Thundering hooves drowned out my beating heart. Sweat trickled down my face in anticipation of what I was about to do.

Focus.

I wrapped my right hand around the sceptre, pulling it out of my belt sash and gathering what was left of my will.

Every thought of Isla, Kateen, and Shay was pushed out of my mind. Only one thing mattered: The plan.

I checked over my shoulder.

The riders were spreading out with a gap widening in the middle of their line. They were planning to flank us from both sides.

Good.

That meant they wouldn't see our surprise until it was too late.

My eyes darted from them to the sleeping boar in the wagon bed.

"Thor!"

The pack animal's ears twitched.

C'mon…

"THOR! Wake up!"

Thor jolted. He glared at me, groggy-eyed and lips folding around his tusks like a frown.

"We're doing plan B!"

The animal's eyes sparkled with unnatural intelligence. He grunted and attempted to stand on wobbly legs.

I held my breath, fear fluttering in my chest.

Thor's part of the plan was essential. If he was too heavy to move…

The boar huffed, furry brows creased with determination. With supernatural strength, he stood and walked to the front of the wagon. He threw his two front hooves over the back of the driver's bench and stuck his large head out of the canvas canopy.

"You, OK?!"

Thor huffed again, his nostrils flaring.

"Alright, here."

I thrust the wagon's lines into his waiting mouth. He clamped down on the leather tack.

"Ditch the wagon after I make the last jump."

Thor grunted.

It was my turn to stand. Every rock and pebble in our path sent wild vibrations through my legs.

Castille and Dugan pulled in closer on either side of the wagon's team of horses. The horses were arranged in a two-by-two formation, with thick leather harnesses around the base of their necks and blinders on the sides of their faces to keep them looking straight. Leather straps attached the horses to a wooden beam that stuck out from underneath the wagon.

I took a deep, shuddering breath.

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"How close are they?!"

"Close!" Dugan said.

"Get moving, Jacob!" Castille said.

I nodded.

This was crazy. Who came up with his plan? Oh, right. I did.

I squatted, steadied shaking legs, and jumped.

My arms flailed in the air. My feet found the closest horse on the right side of the wagon team. I slipped against slick fur, landing on my groin and thighs.

THUMP!

Spirits below!

The horse screamed and bucked from my sudden weight. I squeezed my legs together, half from the pain, half to keep the horse running.

I grabbed its harness with my left hand and wiped away the sweat drenching my forehead with my right.

One jump down...

One more to go.

My eyes fixed on Isla's horse trailing behind Castille. It was saddled with four bulging backpacks bouncing against its sides.

I leaned forward to take the weight off my legs and get my feet onto the horse's back. I strained and pushed myself up into a crouch, finding a wobbly balance on the beast.

So far, so good.

"JAAAACOOOB!!!"

Shit.

Out of the corner of my eye, riders galloped into view. I didn't have to look to know who was riding on our left. Van Lagos.

"YOU KILLED HIM! YOU KILLED MY BROTHER!!!"

I turned my head. Van Lagos rode parallel to the wagon, thirty to forty feet away. His brown stallion ran ahead of the rest of his cartel, the white fur below its knees a blur of movement. The tan cloak tied around his shoulders flapped behind him, revealing a leather breastplate over a loose white shirt and pants. Matching leather boots were laced up to the middle of his calves, and leather bracers wrapped around his wrists.

He was dressed for a battle—one I needed to avoid.

"IT WAS SELF DEFENCE!" I shouted.

"SELF DEFENCE?! THEN DEFEND YOURSELF FROM THIS!"

Van Lagos let go of his horse's reins. He raised his hands, and a fiery long bow materialized before him. He pulled back the flickering bowstring, and a flaming arrow formed in the space between his hands.

"Oh, come on!"

He shot the bow, and I ducked.

The arrow hissed as it flew over my head.

I needed to move! I was vulnerable here—a sitting duck.

My eyes darted back to Isla's horse.

Was it farther away, or was that my imagination?

"Castille! Bring the horses closer!"

"Hold on! I have my own problems!"

On cue, the second wing of riders came into view on our right. Lira led this charge. She leaned forward on her white speckled horse, her long black braid whipping behind her head.

Another loud hiss, and the wagon's canopy caught on fire.

More arrows whistled by me, made of wood and steel instead of fire. Horses squealed as stray arrows bit into their flesh. The riders on our left had drawn recurved bows and were firing them at all.

Dugan slipped his enchanted shield off his back, slowing his horse to cover the wagon team's left flank. Castille was slowing down, too, but so was the wagon. The injured horses could not maintain their pace.

If the Lagos cartel surrounded us, we would be dead. I had to jump. Now!

"Thor! When I jump, you jump!"

He nodded.

I rose into a squat, braced myself and then an arrow thumped into my back.

My breath caught. The impact pushed me forward, knocking me face-first into the back of the horse's head.

Skull smashed against skull, and the world went white. My feet touched empty air, and then my body was sliding off the horse!

"Jacob!" Castille shouted.

My right arm thrust into the air, clinging to the horse's back. I dangled between the two animals, my feet skipping on the ground.

If I weren't holding the spectre, I would have been knocked out and trampled under hoof and wheel.

"Had a little slip, Jacob?!" Van Lagos asked.

I almost laughed at that.

"Yeah, but I'm just fine!"

"For now!"

My feet found the wooden beam between the horses. I hooked my right leg over the horse's back, pulling myself upright on the beast and wincing from the arrow in my left shoulder blade.

Van Lagos was closer now. He slowed his horse to match the wagon's speed, letting his archers ride ahead of him. Their encirclement was almost complete.

Van Lagos raised his fiery bow, a flaming arrow aimed at my heart.

And then everything happened at once.

I raised my left hand, shooting a bolt of fire the moment he loosed his arrow. The fiery projectiles met in an explosion that rocked the left side of the wagon. One of the archers riding ahead of us shot an arrow at Dugan. It bounced off his enchanted shield and flew into the heart of Van Lagos' horse.

The Dahlgeshi's eyes went wide, and I knew what he was thinking.

Yes, I am a mage. I lied to you again.

The realization hit him a moment before his horse hit the ground.

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