“Gerrin, how far are we from the Outpost?” Kassian asked, frowning as he looked around the quiet forest surrounding them from all sides. It had started pouring so hard on the second day that it forced them to seek shelter. So now they were half a day late, arriving shortly before midnight instead of midday.
“Ten minutes,” his second-in-command replied, eyes darting around just as warily.
“Shouldn’t we have seen patrols by now?”
“We should have.”
The two exchanged a long look and reached for their weapons at the same time. The others followed suit, filling the silent night with the sound of metal ringing.
Kassian’s neck turned stiff from the tension, but his eyes continued to study the shadows for any movement or a deadly arrow that could end him on the spot. They should have waited
