Page 10 of Warlords, Witches & Wolves

“We take him to the Order.”

Anise winced. “But you went against Order rules.” Her watering eyes locked with her friend’s. “Why?”

Why, when he’d always avoided getting involved in the past?

He held her stare.

“Maybe what happened to you has taught me some things. Maybe right or wrong doesn’t have defined borders.” He shrugged. “You were right, Anise. If I’ve got the ability to do something, I should.”

The smile she sent him stretched so wide it hurt her cheeks. “Good to see something is getting through that woolly head of yours.”

Their moment didn’t last long before she saw something flicker in his eyes. Consequence. He may be finally understanding that saving all lives mattered, but nothing happened in a vacuum. Caraway’s actions could have dire consequences, and if his convictions weren’t strong enough, then he’d ultimately blame her for any punishment he received as a result of saving this baby.

The Guardians took following orders seriously, and if you failed, you weren’t much use to the Order.

Her smile faded. “I hope you didn’t do this just to make me happy.”

“I thought this is what you wanted? Me getting involved.”

Turmoil swirled in her stomach. “I want you to get involved with things like this because it’s the right thing to do, not because you think it would make me happy.”

The baby started crying again, and Anise tucked it close.

“We can finish this conversation later,” he said and pulled out a portal stone from his pocket. “For now, we’d better get the infant to safety. This is the only stone I have keyed to the Order, but I can get another while we’re there. Unless you had an alternative route back from the Ice-Witch.”

She shrugged. She had planned to shift into a wolf form and use her more weather-proof animal body to trot home. Wolves could travel miles through the snow in one day. Failure hadn’t been an option. But now… now she understood things could go wrong.

Caraway's boss, the Prime, might let him off with a wrist slap for what he’d done, but if Anise let him follow her to the Ice-Witch, and he got into more trouble, she wouldn’t forgive herself. This rebellion thing of his was new to him, despite her harping on about it for years. He needed time to process his actions and motivations. Anise refused to be the one who ruined the life he’d built for himself, not when he’d struggled after leaving his pacifist family behind for the violent life at the Order.

When they arrived at the Order, she would find someone to activate the portal stone to the Ice-Witch, and she would leave Caraway behind. It was the right choice.

* * *

When they arrivedin the field outside the Order of the Well compound, Anise handed the baby to Caraway.

“I’ll wait for you here,” she said.

He frowned. “Are you sure? Clarke is probably inside.”

As tempting as it was to see her friend, Anise already felt her resolve weakening, and visiting the Ice-Witch had been her sole purpose for half a decade. She couldn’t chicken out now.

“I’m good,” she said.

He raised a brow, but turned and left. When the big compound gates closed after he’d walked through, she turned and pulled out the troll’s portal stone from her pocket. The smooth, warm surface fit in the palm of her hand. She assumed there would be a magical reaction when she touched it—if she held mana within her body. She wondered what it would feel like to be connected viscerally to all the magic in the world, to have her own internal Well that fed from the grand Cosmic Well.

But she didn’t.

And it was because she didn’t that Caraway had already gotten into trouble. The Prime wouldn’t be happy about his meddling, let alone bringing home a stray baby. And if he kept assisting in Anise’s journey to the witch, then she would feel the same as she always did—useless.

The stone could be another test. The Ice-Witch knew why Anise sought her out. She’d have known that Anise couldn’t activate a portal stone on her own, that she’d need help.

If Caraway hadn’t been there, she’d probably have had to barter with the troll to get him to activate it, or to travel to a village and find a high fae to help her.

With a sigh, she faced the guard on top of the wall surrounding the Order compound. He wore a helmet made from hardened leather and a black leather Guardian uniform. A longbow was in his hands, and a quiver of arrows strapped to his back.

“Excuse me,” she said, waving up to him.

He looked down.

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