Page 127 of Grave Situation

“That has to be it, right?” I murmur to Jaimin. “There wouldn’t be another lake, would there?” Even as the question leaves my mouth, I realize how stupid it is. Of course there’s more than one lake in these hills. Leicht even told me he’d seen several during his reconnoitering.

But there’s only one with a city built on the shores, and only one with the Hepalt River running from it to the ocean.

“And you’re approaching it,”Leicht says dryly.“I can see you now.”

I glance up, and sure enough, through the thinning canopy I can see Leicht high above us. Jaimin follows my gaze and smiles.

“This is it, then.” He whistles softly to get Coryn’s attention and then gestures in Leicht’s direction. Coryn, who just two nights ago tried to convince me that rivers always run to oceans, even if that means going uphill, somehow immediately comprehends the nonverbal message. I guess his intelligence is so focused in this particular skill set that he has no room to take in other things. He makes up for it with how sweet he is, though.

He reaches the edge of the trees, pauses, then steps out into the full winter sun and approaches the edge of the creek. Would that be a waterfall in the rainy season? How beautiful that would be—a view from the city of waterfalls cascading into the lake. No wonder they decided to build?—

“All clear,” he calls softly. “If anybody’s here, they’re in the city and lying low.”

Sighing with relief, I hand Sweetie’s reins to Jaimin and join Coryn. What I see makes my jaw drop.

“Wow.”

“It’s pretty, isn’t it? Even all falling down like that.” We stare at the city to our left. There are a few scattered buildings as close as a hundred yards along the shore, but the bulk of the stone and wood city is a few hundred yards beyond. The deep blue waters of the lake lap at a stone wall along the waterfront, with buildings rising into the hills beyond. It’s lovely, and I feel a surprising pang of sadness as I think of how it must have been when that waterfront was lined with boats and vendors and people, with pleasure craft skimming the lake. Now, as Coryn said, it’s all falling down, and the only sounds come from the birds and the quiet lap of water against stone.

Speaking of… I look down at the lake by my feet. The surface of the water is only six or eight inches below the creek bed. “Would you say it’s been a particularly wet winter in these parts?” I ask.

Coryn shakes his head. “Not that I’ve heard. I haven’t heard the regional weather reports since I left the barracks at Lenledia, but nobody mentioned anything about it being wet here before then.”

I nod. Not waterfalls, then—at least, not from this creek. It’s more likely that during the wet season, the lake water rises and floods into the creek, running back the way we came. In other words, it’s a good thing we didn’t dawdle.

“Okay. How do we get from here to the city?” I was hoping for a nice beach to stroll along, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Scratching his chin, Coryn says, “There’s probably a road or at least a path from one of those houses.” He points to the one nearest us. “We’ll need to cut through the trees to get there, though. I was hoping we’d be able to walk along the lake’s edge, but the footing doesn’t look safe for horses.”

Studying the trees, I sigh. Even thinned out here, the underbrush is overgrown. I guess he means “cut” literally.

Wonderful.

We call the others up to join us, and then Coryn takes charge. He takes the axe we use for cutting big branches into little ones for firewood, and he begins hacking through the trees and undergrowth. Our job is to make sure the horses don’t get scratched or otherwise injured walking through the resultant still-very-branchy gap. It’s not a fun job, and I’m bleeding from three scratches within the first half hour. Jaimin’s going to be busy later.

“I wonder if these are the same trees that were here when Caimae was populated?” Arimen asks, sounding far too chirpy for this situation. “Think of all the things they’ve seen!”

I’ve never been so grateful in my life for Master’s telepathic knock. Tuning out Arimen’s babble, I say,“Thank you for rescuing me from a discussion about the joy of trees.”

“Talon?”

Master’s mental tone is solemn, and my stomach lurches. Something’s happened.

“What is it?”

“I’m so sorry, Talon. Master Eldridge has informed me?—”

“My students.”Oh gods. No.“Who?”

“Drey Hart.”

I stop walking, and Sweetie crowds up behind me, but she must sense my mood, because she doesn’t bite. Drey. Mr. Baby Merchant. The one I suspended over the chasm that first day… and, once he found his determination, one of my better, more capable students.

If he couldn’t survive, what hope do the others have?

“Talon?” Jaimin asks, but I shake my head.

“What happened?”

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