The earth seemed to rock and sway, bringing unease to Kira's stomach. Her senses were vaguely aware of the chill pressing through her tunic and pants. A rock pressed on the mid of her back, digging into the flesh. Kira was sure it would leave a bruise, but she didn't care to move at first.

She lay on her back, listening to the soft pops of a fire. Smells of smoke and damp wood filled her nostrils while pinpricks reverberated through both legs. Exhaustion made her afraid if she opened her eyes she might explode to dust or nothingness. Her body felt off to her, like a part of her soul had gone missing.

A voice she didn't recognize muttered low enough she couldn't make out the words, though his tone suggested his irritation at something. Fear gripped her heart. The last thing she remembered was watching the guard slit Emma's throat. His manic smile would forever be burned on her retinas. Inside her head, his dagger repeatedly sliced her aunt's throat with no sign of the hell ending. Tears welled in her eyes as she fought back the rage boiling in her. If she was captured, she wouldn't go down without a fight. The bastard cursing beside her would pay for what he did. She dug her fingers into the damp soil and tried to call out her magic to entrap the man until she questioned him. Nothing came. Deeper her fingers continued to sink, but all it gave her was a muddy hand.

"I know ye be up," the foreign voice said.

Kira opened her eyes in time for a piece of wood landed on her chest. Her fingers released from the soil before removing the wood.

"If yer hungry, too bad. Yer food in yer bag didn't last long. Clearly it wasn't meant for more than a single person."

"That food was supposed to last me a week." Kira pushed up on her elbows and looked around. Oak tree's sheltered them from the sky. Darkness swallowed what little she could see through the thick branches and trunks. Moonlight illuminated rocks enough to suggest a dirt road stood within feet of the grove she found herself in.

Her eyes turned from the road to examine the camp. She recognized her horse tied to a tree, nibbling on the dead grass at its base, but not the man sitting by the fire. He sat close to the flames, warming his hands on them, with his knees pulled tight to his chest.

"Ye eat like a bird if a single loaf of bread was to last a week. I'm Addrick, before ye ask," he said. Her mind formed an image of the young man exchanging his body for that of the leopard. The image was hazy at first, trapped behind layers of particles floating in the air, until it came into focus.

"You shifted from the leopard . . ."

"Aye, I did."

"You have magic?"

"Aye."

Kira shrieked when Addrick reached into the fire and pulled out a hand full of flames. They curled over his fingers and snaked his forearm before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

His cheeks dimpled with his grin. "This fire was created by me. It cannot harm me as it would harm ye, or yer friend. Magic harms the world surrounding us, but not the caster of the power."

"My fri . . ." Kira's eyes widened as she looked around the grove again, she jumped to her feet, ignoring the nausea feeling in her stomach, exhaustion evaporating with her racing heart. "Ry! Where's Ry?"

"I sent him to a village half a day's ride east of here. We needed supplies."

"You sent him alone? They're after us!"

Addrick waved a dismissive hand. "Nay, they're after ye. Not him. And I will not let ye out of my sight now that I've found ye. If he dies, I don't care. Ye are the priority, not him."

"You heartless bastard!" Kira shouted. Addrick raised a hand to his chest. His fingers pressed against the area of his heart as if he was checking it was still there.

"That's the second time I've heard that. My heart beats in my chest as it always does. Ye both are daft."

"Take me to Ry, now." One hand rose in front of Kira, fingers and palms pointed to Addrick. His smile widened as he crossed his arms. When he didn't speak up fast enough, Kira flicked her fingers. She desired to send electrical bolts his way, but nothing came. One eyebrow raised as her eyes turned to her hands. Again she flicked her fingers, but nothing came.

"Ye can't do yer magic right now. I've bound it."

"You've what?"

Addrick rose to his feet and moved to Kira. At his full height he towered over her, broad shoulders stood straight and Kira found herself envious of his impeccable posture. It made her feel as though she were in the presence of royalty. Only the King and his heir had a posture as straight as Addrick's. A blush colored her cheeks as she averted her gaze to his gray eyes instead of his shoulders. Internally she cursed herself for allowing her mind to examine him so closely.

"So long as I draw breath, yer magic is controlled by me until I release it to ye," he said.

Kira balled her fists as her eyes glanced to a dagger strapped around his waist. She recognized it as Ry's dagger he kept hiding in his satchel. Her heart sank. He'd never let his dagger go to a stranger like Addrick. With a deep breath, she stepped closer to Addrick.

"Then maybe," she said in an almost whisper. Her lips quivered as she placed a hand against his chest. Fingers stroked his clavicle as she looked up to him with a smile on her face. She teased the idea of giving him a gentle nibble on his ear. "You shouldn't draw breath."

Addrick never flinched despite her pressing the weight of her body into him. Her free hand wrapped around the hilt of the dagger. Before she pulled it from the belt, Addrick grabbed her wrist. Everything around her became a blur as he growled. Gray had momentarily replaced with the golden eyes of the leopard. The tree trunk cracked under the force in which he slammed her against it. A splinter broke off and sliced through her side. Kira screamed at the onslaught of pain. Both hands pinned above her head, held together by one of Addrick's. His other hand held the dagger to her throat. Cool steel stung her skin. Addrick's face moved closer and she feared he might unleash his animal side and eat her whole.

"Ye are a foolish, hot headed, idiot." Breath steamed her face as he grunted. Kira tried to squirm free, but he was stronger in every way. The efforts did nothing but cut her skin under the dagger. "Ye have been going around using yer magic in front of that friend with no regards to what it might do to yer kind."

"My kind? I don't have a kind."

Addrick's eyes narrowed. His body pressed tight against her, keeping her locked between him and the tree. Without her magic to push him off, she knew she'd never escape his grasp. As strong as Ry was, Kira thought Addrick might be stronger. Problem was, she'd never feared Ry the way she feared Addrick. His eyes closed as his snarl vanish, hiding the teeth Kira was positive sharpened with his anger. He pushed away and holstered the dagger, returning to the fire with a sigh.

"Ye really don't realize yer Wilder, do ye? Though Wilder is not our original name, humans gave us that name when we came from Calandria on the day of the locking. Time has taken it from our memories, however. Yer still Wilder all the same, regardless of the name."

"I'm not a Wilder," she said.

He glanced over his shoulder. Creases formed around his eyes as he laughed. "Oh, but ye are. Or did ye think it was perfectly normal for ye to be the only one in yer village, or any village, with red hair?"

"What does my hair have to do with anything?"

"Our magic is what makes our hair shine as though it burns. Brighter the red, stronger the magic. Yers is strong, I'd sense that even if I had not seen it with my eyes. But yer reckless. Ye let yer emotions get the better of ye and it will be yer undoing."

"Well excuse me for being upset my aunt died in front of my eyes." She crossed her arms and stamped a foot against the ground. Though she could no longer see his face, gaze settled on the fire, his body shook enough to show his laugh.

"Aye, maybe ye and that lad are brother and sister after all."

"Is that why the guards are after me? Because they know I have magic? But how? I've been careful. Nobody but Ry and Emma knew."

"Ye were at the castle, aye?"

Kira sat by Addrick. She'd forgotten her back was wet from the ground until fire warmed away the moisture. His head tilted to stare at her. Fire colored his skin in a bright orange, making him appear almost more devil than man. Her eyes drifted to the stubs of his hair. Its length was too short to get more than the hint of copper and Kira found her mind wandering to what it might look like long.

"Despite my magic, my skills are not in mind reading. I will need ye to speak yer answer. Ye were at the castle, aye?"

Kira jumped, her attention moved from his hair to his face. She nodded. "Yeah, the Coming of Age dance. It's when—"

"I know what the Coming of Age dance is. I'm a Wilder. Not ignorant like ye. Humans and their archaic traditions. As if ye can have any idea ye love someone the moment ye meet them." Kira bit on her tongue to keep from publicly agreeing with him. "Did ye use magic at any point at this dance?"

Her mouth opened to say no, but then she remembered what she did to Amanda's hair besides her boredom entertainment with ice. Once again color flooded her cheek as she stared to the ground.

Addrick sighed. "As I thought. Yer an idiot."

"But nobody saw me." Her eyes lifting to meet his once more.

"They don't have to see it when there's another Wilder nearby. The castle is the worst place to use magic. We can sense when power is used around us. Our bodies, our minds, it's as if we become compelled to seek out the power. In time, we can train ourselves to ignore the sensation if we choose, but at first it's a compulsion we can't ignore."

"If you're about to tell me the king is a Wilder, then maybe you're the idiot."

Addrick laughed. "Nay, not the king. Something far worse and more dangerous than the king. Rodyn. One of the last of the Guardians of Calandria and the last person you want to have sense your magic."

"Who? The what?"

Addrick pinched the bridge of his nose and growled. "By the Gods, ye understand nothing."

His hand waved over the fire. It snapped as the flames lifted from the wood and imploded on itself. A fireball floated in midair, fissures bursting from the sides. Addrick lowered his hand and scooped the ball into his palm. He stared at the flames, turning the ball over. His hand tightened around the fire and extinguished it, smoke drifting from between his loose fingers.

"Let's find yer friend. The sooner I get ye to New Calandria, the sooner I'm done with ye."

"And why should Ry and I go anywhere with you?"

"Yer wanted for murder. Do ye think ye can go anywhere else? Be thankful I'm allowing yer pet human to go with us. Most humans aren't allowed anywhere near New Calandria."

"It's dark. You want to go out in the dark?"

"I'm a shape-shifter, Kira. I can see in the dark."

"Why should I trust you? Who is this Rodyn? What are the Guardians?"

"I'd have thought ye'd be happy to go get yer friend. And now ye want to sit here and have a chat? Answers are coming, Kira. But ye have plenty more questions to ask first."

Addrick untied the horse, grabbing it by the bit before leading it out to the path. Kira followed silently. He slipped one foot through the stirrup and pulled himself into the saddle. Moonlight appeared to surround him in a glow as he leaned over and offered a hand to Kira. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

"Can ye see in the dark?"

"No, but—"

"Then how do ye expect to lead a horse? It's through uneven, rough terrain, canyons all over the place that come out of nowhere in the dark. Ye have to be aware of where ye are at all times this close to the mountains. Besides, do ye even know which village Rylanne went to?" He wiggled his fingers and nodded toward his hand. "My leopard eyes will guide us even when moonlight fails. Like it or not, ye have to trust me, otherwise we wait for daylight."

Kira sighed and slipped her hand into his. She felt the strength of his pull as he tugged on her arm to help her onto the horse behind him. Having to trust a man she'd known for a matter of minutes didn't sit well with her. For her entire life she'd always been independent and now she found herself at the mercy of Addrick.

"Where's my sword and bag?"

"The bag is in the satchel and the sword is to yer right, attached to the saddle. I'll wait for yet to tie it around ye if it'll get ye to shut up so we can go."

"How exactly does my bag fit in the satchel?" She leaned to her side and grabbed the sword, strapping it to her waist.

"Magic, of course."

When Kira finished adjusting her sword, she grabbed the back of the saddle. Addrick glanced over his shoulders with a tight smile. He said no word before he clicked his heels into the horse's sides. It took off at a full gallop, nearly knocking Kira off. She screamed before moving her arms to hug Addrick's waist instead.

"I don't think I like you," she said.

"Not my fault ye don't know how to share a horse."

Kira grumbled as she gripped the front of Addrick's tunic and hung on for dear life. Wind rushed by her as the horse bobbed and weaved around boulders or holes in the ground. There wasn't enough light from the moon for her to make out anything outside the glow of a rock or the shadow of an animal cutting through the landscape. Addrick was right; she would've plummeted into one of the canyons or broken the horse's leg on a boulder. If it weren't for the fear nagging at her, she might have enjoyed the adventure. Most of her life was spent within the Glades except the rare occasion she joined Emma on trips to the castle. She'd dreamed of life outside the Glades, but now she could think of nothing but returning to her sheltered world.

Sunlight kissed the horizon by the time they reached the farms of the village. Addrick slowed the horse to a stop and stared at a wooden post in the ground. Kira looked toward the faint signs of life in the distance. When his body went rigid, Kira tried to peer over his shoulder. He continued to silently stare at the wood post. Muscles tensed along his abdomen, Kira sensed them under her grip. Addrick pulled on the reins to direct the horse to the side of the road. They pulled in behind a large mound of hay, hiding the view of the village.

"What's going on?" Kira asked.