Astra scowled but let it drop with a grumble. “At least it’s healed now. Do that again, though, and I won’t rest until you’re so full of arrows people mistake you for a pincushion.”

  I lowered my hands and nodded. “Don’t attack anyone in our party, and I won’t.”

  The almost lighthearted air vanished as I turned to the assassins, crossing my arms. “With that settled, let’s move on to more important matters—like who paid you to kill Henry.”

  None of them met my eyes, and Henry set Maya down before stepping forward, his hand resting on his sword’s hilt. “It had to be someone who knew I was heading to Highgate. I’d assume the king, but if he were aware of my approach, he would have prepared properly—not hired assassins.”

  There weren’t many others who’d actively want the resistance leader dead, but at the top of the list…

  I took a shot in the dark. “What about the general who took over Dawnmoor? It’s not a stretch to think someone there told him about your plans, and he sent these clowns after you.”

  Henry’s expression darkened. “I didn’t even tell my wife about this plan, for her safety and everyone else’s. The only ones aware of it were those traveling with me and my closest advisor. But he would sooner die than give the general anything.”

  Flashes of my own betrayal not long ago made me grimace. “Sometimes, it’s the last person we expect.”

  Henry shook his head, jaw tight with determination. “Not him. The general took his son from him years ago—murdered him in cold blood. He still burns for vengeance. There’s nothing they could offer or do to him that would make him betray us.”

  I rubbed the back of my neck. “Then maybe he gave them something without realizing it. Either way, we can’t rule out the possibility until we know more.”

  Henry looked ready to argue, but Time cut in before he could. “We can debate this later. Right now, we have assassins to interrogate, and young Maya shouldn’t witness it. Let us make camp for the night.”

  Eleanor nodded and, without hesitation, slammed the hilt of her sword into her captive’s head, knocking them out cold. The other assassins tensed. The one pinned to the tree flicked a knife free—a blade I hadn’t even noticed—and cut himself loose, tearing a long gash into his side before lunging for the bushes.

  He didn’t make it three steps.

  Novak blurred forward, his boot crashing down onto the assassin’s back, grinding him face-first into the dirt. A pleasant smile stretched his lips as he leaned into his foot, adding more weight. “You’re the one who tried to kill my sister, aren’t you?” His grip tightened in the man’s hair, jerking his head up at an agonizing angle. “You aren’t going anywhere.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  The assassin shuddered, but before he could speak, Novak slammed his forehead into the dirt with enough force that I felt the impact from several yards away.

  Dominicus knocked out the final assassin and exhaled sharply. “I have more questions, but Thomas is right. This isn’t the time or place. There’s a clearing up ahead—we’ll camp there.”

  A few minutes later, we found the clearing and split into our tasks. The siblings followed Henry and Dominicus to question the prisoners, leaving Time, Eleanor, Maya, and me to set up camp.

  Volpe stirred in my hood, blinking blearily as he peeked out at the light filtering through the trees. I snorted and reached back to scratch behind his ears.

  “You missed all the excitement,” I murmured. “I’m impressed you could sleep through all the running and fighting, but honestly, that’s probably for the best. That power of yours is amazing, but I don’t want you jumping into a fight you can’t handle.”

  He huffed but leaned into the scratches, and Time stepped beside me as we built the fire.

  “If I had to guess, his deep sleep is a direct result of his earlier display,” Time mused. “Children of all species need rest to grow, and he expended considerable energy assisting you. Now, he is recovering.”

  Volpe yawned as if to confirm it, and I hummed. “Well, I appreciate his help, so he can sleep as long as he wants.”

  Maya’s head snapped toward us, eyes wide with excitement as she locked onto Volpe. “He’s so pretty!”

  Volpe regarded her from my hood but made no move to jump down. She edged closer, hands clasped hopefully. “Can I pet him?”

  I glanced back at him, noting the way his ears flicked back warily. “Ah… maybe not the best idea.”

  He tolerated my touch, but judging by the look he was giving her, he wasn’t about to extend the same courtesy.

  Maya’s face fell. “Oh… does he not like me?”

  I hesitated. “I don’t think it’s that. He probably just doesn’t know you yet. Or maybe he’s just not in the mood to be touched by anyone else. Try making friends with him first and ask again later, alright?”

  Disappointment flickered into determination, and she nodded resolutely. “I’m going to be your best friend, and then you’ll let me pet you.”

  Volpe gave her an unimpressed stare before burrowing deeper into my hood, effectively ending the discussion.

  Turning to Time, I muttered, “Any idea what that was about?”

  He was the only one who’d understood Volpe earlier—if anyone knew, it was him.

  Time shot a glance at the others before grimacing and lowering his voice so Maya wouldn’t overhear. “It seems the king used a child to lure him into capture. Now, he is wary of them.”

  Ah. That… explained a lot.

  I ran a hand over Volpe’s ears and whispered, “Yeah, that’s fair. He’ll interact with her when he’s ready. Or he won’t. It’s up to him. If she pushes it, I’ll talk to Henry.”

  Volpe pressed into my hand—a silent thank you. Time nodded. “He appreciates that. But for now, we need to focus. We still have things to do before the others return with whatever information they manage to gather.”

  I exhaled and nodded. With any luck, there wouldn’t be anymore nasty surprises tomorrow. We could use a break after the whole shadows ordeal… and now this.