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From her vantage in the overworld Lily could see that each speaking stone was unique. Each had a slightly different hue from the others, making it possible to know where your message was coming from based on the tint of the image you saw. Lily saw Grace’s line of speaking stones stretching across the continent and meeting up with another line of thirteen speaking stones down the eastern seaboard, one to each of the Thirteen Cities. Now that Lily had both of the paths clear in her mind’s eye she could use them when she returned to her body.
She soared back down to her body, noticing that the sky was turning pink. Rowan was sitting on the ground cross-legged next to her still form. She entered her body and felt the chill of stiff muscles and a creaky ache in all her joints as she dragged in a rattling breath.
“There you are,” Rowan said. He started chafing her cold limbs. “Where did you go?”
Lily’s teeth were chattering too hard to answer right away. Rowan lifted her up and brought her closer to the coals of the fire.
“All the way across the country and ba
ck,” she finally managed to croak. “I’ve never been this cold before.”
“It’s the tattoos. You’ll have to be more conscious of getting cold now.” Rowan sat behind her and wrapped his arms around her, holding her hands closer to the fire. “Why did you go so far?”
“I was looking for the line of speaking stones all the way across the country,” she told him. “It’s how Grace claims and controls the wild Woven from so far away.”
“Did you find them?”
“Yes.”
“Can you jump us to them?” he asked, the wheels in his head already turning.
“I can’t jump anywhere unless I have the vibration of that specific location in my willstone, and I don’t have any claimed near the speaking stones to gather the vibrations for me. I could send out riders, though. I know where the nearest one is.”
Rowan’s face lit up with hope. “All we need to do is pull down the one closest to us and Grace won’t be able to reach the wild Woven in our area.”
“Knock out any link in the chain and her signal would fall short. She wouldn’t be able to make them attack us anymore,” Lily said musingly, nodding her head. She looked at the fire, frowning. Grace wouldn’t be able to use the line of speaking stones—but neither would Lily.
Rowan sat back, studying her face. “You’re hesitating.”
“Because I need the speaking stones to communicate with one of my claimed,” she replied evasively.
“Who?” His eyes narrowed when he saw her hesitate. “Did you claim Toshi?” he asked, jealousy flushing red across his cheekbones.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “Pale One.”
“The Woven?” he asked needlessly. He drew away from Lily, a thinly veiled look of disgust on his face.
“Would you rather I had no one scouting for us out west?” Lily asked, frustrated.
“Honestly? I think it’s a small thing to give up to keep the Woven from attacking us,” he said angrily. “What do you really want the speaking stones for?”
Lily felt Breakfast brush against her mind and she was glad for the interruption. It kept her from having to explain her real reason for needing the speaking stones intact. Her eyes unfocused as she listened to Breakfast.
I found Red Leaf, he told her.
Where is he? Lily immediately shared what she was getting from Breakfast with the rest of the coven.
He’s in bad shape. A raptor has him. This is what he showed me . . .
. . . I only let my eyes crack open—barely enough to see—and hope that it doesn’t notice that I’m awake. If it thinks I’m awake, it holds me tighter to keep me from struggling until I can barely breathe.
Great, leathery talons encircle my chest and my waist. Wings that are ten times the length of a man pound the clouds to either side of me. I’m so cold and the air is so thin.
There’s that voice in my head again that is so like mine. Maybe I’m crazy. Maybe I’m dying. The voice inside my head asks me where I am.
I look down and see nothing below but flat green stretches. The Ocean of Grass. A cloud hangs low on the horizon—a smudge across the otherwise blue sky. No. Not a cloud. Great Spirit, protect me. It’s the Hive . . .
He’s about halfway across the country, Una said in mindspeak.
