Page 9 of Heirs of the Cursed

“It’s the Chaser,” Sadira whispered.

“The . . . What?” Darcia blinked. “Who?”

“Do you live in a cave or something?”

“Well, considering that my stepbrother won’t let me so much as step on the street without his consent, it’s a pretty accurate description of my life, yes.”

“He’s a great warrior in Prince Killian’s army,” Sadie explained. “His name is Harg Koller and everyone says he is the most dangerous general in the kingdom. He is known as the Chaser because, when there’s a threat, the king releases him to find it and finish it off. So far, he has never failed.”

“And what is he doing here in Dawnfall?” Darcia questioned, even more confused.

“No idea. But whatever it is, it can’t be good.”

The illusionist was well aware of that. The five great cities that made up Laivalon were known for different reasons: Bellmare for its harbors, its vice and its brothels; Hamleigh for its misty forests and crystal lakes; Evrethia for its abandoned houses and the ghosts of the dead; and Camdenn, of course, for power and gold . . .

But Dawnfall was home to humble and poor citizens. Some people passed through to experience the circus shows, and soldiers spent a night from time to time as they headed south, toward the Prison of the Forgotten—an unmapped prison where the most dangerous thieves and traitors were confined.

But the king had never sent anyone as important as the Chaser.

“I think I should close the bakery for the day,” Sadira muttered, “and spend the rest of the weekend doing nothing.”

“Your mother will probably be upset,” Darcia said.

“As soon as she sees the soldiers, she will padlock all the doors of the establishment.”

Darcia turned her attention back to the street, where the soldiers had regrouped. The windows of shops and huts weresoon filled with confused and sleepy faces at the armed soldiers, who darted their eyes around warily.

“I’ll inform my father of this.”

“You should.” Sadira nodded. “I’ll pack you everything to go, and you can have breakfast on the way. Take the back door, just in case they intend to ask questions.”

“What would they want to ask a circus girl?”

“I don’t know, Darcie. I just know that it must be serious to sendhimhere.”

Sadira stroked her arm affectionately and hurried behind the counter to get everything ready.

The uncertainty grew more violent when the mayor of Dawnfall came out to greet the troop as if they’d been invited. But something inside Darcia whispered to her that none of them were welcome.

As Darcia left the bakery, she assessed which was the shortest way to get to her father’s cabin. The sun pressing on the back of her neck worsened her headache, making her steps unstable, but it was her nervousness that made her trip over her own feet several times.

On her way back to the hut, she encountered a small group of Dawnfallians looking weathered and in tattered clothes. She didn’t need to use her powers to discern the fear that spread around them like a suffocating mist.

“You can’t stay here,” Darcia informed them. “The king’s soldiers are in the city.”

“We have seen them,” one of the men said in a broken voice, his green eyes dulled by the lack of hope. “We can still leave. If we march into the eastern woods . . .”

“It’s a bad idea.” The older woman shook her head. “The wolves are hunting!”

Darcia wanted to say something, but held her tongue, knowing that she’d be considered crazy for her thoughts regarding the wolves. Although they kept their distance, Darcia had seen how some of them lurked around the cabin since she was a child. She’d always felt a certain sympathy for those misunderstood creatures.

“Please, find somewhere to hide,” she implored them. “It’s the safest thing to do for the moment.”

“Have you not heard the stories about him?” the first man asked, referring to the Chaser.

Darcia shook her head. Until Sadira had told her about Harg Koller, she hadn’t even known of his existence.

“There’s not a single place that’s safe if he’s around,” the old woman whispered. “He was always a skilled soldier in the Royal Army, but it was a few years ago, after the War of the Four Nobles, that he earned his famous title.”

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