Page 95 of Secrets of Graves and Gold

Stavros hums softly. “When Ivy turned his followers against him, Ster. Torstem did give himself up to the fire. There could be something to this theory.”

His approval stokes my confidence. “And why would they see fire as an ideal weapon against their own enemies if they didn’t recognize just how powerful it can be?”

Toast huffs as if impatient with our stop and paws the ground restlessly. Ivy pets his neck. “They definitely saw it as a force to be reckoned with. How do you think we can use that fact to our advantage?”

An image has already been forming in my mind, but her direct question makes me hesitate. An uneasy ache resonates through my chest alongside the thrill of the discovery.

I found what might be the key to overcoming the scourge sorcerers… but Ivy’s the one who’ll have to put my theory into action. One more burden weighing down on her.

But if it’s the last burden she’ll have to shoulder, won’t that be worth it? Isn’t that exactly what I was searching for?

I lift my gaze to meet hers, watching for any sign of discomfort. “Tonight when the Order of the Wild is making camp, you could conjure a wall of fire that moves as if to consume them. If the actual scourge sorcerers among the ‘Wildings’ have the same mentality as those before, you won’t need to take it any farther than that—you won’t have to actually hurt anyone. They’ll lose their resolve, and their dedication to their mission will fall apart.”

“You could burn up some of the daimon to free them as well,” Rheave suggests.

Ivy frowns, but it’s more of a thoughtful expression than an unsettled one. “If I make a wall big enough to terrify them, I’m not sure I should try to stretch my control even farther. But just a big mass of flames moving in one direction shouldn’t be that difficult. I’ll have to freeze a lot of trees to balance things out.” She lets out a short laugh.

“It seems overly simple,” Stavros says. “And if the trick doesn’t shatter their conviction, they’ll know someone was working magic against them. They’ll search us out.”

Ivy shrugs. “If it comes to that, I can stop them from finding us. None of our smaller attempts have had a real impact—we need to do something big.”

Another spark of inspiration lights in my head. “Perhaps you could shape the flames just a bit, make the impression of a face in the fire. Give them the sense that it’s a warning from the gods rather than a magical attack.”

Casimir smiles crookedly. “That might frighten anyone into giving up a quest, scourge sorcerer or not.”

“Perfect.” Ivy squares her shoulders, and just for an instant, I think I see her jaw flex with tension she quickly masters. The ache in my chest expands.

I could tell her to forget it. That we’ll find another way that doesn’t require her tapping into the magic she avoided for so long even more than she already has.

But I honestly can’t imagine what that other way could be. This one move could be the end of our struggle. We leave the scourge sorcerers shaken and demoralized, and they’ll either scatter back to their homes or be so much easier for us to finish picking them apart.

And we can return to King Konram not just victorious but with a proven strategy for snuffing out the rest of the conspiracy that threatens him and his family.

“We have plenty of time to think over the best approach while we’re still marching after them,” I say. “We’d better keep going before they get too much of a lead.”

Ivy makes a sound of scoffing amusement. “I can follow their trail anywhere.”

By the time Ivy senses that the march has stopped, it’s fully dark other than the moonlight that casts an eerie glow over the landscape. I suppose we should be glad even that’s not swallowed up by clouds tonight.

To our benefit, the Order of the Wild seems to prefer to make their camps with a border of woodland around them, presumably to keep them even more hidden from afar if there’s a brief faltering of their concealing magic. That makes it easy for us to find a sheltered spot nearby to set up our own camp.

Tonight, Stavros doesn’t bother building a fire or unpacking the blankets. We find a clump of bushes with leaves the horses are happy to strip, and Ivy gulps down a quick meal of pilfered dried venison and bread to fortify herself.

My stomach has clenched too tightly for me to think about eating before we set my plan in motion. When she tugs her cloak closer around her and looks toward the Order camp as if ready to set off, I clear my throat. “I’m coming with you.”

Ivy jerks around to stare at me. “What?”

I hate that she’s so startled by the declaration. That it never even occurred to her I might stand by her in this.

I draw myself up to look as confident as possible. “It was my idea. You should have someone with you who can keep an eye on everything that’s going on while you concentrate completely on your magic.”

Rheave steps forward. “I can come too.”

Stavros clears his throat. “If anyone’s going to watch out for Ivy, I should?—”

“Men.” Casimir’s soft voice is firm enough to cut through Stavros’s words. He aims one of his fond smiles at Ivy. “We all want to protect Ivy. But the more people go with her, the more she has to worry about keeping hidden. Let’s not strain her with our desire to prove ourselves?”

Rheave deflates with a guilty expression. He looks at Ivy. “I don’t want to make it harder for you.”

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