Mr. Hobbs peeked out the door. “Is he gone, Fin?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

The old man let out a sigh. “Thank the gods.” The short, squat man wobbled over to me. “Are you alright?”

“I’ll be fine.” I glanced in the direction the man had left. “Who was he?”

“Best not to discuss him.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “Someone like that man, you should forget ever meeting him. Understood?”

“Yes, sir,” I breathed. I really wanted to know what kind of man could hold fire, though. Well, if anything, I just wanted to touch him. “He’s different.”

“Alright, Fin.” Mr. Hobbs took a list out of his pocket. “Your caretaker said you know herbs.”

My shoulders dropped. I didn’t want to look for stupid herbs. I wanted to go after the stranger. “Yes, sir. I gather them for Mrs. Haywood all the time.” I snatched the list out of his wrinkly hands and quickly read it.

“Yes, well,” he stepped inside and grabbed a pouch with a shoulder strap. “Here you go.”

I took it from him and looped it over my head.

“Be careful with them. There’s nothing worse than a squashed plant. Ruins the integrity.” He waved his finger at me before going back inside.

“Weird old man,” I whispered. Turning down the road, I headed for the cliffs where most of this stuff could be found.

Once I reached town, I found it was a lot quieter that day. Everyone was busy, hurrying about their different tasks. A large black stain still marred the center of the courtyard. I dropped to a knee at its edge and went to touch it. Someone stepped in front of me and I looked up to see the governor.

“Best be leaving that alone, boy.”

“Yes, sir.” I quickly stood and backed away from the singed ground.

“What are you going this far away from the Haywoods’, Fin?” He narrowed his dark eyes at me. “I know Paul won’t hesitate to give you a good beating if he finds out you’ve been causing trouble.”

“I have a job now, sir.” I grabbed the list from my bag and held it up to him. “I’m going to the cliffs.”

Mr. Lockhart took it from me and read over the contents. “Taking on some responsibility.” He gave it back to me. “Just be careful. The cliffs are dangerous, and if you see anything inhuman, come and tell me and I’ll take care of it.”

“Like what?”

He patted my head. “You better be off. Don’t keep the old man waiting for his herbs.” Turning sharply, he left me standing there.

I quickly messed up my hair where he had touched it and tried not to glare at the arrogant man. This wasn’t the first time I had gone to the cliffs. And even if I did see something, I wasn’t telling him. He’d just kill it. I marched down the road, but my mood started to lighten as I thought it over. Shapeshifters were burned. If I found one and told the governor, I could see the flames again. I could watch the fire grow.

The excitement was enough to make me jog all the way to the drop-off. Herbs weren’t the only thing I’d be looking for now.

I stood atop the small hill that overlooked the junction. Two paths ran off in either direction. One led to the mine and the other to the bottom of the ravine. A tall gray tower sat in the middle where the watchman made sure nothing crawled up from below. Men were herding animals toward the southern path. The forbidden path, unless someone wanted to get themselves killed. At least, that was what I had been taught in school. I was still curious about what might be down there.

“Well, well.” A hand slapped my back. “What’s the little orphan doing here?”

I shrugged our neighbor’s hand off. “Getting herbs for Mr. Hobbs.”

Jake folded his arms and looked out over the gathering. “Paul found you a job. He’s been bringing it up for awhile now.”

“Yep.” I adjusted the strap on my shoulder.

“Be happy it’s not the mine,” chuckled Jake.

“Yeah,” I sighed. I was really, really happy actually. “What are they doing?” I motioned to the animals.

“Tribute,” he replied. “Every three months we send a little something to the god that lives in the ravine. He’s more likely to keep all his little monsters down there with him when he’s well fed.”

“No one’s ever said anything to me about that before.”

“It’s a sensitive topic,” laughed Jake. “The governor hates that we’re feeding a demon. The one that lives in that hole isn’t your typical god. But from what I hear, he’s not one to make mad, either.”

A man yelled for Jake’s help and he hurried off to tie off a wagon. Slowly walking down the slight decline, I watched them for a moment. Men had come by before to take a chicken or a pig from the house. Mr. Haywood was always in a bad mood afterward, and his wife had a tough job of getting him to calm down. This was the first time, I actually knew what they were doing with it.

I moved a little closer and stretched out my neck. There was a mist that blurred out the trail. Demon or god? It seemed Reese wasn’t the only one who didn’t believe.