I had only to sneak inside the village, and I could see him.
Now, I moved as silent as I could, shaking with anticipation as I reached the edges of the town. I gave Dog a silent command with my hands to stay.
Sworn soldiers stood watch at the perimeter. Their black wolf masks and armor seemed to suck up all the moonlight.
Because of my father’s magic cloak, they didn’t see me as I slipped past them in the shadows and into the cobbled streets.
Underneath the cloak, I wore a necklace of silver tucked beneath the collar of my shirt. One press of the metal against the skin of a Sworn would be enough to temporarily incapacitate him and give me time to get away—but it would also render me a fugitive with a death warrant, for carrying or possessing silver was punishable by execution without trial.
I wore rings on my fingers that were silver too, although they’d been stained to resemble copper. Even the thread on my underwear was sewn with silver.
I was armed, but still, my best defense was to get in and out without discovery. The silver was only for last resorts, when death was likely and I needed one final, departing shot against my killers.
Once inside the village, I fumbled with the cloak, turning it around to the ordinary side. Now, I was nothing but another villager out walking after dark. I turned down an alleyway, heart hammering and fingers trembling as I stole toward the house where Kassian was garrisoned.
“You there! Halt!”
I froze as light enveloped me. A Sworn soldier, carrying a lantern, blocked my way.
“What are you doing out of your home?” he demanded. “There’s a curfew in effect.”
“I— I was going for the village doctor,” I said, thinking quickly. “My sister is sick. She’s Chosen, and I—”
At the word Chosen, the Sworn’s arm lowered. The Sworn valued the lives and health of the Chosen girls more than any other human, because the Chosen were the ones who perpetuated the werewolf race.
“Go about your business, then,” he said gruffly. “But be quick.”
He stepped aside, allowing me to pass. I picked up my skirts and ran until I was out of his sight and enveloped in darkness once more.
Once I was certain the Sworn was gone, I turned in the direction of the house where the Sworn soldiers were garrisoned. My chest tightened as if a rope tied my heart to Kassian’s, as if the rope were cinching my body and tugging me in his direction.
He was so close I could barely stand it.
The house was the largest in the village, so I found it easily. Light spilled from the windows and made golden puddles in the dark street. I stopped across the street and pressed my back against the wall. A rumble of voices and the sound of raucous laughter bled from the glowing windows.
There were many of them inside that house.
How was I going to get close enough for Kassian to recognize me?
A dangerous idea slipped into my head. I pulled my hood over my eyes so the upper half of my face was obscured, and then, I went to the front door and knocked loudly.
Shadows materialized from the darkness. Sworn soldiers, converging on me as quiet as dust falling. They circled me, and I forced myself to stand straight and uncowed. I felt their gazes crawl over me from scalp to shoes.
“What are you doing, girl?” one demanded as he grabbed my arm as if he meant to drag me away. His grip bit into my flesh.
“I have to talk to the Silver Wolf,” I said. I tried to shake him off, but the Sworn’s fingers were as unyielding as steel. “I have some important information for him.”
They appeared unconvinced.
“About what?” the one holding my arm asked.
“It’s about the Crims,” I said. A desperate gamble, but I was beyond desperate.
At the mention of the Crims, the Sworn’s posture changed. They didn’t leave, but they didn’t try to drag me away. The one holding my arm released me, and I knocked again, louder this time.
The voices went silent. I heard impatient footsteps on a hardwood floor.
The door opened, and a maskless Sworn stared down at me. He was handsome in a cruel, ruthless way. He wore a cloak with a gold stripe along the edge, which I dimly remembered marked him as an officer. His pale hair was damp with sweat and tangled as if he’d only recently removed his mask. His eyes skewered me.
“Who are you?”
“Please,” I said. “I need to speak to the Silver Wolf.”
I could see over his shoulder and into the room beyond. Sworn soldiers lounged on chairs and couches that had been pushed against the walls of the room. A table stood in a corner, piled with maps and documents.
“The Silver Wolf cannot—”
The door wrenched open wider, and there was Kassian, still wearing his mask.
My breath wrenched from my lungs. I stared into that masked silver face, searching for the eyes behind it.
“I’ll speak with her in the barn,” Kassian said.
“Vixor,” the commander snapped. “You cannot believe she is serious. This is a ploy. A trick.”
“I want to speak with her, Ritter,” the silver-masked man said. His voice was muffled behind his mask. A chill slid down my spine.
The commander called Ritter sneered. “You are under my watch, Vixor. You haven’t been absolved of the suspicions against you.”
“Then send guards with us.” The Silver Wolf stepped over the threshold and took me by the elbow. The warmth of his hand through the gloves and the sleeve of my shirt made my pulse jump.
Ritter sputtered indignantly as Kassian led me off the porch and in the direction of a large, shadowy barn a stone’s throw from the house. The Sworn soldiers followed us.
When we reached the barn, Kassian turned to the soldiers with a swirl of his cloak. Moonlight flashed on his silver mask.
“Remain outside. Keep watch,” he ordered.
“Sir,” one of the Sworn protested.
“That was an order.” Kassian’s voice was like a dagger of ice. The Sworn clasped their arms across their chests in a signal of obedience.
Kassian pulled me inside the barn and closed the door.
I wanted to throw my arms around him at once, but I forced myself to wait, and stood silent as he lit a lantern that hung from a peg near the door. Kassian removed his helmet with his back to me, and I watched as he set it back on a bale of hay. Dark curls tumbled around his ears and down the back of his neck.
I was humming with eagerness to touch him.
Words filled my mouth and begged to be spoken, but I held my tongue as he turned to face me. This was no time for words. I threw my arms around him and pressed my mouth to his.
I felt him tense beneath me. His hands closed over my shoulders and slid down my arms until they hooked around my elbows. He pulled me back abruptly and stared into my face. Moonlight that slipped through the cracks of the walls outlined his features in silver.
The anger in his eyes hit me like a slap.
“Kassian?” I faltered.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded.
“I needed to see you.” My stomach knotted as the realization sank in—he was not happy to see me. I was dizzy as sudden fear gripped me. Had I somehow made a horrible mistake? Had he decided he didn’t love me after all? Had I risked my life for nothing?
“And you walked straight into a lion’s den? This town is crawling with Sworn. They’re right outside.”