Sani nodded. “Enough about that.” He focused on me. “Lar wants them to order us executed on site. They are reluctant. By the tone of the woman’s voice, I think she might doubt Lar.”

  “Bella.” I grinned. “I was ordered to guard her for a few nights a winter ago. She’s a good person.”

  “So they won’t execute us?” Kiri asked.

  Sani frowned. “Lar insisted. I believe they are bending to his will, but I couldn’t stay long enough to be sure.”

  Kiri bit her lip. “We need to get far away from here.”

  I nodded. “We can make it to the next town by the time Patra rises.”

  “Not far enough,” Sani said. “They sent riders to the neighboring towns to get word to their councils.”

  “What if we take those?” Kiri pointed toward the horses.

  “We can’t.” I shook my head. “An act of petty thievery will destroy any chance of the other council members believing our innocence.”

  “You want to bet your life that they will save us?” Kiri asked.

  “No, but...” I exhaled, too tired and cold to argue. “Let’s be quick then.” I pulled extra clothing and blankets from my bag. I’d need to bundle up if I were to survive the cold of night.

  “Do you smell something burning?” Kiri asked.

  I sniffed. The smoke in the air seemed stronger than the normal fireplace exhaust.

  Sani pointed down the hill. “You may be smelling that.”

  At least one cottage was engulfed by flames a few streets down. I held my breath for a moment, realizing it could be Lar’s cottage. Perhaps the bedding I threw into his fire was more flammable than I expected.