“Why now?” asked Beth, peeking at me over the letter. “Why is this the first letter from her since she left?”

  Beth threw the letter onto the table, her lips set in a frown. After breakfast, I showed her the letter from Zadona. While I saw it as a pleasant surprise, Beth wasn’t so sure about it. I stared at the letter. Who was Zadona working for? Was this the reason why I kept having dreams about her?

  “Maybe her boss told her not to,” suggested Henry, picking up the letter.

  I scratched my chin. “Do you think my songs have traveled that far north?” Since returning home, I had performed every weekend at the Cow’s Hide Tavern—owned by Henry’s friend Jesse Baker. People loved to hear about my adventure, though I don’t think they understood how difficult it was. The things I had to do, the people I had to… My neck felt hot.

  “Focus, Norman. Zadona could be in trouble,” said Beth, crossing her arms. “We should go.”

  “We?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

  She glared at me. “Yes, we. She’s my friend as much as she’s yours.”

  Henry held back a smile. “But she didn’t ask for you.”

  He flinched when Beth shot him an angry look. “I don’t care.”

  “What about the kids?” I asked. Arienne and Charlie were playing outside. They didn’t even know about the contents of the letter, let alone who Zadona was.

  Beth frowned. “Well, we can’t take them with us.”

  “I don’t think Arienne could handle it,” said Henry. Arienne and Henry had both been kidnapped by the harska. While Arienne had seemed okay with it at the time, I could tell she was changed by the experience. For one thing, she was no longer very fond of cats.

  “Neither can Charlie,” I said, watching the two of them playing through the window. “He’s far too young to travel so far.”

  “What did Bagheera say?” asked Beth, changing the subject.

  I shrugged. “He said everything has been good. According to him, Gunner has been improving.” Gunner was the previous king of the harska. In a last-ditch effort to save my family, I recruited a clan of druids to overthrow him. Bagheera was the new king, a harska who had helped me toward the end of my journey.

  “Good, good,” muttered Beth. Biting her lip, she stole the letter from Henry’s hands. Her eyes scanned the letter, her foot tapping against the floor as she read.

  To be honest, I didn’t want Beth to go with me. Not because I didn’t want to go on an adventure with her, but because I worried for her safety. If she ever got hurt, I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself. Still, she was right, Zadona was her friend too.

  “Henry?” I asked, turning toward my brother. “Can you watch the kids and the farm?”

  He looked like he was going to give me a snarky reply, but held back when he saw my face. “Sure, Norman,” he replied, giving me a weak smile. “You won’t have to worry about a thing. Besides, I’ll have Ma and Pop here to help me.”

  I nodded. Even though I was worried about leaving my kids behind, I could trust Henry to watch them. Not because he was my brother—that’s what worried me. No, I trusted him because he was a good man. Standing up and stretching my legs, I gave Beth an expectant look. There was fear in her eyes, but also excitement.

  “We’ll leave whenever you’re ready.”

  The next few days were spent preparing for the trip. Adelbern was past the Emerald Mountains, so we would have to pass through Kent’s Crossing to reach it. As such, I sent a letter ahead to Nia telling her to expect us. Part of me hoped she would join us on this journey, but I tried not to get my hopes up.

  We left at night, right after putting the kids to bed. Beth felt it was easier than leaving them during the day. I didn’t mind, but it did mean we would have to travel the first leg of the journey at night. Strapping my mandolin to my back, Beth and I waved goodbye to the Benson farm.

  Tears formed in Beth’s eyes as she turned away. I pulled her close, giving her a reassuring hug. It was possible we would never see our kids again, but I had hope. Zadona wouldn’t have sent the letter if she knew it would put me in danger. She wasn’t that type of person. Or at least she hadn’t been that type of person before she left.

  Instead of walking to Kent’s Crossing, we paid for a cart to take us across the mountains. It reminded me of my trip with David, the elvish merchant I met on my journey to save Arienne and Henry. I hadn’t seen David in years, though he sent me a nice letter a year or two ago telling me he was doing well.

  The Ruby Mountains were cold and depressing, but having Beth by my side lifted my spirits. Though she didn’t seem to enjoy it. For me, this was another adventure. Another chance to add more songs to my performances. For her, this was the first time she’d been separated from the kids. Besides having one of them kidnapped by strange cat-like creatures.

  I looked up at the night sky. When I was imprisoned under the Sapphire Mountains, I dreamed about the stars. You never realize how beautiful they are until you can’t see them. Even when I was allowed to leave the mountain, I couldn’t fully appreciate them until I was free. This wasn’t going to be like my first adventure outside of Xalir. That I knew for sure.

  “How’re you feeling?” I asked as our cart hit a bump in the road.

  “Tired,” she replied, cuddling closer to me.

  “You must be excited though. A grand adventure with a famous bard? This must be a dream come true for you.”

  She laughed. “Maybe, but I’m still worried.”

  “We’re gonna do this right, okay?” I looked at Beth for support, her warm smile alleviating some of the anxiety I was feeling. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, I hadn’t considered that my newfound fame would cause more trouble for me. Sighing, I laid down and stared at the stars. They shimmered in the night sky.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Good night, Norman,” said Beth, kissing my cheek as she wrapped a blanket around the both of us.

  “Good night, dear.”

  Kent’s Crossing sat in the middle of three mountain ranges. The Sapphire Mountains, home of the harska, was to the east. To the northwest, sat the Emerald Mountains. We had crossed the Ruby Mountains, named for the way they shimmered in the evening sun. Or at least, that’s what Master Piopus—who taught me everything about being a bard—used to tell me. He had a fantastic mind for such creative imagery.

  The cart we were traveling on dropped us off farther away from town than I would have liked. Apparently, the cart driver wasn’t stopping in Kent’s Crossing at all. Instead, he left us at a crossroads a few miles outside of town. I should have been mad, but I didn’t mind. Neither did Beth. It was a short walk.

  Beth grabbed my hand as we walked, giving me a reassuring squeeze. I returned the gesture. Our hands swung between us as we ventured into town. It was so different from my first time in Kent’s Crossing that I had to laugh. Beth gave me a confused look, but I couldn’t have explained my thoughts to her even if I tried.

  Like my first time in Kent’s Crossing, I watched the people move past us as we walked into town. Most of them were covered in soot from the mines. All the dirt stuck to their clothes filled the air, making it difficult to breathe around them. Beth held back a cough as some miners walked past us. I didn’t.

  The buildings along the main road were mainly home to small shops. They were two stories tall and built of bricks with sloped ceramic roofs for water to run down. Most of the shopkeepers lived above their shops. A thick layer of soot covered the lower half of the buildings.

  Nia lived outside of town with Tamara at her forge. It wasn’t because they wanted to live outside of town, it was because they had to. Any spark from the forge could set the town ablaze if Tamara wasn’t careful. While I didn’t know much about being a blacksmith, I did know Tamara made sure her forge was safe. Henry did too, but that didn’t stop either of their smithies from going up in flames when the harska attacked.

  I shuddered, remembering the night the harska kidnapped Tamara. How the flames had casted an orange glow over Nia and Greenspring as they tried to repel the harska. We had failed that night. Even now, I could still feel the heat on my face as I tried to fight back. I still had nightmares about that day.

  Merchants setting up their shops on the side of the road tried to get my attention, but I ignored them. We hadn’t come to Kent’s Crossing to go shopping. While I was able to ignore them with ease, Beth wasn’t so strong-willed. It took all of my strength to drag her away from a stall selling exotic books.

  We ended up buying three.

  Even though I was eager to get to Tamara’s house, we weren’t really in a hurry. Zadona hadn’t given us a specific date to get to Adelbern. Still, I was excited to see Nia again. I wanted to ask her how her magic practice was going. The last time I saw her, she was able to make her hand look like a fish. An impressive feat even for myself.

  Finally, we climbed the small hill leading up to Tamara and Nia’s house. They had planted flowers along the path, creating a sweet smell in the air. The flowers were white with petals shaped around the yellow center like a pinwheel. Dark green leaves grew from the stem.

  “Gardenias! How wonderful,” said Beth, leaning down to smell them.

  “Must be new. I don’t remember them being here the last time I visited,” I replied.

  The first time I visited Tamara, she had the flowers displayed in her house. They weren’t native to the area, so I had no idea how they planted them so successfully. The pleasant memory of meeting Tamara for the first time came back to me. My arms still ached from all the hard labor she made me do.

  Since then, she’d expanded her house. What had been her old house now made up the entirety of her forge. Racks of swords and armor were displayed prominently. Behind her forge was her new house. It looked big enough for the two of them, but nothing compared to my house. Except for the fact that it was newer.

  Beth walked up and knocked on the door two times. Before she could knock a third time, the door swung open. Nia’s warm smile greeted us on the other side. Today she was wearing a brightly colored linen shirt with a pair of wool pants. Normally, she wore heavy boots, but currently all she had on were wool socks. It seemed like she’d gotten a bit of sun, as her pale skin was slightly red on her face and neck. She wouldn’t tan, a curse I was glad my family didn’t share.

  Something was off. Her eyes kept looking beyond us, unfocusing before snapping back to meet ours. Mentally shrugging, I returned the smile and gave her a hug.

  When it was Beth’s turn to hug Nia, I examined her some more. She was still as large and muscular as I remembered. Her long, golden blonde hair was tied into a ponytail, though it seemed shorter than I remembered it. Under her left eye was a scar trailing down her neck, disappearing under the collar of her clothes. I’d never asked her how she got it, but she had it for as long as I’d known her.

  “Good to see you again, Norman, Beth,” said Nia as she stepped back to look both of us over. Her voice was rough like she regularly chewed on gravel. “Though I wish it were on better terms.”

  “You got my letter?” I asked.

  She nodded. “Another adventure, ay? You just don’t know how to stay out of trouble.”

  I sighed. “You don’t have to come with us.”

  A mess of curly, red hair poked out from behind Nia. It was Tamara, wearing clothes similar to Nia. “Oh, she’s going. There’s no way I’m letting you two go up north without any protection.”

  Beth grinned. “What are you talking about, I’ve got my protection right here,” she said, poking me in the stomach.

  Nia frowned. “You call that protection?”

  The three of them laughed while I groaned. Making fun of me was a common point of interest among the three women. If I didn’t know better, I would think they were being serious. But of course that couldn’t be further from the truth. Beth would never say such things about me and mean it. Right?

  “So, you’re coming with us?” I asked Nia.

  She frowned, beckoning the two of us inside. It was cozy, warm, and very clean. Not a speck of dust anywhere. Small portraits of Nia and Tamara covered the walls. I was surprised to see how well done they were. Probably professionally made. As we walked deeper into the house, I smelled the sweet smell of fresh bread. It was a familiar smell at my own home, instantly making me feel more comfortable.

  “Greenspring went up north too, remember?” she asked as she led us to the kitchen. We sat down around her dining table. It wasn’t as nice as mine.

  “He said he was looking for a few missing druids,” I replied, thinking back to the last time I saw him. More and more druids have gone missing lately. Last I heard, he hadn’t been able to find any of them. It was worrying, but it didn’t really affect me.

  “Have you heard from him?” she asked.

  I frowned. “Not for some time.”

  Nia leaned over the table. “What if it’s connected to that letter you received? You could be walking into a trap.”

  “She’s our friend, Nia,” said Beth, nervously wringing her hands. “She would do the same for us.”

  “You said in your letter you haven’t seen her in years,” said Tamara. “How can you trust her? She could be a totally different person.”

  “We can’t be sure,” I replied. “But I do trust her. It doesn’t matter how long it’s been, friends stay friends.”

  There was a brief moment of silence. Nia and Tamara exchanged a worried look before Nia left the table. I reached over and grabbed Beth’s hand. It wasn’t for her, I needed to know that she was close. When Nia returned, she had her massive double-bladed axe and a bag of her things. Hanging from her bag was an otter pendant clumsily carved from dark colored wood.

  “We leave at dawn,” she said, giving me a firm look. “I sure hope you’re right about Zadona.”

  I nodded. “I am.”