Page 84 of The Dead Queen

“Thank you,” the woman says. She gathers her children around her and they sit huddled together near the fire. The children put their hands as close to the flames as they dare, sniffling and shivering. The woman looks back at Hunter and gives him a small, appreciative smile.

I walk to the other side of the flames, as far away from the seemingly innocuous strangers as I can. “What are you doing in Korrigan with three children?” I ask. “And where are your guides?”

The woman shakes her head. “We don’t have any. Not anymore. When we left our home, there were seven of us. We’re all that’s left.”

I look toward Tristan, who still studies them warily. He picks up his fox sword and begins sharpening it with a stone. The eldest boy watches him with awe.

“What are your names?” Hunter asks.

“I’m Gloria.” The woman puts a hand on her two smallest children’s heads. “The twins are Adabel and Lorens.” She nods toward the oldest. “That’s Marten Jr. After his father.”

“Where is his father?” Hunter asks, but I suspect I already know the answer. The hollow look in the children’s eyes tells me everything I need to know.

“The dead wolves,” Gloria whispers, a hitch in her voice.

“Corpse wolves?” Tristan leans forward, finally interested. “You’re from Annwyn?”

Gloria nods.

“Why are you so far south?”

“The soldiers …” Gloria swallows. “They took everything. We were simple people, really. My husband was a farmer. His younger brother, too. But the soldiers burned it all to the ground.” She closes her eyes, and I can see how much effort it takes for her to hold herself together. I’m sure it’s not for our sake, but for the children’s.

“It was the third time since we’ve been married.” She shrugs hopelessly. “So, we thought we’d have a better chance living further south, away from the conflict. Away from the encroaching border.”

“Away from Annwyn?” Tristan asks, a hint of judgment in his voice.

I shoot him a glare. Who is he to judge a woman for doing what’s best for her family’s survival?

He notices my gaze and holds up his hands in surrender.

“Where are you going?” Hunter leans forward, a concerned look in his eyes.

“We’d planned to find a farming village where my husband and brother-in-law could start over again. Find some fields no one wants to work.” She sighs. “Now? We’ll stay anywhere that will have us.”

Somewhere out in the distance, wolves howl.

The children’s eyes grow wide and they huddle closer to their mother. The twins begin to cry.

“Hush.” Gloria runs her fingers through their hair. “These kind people will protect us.” Her eyes are pleading as she looks to Hunter, easily the biggest and most soft-hearted of our group.

“We’ll do our best tonight,” I say. “But in the morning, we’ll be travelling back the way you came.”

Gloria looks horrified. “No, you can’t! It’s certain death, I swear it.”

Tristan nods. “It is.” He sniffs. “For some.”

She narrows her eyes at him. “There are corpse wolves near the ruins at Ellyll.”

Trisan shrugs. “There are corpse wolves everywhere now.”

“At least travel east or west for a day, to give yourself a better chance.”

“It would be a waste of time.”

She stares at him for a long moment before she turns her attention back to her children, clearly leaving us to whatever fate she thinks we’re walking straight into.

Long after the children have fallen asleep by the fire, the wind howls alongside the wolves, their music intertwined. I’m not always sure which is which, making my dreams a confusing, wild mess. But when a creature snarls, just out of sight, I jump up in alarm.