I heard hissing, the sound of an argument.

“Oh for stars sake, here let me,” a feminine voice called out and then a small flash of light appeared in the darkness fairly close to my head. I jumped slightly, and so did the person holding the sword. Luckily, it didn’t slice my jugular. The bright flare made spots appear in my vision and I heard the same voice call out, “See, it is her.”

There was no mistaking Syrani’s voice. The sword and knife in my side were quickly withdrawn. Strong hands pulled me down and I was embraced in a gripping bear hug.

“Odin,” I called out and he released me. He stepped back and others came forward out of the forest. I saw Hemi, Gotte, Eviir, Fenri and Syrani. More lighted orbs appeared in the air and I could see my father approaching on a horse, with what looked like a whole army of clansmen behind him.

“Father, you came.” I wasn’t surprised that he would. Just glad that he did.

Bearen stared at me in confusion. But then it washed away to be replaced by a look of happiness. “Thalia? You’re free? How in the world is that possible? We were about to come and rescue you.” Bearen turned in his saddle and—as my eyes adjusted to the darkness—I made out far more silhouettes than I’d expected. There were hundreds of men. He must have gathered the clans to attack Sinnendor.

“With some help of course,” Syrani called out. It completely surprised me to see Syrani, dressed in my clan’s fur cloak and armor. She was dressed for battle and looked quite comfortable. With a flick of her wrist, the orbs of light, which actually turned out to be floating burning coals, extinguished and dropped to the ground.

“Yes, I’m free. It’s a long story, but I’m fine.” I was quickly ushered into the darkened camp. No campfires had been made, no torches, no light whatsoever trickled out of the camp. It looked like they had just made camp and were getting prepared to invade in the morning.

I was given a bowl of gruel and a blanket to wrap around my shoulders. Even though there were no fires, it was warm. I gave my father an accusing look and he just shrugged his shoulders and pointed to Syrani. She was leaning over a pile of flat stones and I watched in awe as they slowly glowed. She pulled away and Odin picked up a large pot and placed it over the stones. A few seconds later the water was boiling.

“How many injured and dead from the raid?” I asked as soon as we were away from the others.

“Thirty injured, four dead,” he answered grimly. I could see the dangerous glint in his eye and the anger that he barely contained. I couldn’t help but wonder how many generations of living in Calandry it had taken to tame the fury of the Siren blood. Now that I knew the signs, it was easy to spot, even when diluted. But the question remained. Did my father know about his bloodline? Did anyone in Valdyrstal know anything about Sirens? And was that the true answer to why the Valdyrstals hated the Denai as much as they did? It sure seemed plausible.

My eyes kept drifting to Syrani as she worked tirelessly around the camp. I couldn’t help but watch as Fenri stood by protectively, watching her every move.

“I can’t believe you brought her.” I said skeptically. But I couldn’t help but feel somewhat proud at the same time.

“Not on purpose,” Bearen growled out, trying to sound angry, but I could hear the hint of pride in his voice as well. “She wouldn’t stay behind. We were just getting back on our feet, day after the attack by the Elite, when a delegation appeared from Haven to pick up the remaining Denai and escort them home. The girl refused to go with them. She about destroyed the main road into town when they tried to force her, so they left her alone. We’ve been preparing to come here and demand your release, so she came with us. I don’t know what it is about her, but she kind of reminds me of you.”

“Ugh, please don’t say that.” I rolled my eyes. I knew my father didn’t know the old vengeful and bitter Syrani like I did. “So the rest of the students were taken home?”

“Yes, but something didn’t seem right,” Bearen said.

“What do you mean, something wasn’t right?” I could tell from his tone he was worried.

“It was just too soon. The timing was off. The messengers we sent to Haven hadn’t even returned yet, and there was an army at our village.” Bearen’s eyebrows furrowed and he leaned over and his voice lowered. “How could a large delegation arrive from Haven and make it through the pass before my men returned? There were two of them on our swiftest horses. They should have been back before the delegation arrived.”

“Maybe they passed one of Queen Lilyana’s parties on their way to Haven and happened to pass on the message. Or maybe they were delayed in their return trip. Or maybe—”

“They’re dead,” Bearen interrupted.

“Don’t say that,” I gasped, feeling my stomach sour.

“The delegation was too large. There were too many horses. Too many warriors.”

“Well, our caravan was attacked. Maybe they are bringing extra protection from the Septori. They may be unstoppable if they continue these experiments to enhance their gifts,” I mumbled unable to even convince myself.

“Ask the girl!” Bearen shook his head and pointed back to Syrani. He crossed his arms and refused to say anything else. It was odd that I found myself in this position, arguing with my father. “She said it was odd too, refused to go.”

“Then why didn’t you make everyone stay? Refuse to let any of the Denai go?” my voice rose in frustration.

“Because they weren’t my priority. Finding you was.”

“But obviously you felt something was off, because you are bringing it up now.” I said.

“Well, you’re safe so we can now focus on the important thing at hand,” Bearen scoffed.

“Which is?”

“We have to decide whether we will continue our assault on Sinnendor, which could lead into an all out war we would very likely lose. Or…”

“Or what?”

“We go after the delegation and get the children back,” Bearen answered, a mad twinkle in his eye.

“Excuse me? Did I hear you right?” He couldn’t possibly have just said that.

“You said the queen is at an impasse and they don’t know what to do. It’s time that someone did something. Our clan is prepared for war, prepared to fight to the death for the cause. Let it for once be a cause that will bring peace instead of more war.”

“You really think that it was someone else that showed up and took the Denai students? You think it might have been the Septori—say it.” My knuckles cracked as my fists closed tight in rage. I couldn’t believe he just let them go. If he had any hesitation about their motive at all, he should have stopped it.

“Thalia, we had just been attacked. We were not ready to face another battle; we were still burying our dead. We’re prepared now.”

I sighed loudly and shook my head. There was a lot to think about. And I was about to give him more. I took a deep breath and looked him right in the eye.

“I found something out about the King of Sinnendor. King Tieren is mad, you know.” He looked unfazed. “But you already knew that, didn’t you? It’s why you really don’t want to go back to Sinnendor, unless you have to. For fear that the madness will start to affect you too,” I accused.