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that.”
    Neither had the underground rebellion of Dragon Kings who were slowly assembling across the world to battle the human cartels. To disrupt the next Grievance was their primary objective, but he wasn’t about to share knowledge of their existence or purpose. Friends and even family were among their ranks.
    â€œThen your spies aren’t worth what you’re paying them.” She backed away from him. “ I can find out. But only after we find Cadmin’s weapon. Some weapon. She’ll need it.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œShe’s eighteen now, and a Cage warrior. The upcoming Grievance will be her first . . . and it will be the last ever held.”

CHAPTER
THREE
    T he last one,” Mal said, unable to keep the incredulity from his reply. Incredulity—and maybe hope. If the rebels succeeded in their underground war against the cartels . . . But no, he couldn’t start buying into the Pet’s mad prophecies. She would say anything to keep from returning to Greece as his captive. “Grievances have been held for a thousand generations.”
    â€œBy our people. The Five Clans. The Pendray stormed down from the Highlands to fight your Tigony followers for control of Europe. The Sath slinked off the African deserts to use secrets like weapons, while the Garnis appeared seemingly out of nowhere to prove they were not extinct. And the Northern and Southern Indranan proved to be as fractured as ever.” Her voice was rich with passion. “The Grievances held purpose to leech bad blood and keep the Dragon Kings sound as a species, no matter our differences. They’ve only been co-opted by the cartels over the last fifty years. Old Man Aster is very good at using tradition against us.”
    â€œAnd this girl has to do with it how?”
    â€œFighting,” she said. That’s all I know.”
    â€œMore variables?”
    The Pet shook her head. “No. The fighting is a fixed point. How it happens is a mystery.”
    â€œBut it involves you and me being here?”
    â€œYou? I couldn’t say yet. Me, however—yes.”
    She shrugged free of his hold and continued her careful trudge through the maze. The sun continued its slow slope toward the western horizon. The deepening gold and pink cast color over her skin and clothing, but her black, black hair absorbed the light. It was a tangle of spikes and twists that could’ve been intentional, or a testament to some wild disregard for the outside world. Aside from her ability to fight, she seemed to live exclusively in a make-believe place in her mind.
    Mal experienced a sudden flash of regret. He should’ve been at the Greek fortress to spend more time with her, to learn more about her. The Council had occupied his time, as had the bloody resurgence of the civil war between the northern and southern factions of Clan Indranan across the Indian subcontinent. Rumor had it that his late aunt’s brother-in-law, Tallis, the Heretic, was involved in the explosion of new violence. Mal needed to get back to civilization in order to deal with problems that could wipe out the Dragon Kings even faster than watching each generation wither and flake away.
    But now, the Pet had quickly rocketed to the top of his list of priorities.
    â€œWe’re not going to make it to the nearest village before sundown,” he said.
    Her back was straight, but the furtive way she moved made her seem on the defensive. Although she stood at her full yet diminutive height, she gave off the appearance of crouching and readying for attack, that appearance of crouching and making herself seem smaller. Had life with Dr. Aster developed that means of self-defense?
    Why did that idea twist in his chest? She was powerful. She was formidable. Yet, how many years had she spent watching and waiting for the next blow?
    â€œI won’t be heading into a village.” She turned a corner, then another, and