Chapter 7 Continuation

"The shrine showed me what happened," Mara said. "I saw Ronan poison Selene's drink."

"Visions aren't evidence. Not to wolves. They'll say you're lying or crazy." Nyra tapped her fingers on the table. "But there might be physical evidence. The cup Selene drank from—it was never thrown away. Prince Ronan kept it as a trophy."

Mara felt sick. "He kept the murder weapon?"

"Arrogant men often do foolish things," Nyra said. "The cup is in Ronan's private chambers. If you can steal it and have it tested, the poison will still be detectable. That's your evidence."

"So I need to break into the dungeon AND steal from the prince's room?" Mara's head was spinning. "How am I supposed to do both?"

"You're not alone," Corin spoke up from his chair. "I'll help. I'm small and fast. I can get into places you can't."

"And I'll be there too," a new voice said.

Mara spun around. A woman stood in the doorway—but she hadn't opened the door. She had just appeared. She was tall and muscular, with short black hair and a scar across her left cheek.

"This is Karelia," Nyra said calmly, as if people appeared out of thin air all the time. "She's one of my... associates."

"I'm a thief," Karelia said bluntly. "The best in the kingdom. And I owe Nyra a favor, so I'm helping you."

"Can you really steal the cup from Prince Ronan's room?" Mara asked.

Karelia laughed. "Child, I once stole the crown off King Darius's head while he was sleeping. A cup will be easy." Her expression grew serious. "But we need to move fast. The longer we wait, the more dangerous this becomes."

"Then we go tomorrow night," Mara said, trying to sound braver than she felt. "During the distraction."

"There's one more thing," Nyra said quietly. "Your transformation. It's coming soon. I can feel it. Your wolf is waking up inside you."

Mara looked down at her hands. They looked normal, but she could feel something different. A restlessness in her bones. An energy she'd never had before.

"When will it happen?" she asked.

"When your body is ready. When you stop fighting what you are." Nyra stood up and walked to her. She placed her hand over Mara's heart. "You've spent your whole life believing you're weak. Believing you're less than the wolves around you. But that's a lie, Mara. You're not weak. You never were."

"But I'm human," Mara whispered.

"You're half human," Nyra corrected. "The other half is wolf. Strong wolf. Royal wolf, if I'm not mistaken. Your mother wasn't just any wolf. She was someone important. Someone powerful."

Mara remembered the vision in the River of Memories. Her mother handing her to a stranger and running away.

"Why did she leave me?" Mara asked, her voice breaking. "If she was so powerful, why did she abandon me?"

Nyra's expression softened. "Because she was protecting you. Your very existence was dangerous, child. A half-wolf baby? In King Darius's kingdom? You would have been killed immediately."

"So she gave me away to save my life?"

"Most likely. And then she probably died herself, because I've searched for years and found no trace of her." Nyra squeezed Mara's shoulder. "Your mother's choices don't define you. What matters is what you choose to do now."

Mara wiped her eyes. She wouldn't cry. Not now. She had work to do.

"I'm ready," she said. "Tell me the plan. All of it."

For the next hour, Nyra, Karelia, and Corin laid out the details. The distraction would happen at midnight. Mara would enter through a servant's entrance that Isla would leave unlocked. Corin would guide her to the dungeon while Karelia went after the cup.

"What about after?" Mara asked. "Once Zevran is free and we have the evidence, then what?"

"Then you run," Nyra said. "Get out of the palace and hide. I have a safe house in the mountains. You can stay there while you figure out how to expose Ronan publicly."

"But I can't hide forever," Mara protested. "And what about the third chain? Love strong enough to withstand death? How do I prove that?"

Nyra smiled mysteriously. "That chain will break on its own when the time is right. You can't force love, child. You can only let it grow."

Mara thought about Zevran. She barely knew him. They had only met two days ago. How could she love someone she didn't really know?

But then she thought about the bond between them. The way his voice sounded in her mind. The way her heart raced when she thought of him. The way she would do anything—risk anything—to save him.

Maybe that was love already. Or maybe it was the beginning of love. Either way, she would fight for it.

"Get some rest," Nyra said, pointing to a small bed in the corner. "Tomorrow is going to be a long day. You'll need your strength."

Mara was exhausted. She lay down on the bed, and Corin curled up at her feet. Within moments, she was asleep.

She dreamed of a white wolf running through a forest. The wolf was beautiful and strong, with eyes the same color as Mara's own. The wolf turned and looked at her, and Mara knew.

It was her. Or it would be her, soon.

"Wake up," the wolf said in her mother's voice. "Wake up and run."

Mara woke with a start. Sunlight was streaming through the window. She had slept the whole night without nightmares.

Nyra was already up, packing supplies into a bag. "Good morning. Eat something. We leave in an hour."

Mara ate quickly—bread and cheese and some kind of fruit she didn't recognize. Her body felt different today. Stronger. More alive.

"The medicine is working," Nyra observed. "Your color is better. But don't get too confident. The curse is still there, just sleeping. You have maybe three more days. Four if you're lucky."

"That's enough time," Mara said with determination. "It has to be."

Karelia appeared again—through the door this time, like a normal person. "I've scouted the palace. Guards are on high alert. They're still looking for you in the Shadow Woods, but some are watching the palace entrances too."

"Can we still get in?" Mara asked.

"Yes. But it'll be tight. We need to move fast and quiet." Karelia looked at Mara critically. "You need different clothes. You look like a servant. You need to look like you belong."

Nyra pulled out a bundle of dark clothes. "Put these on. They're spelled to help you blend into shadows. Not perfect invisibility, but close enough if you're careful."

Mara changed quickly. The clothes fit perfectly—dark pants, a dark shirt, and a hooded cloak. When she looked in the mirror, she barely recognized herself. She looked like a shadow. A ghost.

"Better," Karelia approved. "Now, weapons."

"I don't know how to fight," Mara admitted.

"Then don't fight. Run." Karelia handed her a small knife. "But just in case."

Mara tucked the knife into her belt. She also had the vial of moonlight, the arrow with the moonstone tip, and the remaining medicine from the shrine. She felt like she was going to war.

Maybe she was.

"Remember the plan," Nyra said as they prepared to leave. "Midnight. Servant's entrance. Get Zevran. Get the cup. Get out. Don't be a hero. Don't try to fight anyone. Just survive."

"I will," Mara promised.

Corin hopped onto her shoulder. "I'm ready when you are."

They left the cottage and began the long walk toward the palace. Nyra used magic to transport them part of the way, but she couldn't get them too close without being detected.

"Magic leaves traces," she explained. "If I use too much near the palace, King Darius's mages will feel it."

By late afternoon, they could see the palace in the distance. It was huge and imposing, built of black stone. Mara had lived there for ten years, but she had never really looked at it before. Now it looked like a prison.

"This is where I leave you," Nyra said. "Karelia will take you the rest of the way. Good luck, Mara. And remember—you're stronger than you think."

Then the witch vanished, leaving only purple smoke behind.

"Come on," Karelia said. "We'll hide near the palace until midnight. Try to stay calm. Fear has a smell, and wolves will notice it."

They crept through the forest surrounding the palace. As the sun set, Mara felt her nervousness growing. In just a few hours, she would either free Zevran... or die trying.

"You're scared," Karelia observed. "That's good. Fear keeps you alert. Just don't let it control you."

"Have you ever been this scared?" Mara asked.

Karelia smiled. "Every single time I do a job. Fear means you're smart enough to understand the danger. Only fools feel no fear."

They settled into a hiding spot where they could watch the palace. As darkness fell, lights appeared in the windows. Mara could see guards patrolling the walls.

Somewhere in that massive building, Zevran was locked in a cell. Suffering. Waiting.

I'm coming, she thought, hoping he could hear her through the bond. Just hold on a little longer.

The hours crawled by. Mara watched the moon rise higher in the sky. Finally, Karelia touched her arm.

"It's time."

They crept toward the servant's entrance. Mara's heart was pounding so hard she was sure everyone could hear it. The door was slightly open—Isla had come through.

They slipped inside. The corridor was dark and empty. Corin jumped down from Mara's shoulder and sniffed the air.

"This way," he whispered. "I can smell the dungeon. Old stone and suffering."

They moved through the shadows, following the fox. Twice they had to hide when guards passed by. Mara held her breath, sure they would be caught.

But the spelled clothes worked. The guards looked right past them.

Finally, they reached a staircase leading down. The entrance to the dungeon.

"This is it," Corin whispered. "Ready?"

Mara pulled out the vial of moonlight. Her hands were shaking.

Then, somewhere in the palace, an alarm began to ring. Shouts echoed through the corridors. Guards began running toward the east wing.

Nyra's distraction had begun.

"Now!" Karelia hissed. "Go!"

Mara ran down the stairs into the darkness, with Corin racing beside her.

She was coming, Zevran. She was finally coming.

Behind her, she heard Karelia's footsteps heading in a different direction—toward Prince Ronan's chambers and the poisoned cup.

The rescue had begun.

And there was no turning back now.